Women’s Tattoos: Best Designs and Their Meanings with Photos

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Tattooing is a form of body art, a way of self-expression and demonstration of one’s beliefs. Most women get inked to express their personality, attract luck, or just to adorn their bodies. However, before you get a tattoo, make sure to study the meanings of the design. Let’s look at the most common tattoo designs for women and their meanings.

Women’s Tattoos: An Introduction

Many women treat tattoos as a way to express their personality and view of life. However, in some cases, ink is just an unusual body decoration. In many countries, tattoos on women became a norm not so long ago. But in India, for example, the tattooing tradition is deeply embedded in the country’s culture in the form of mehndi.

Why Women Get Inked

Earlier, tattoos served not only an aesthetic but also a practical purpose. In ancient times, people believed that patterns on different body parts could help to change the wearer’s destiny, avoid misfortune, and attract luck. Nowadays, tattoos are mostly viewed as a way to decorate your body or convey an important personal message.

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If you ask tattoo artists why women get tattoos, you will probably hear something along the lines of the following:

to try something new
to hide skin imperfections, for example, scars
to raise self-esteem
to stand out
to celebrate a relationship or an important event
to express their beliefs or interests.

Sometimes unusual tattoos on women do not mean something special. They can just go for a certain design

if they like it
if they want to decorate their body with work by a famous tattoo artist
if the new design complements an older tattoo.

Variations of one and the same design can mean different things. As a rule, tattoo artists have great knowledge of various symbols, so it’s worth consulting with a professional before deciding on a design.

Popular Motifs and Their Meanings

Let’s look at some designs that can be commonly seen on women.

Rose

The rose symbolizes youth, beauty, love, revival, and a strong personality. This flower embodies almost all qualities many women value in themselves. A rose with thorns can speak of sorrow.

Hummingbird

This small bright bird represents uniqueness, delicacy, softness, and grace. Just like many other bird tattoos, hummingbird tattoos are associated with independence and the desire to be free.

Dolphin

A dolphin tattoo on a girl may mean friendliness, openness, the desire of spiritual and material wealth, and the love for the water element.

Butterfly

Butterflies are associated with delicacy, independence, beauty, and charm. Some women want such a design to highlight their soft and loyal personality. Others see butterflies as the symbol of openness and the desire to explore. A flying butterfly can speak of the search for freedom and independence. Symmetrical wings also mean harmony, balance, and maturity.

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Angel

The angel is seen as a guardian and women often choose this motif as a talisman. Another common meaning is thinking of oneself as a little and pure creature.

Snake

Snake tattoos can have very different meanings: wisdom and practice of medicine on the one hand and temptation, cunning, and treachery on the other. To give a design additional connotations, artists add different elements: a rose says that the wearer is not without sin, the moon means secret knowledge and wisdom, and a sword — that life is a constant struggle.

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Wolf

Tattoos depicting this ferocious yet majestic predator are a common pick of men. Wolf tattoos on women are much less common. Women treat this motif as the symbol of loyalty, bravery, the ability to defend oneself and be aggressive when it’s needed.

Fox

A fox tattoo is often associated with sexiness, cunning, acumen, and the ability to come off clear in any situation. Women who go for a tattoo depicting this animal may want to highlight their quick thinking and playfulness. In contrast, a curled up fox symbolizes a caring nature, strong family ties, and faithfulness.

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Tiger

Strength, power, leadership, courage, and protection of the weak — this is all about tiger tattoos. Some women opt for a tigress or a tiger cub. Another popular motif is a woman wearing tiger skin, which speaks of inner strength, gracefulness, and boldness.

Star

Stars are a symbol of luck, success, prosperity, and fulfillment of desires. Some star symbols, for example, pentagrams are viewed as an amulet that is believed to protect its wearer from black magic and ill-wishers.

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Phrases

Lettering tattoos take the form of an important phrase: a motto or a quote. People choose phrases in different languages, for example, famous quotes in Latin. However, make sure that you know exactly what these words mean before you get them inked into your skin. You don’t want to end up with a tattoo of a phrase with an unpleasant or even offensive connotation.

Patterns

Patterns for tattoos are numerous and various. Some feature mysterious symbols that are believed to change one’s destiny, but most patterns are mere decorations.

Symbols

Many women prefer decorating their bodies with different symbols, hieroglyphics, runes, or staves. Pick the symbol carefully to avoid getting a tattoo with a negative meaning.

Popular Tattoo Placements

Many women gravitate towards small designs in places where they can be easily hidden with clothes. Some, however, go for big tattoos on the back, thighs, or forearms.

Here are some popular placements:

collarbones
back and lower back
neck and areas behind the ears that are perfect for small tatts
shoulders and forearms
wrists
bikini zone
thighs
spine.

Summing Up

Tattoos on women can be an unusual decoration, a form of self-expression, a special symbol, a means to stand out from the crowd. Choosing a tattoo is an important task, if you want it to look awesome and convey the right message. So make sure you pick the design, placement, and tattoo artist carefully.

Tattoos for Women: Best Design Ideas with Photos