Free Tattoo Designs

Luckily, many places offer free tattoo designs, so you can choose your favorite image. These free designs can be a great starting place to deciding what you want inked on your body.

Tattoo Designs

There are many ways to choose the pattern, image or design for your tattoo. Some people instinctively know what sort of tattoo they want, so they either get that picture drawn up or choose from flash art that fits their idea. Others aren't as sure what they want to have inked, so they need to look online or other resources for inspiration. Here are some general types of tattoos:

"Old School" Tattoos

"Old school" tattoos are the kind that can be traced back to the early days of Western tattooing. They include images like the classic "MOM" heart, anchors, nautical stars and other sailor images. Pinup girls also fall into this category in many cases, as do bluebirds and roses. Tattoos of this nature were especially popular during the first and second World Wars, when men in the military went off to fight. Many came back with a souvenir of their military service in the form of a tattoo, whether it was one designating their service branch or another part of their life overseas. This sort of tattoo style has been heavily popularized by Tattoo Jerry, a famous tattoo flash artist.

Tribal Tattoos

Tribal tattoos got their origin in places where ritualistic tattooing took place, such as in Polynesia and other Asian islands. The Maori tribe, for example, is famous for their tattoos and techniques. Most of today's tribal tattoos originated with tribal markings that designated membership in a culture. While these tattoos are often freeform and carry little significant meaning to the wearer today, it is important to make sure your tribal design is not offensive or significant to another culture. It is a good idea to do research on any design who's origin you are unfamiliar with.

Modern Tattoos

Most tattoos today are modern, meaning they've evolved from other tattoo techniques into their own art form. Tattoos today can be as intricate as a portrait of your child or a copy of a famous work of art. Cartoon characters and logos have found a place in modern tattooing. Modern tattoos also tend to use more vibrant color than those in other styles, and they can be exacting and true-to-life.

Free Tattoo Designs

One place to find free tattoo designs is at a local tattoo parlor. The walls of most tattoo shops are lined with flash art, and the price of your tattoo includes the use of these images. Flash art is reproduced and used in many shops throughout the world, so be aware that tattoos created from these images are far from unique. Tattoo flash itself is usually not free, so if you find an example that you like on a website, chances are you will have to pay to download the design. The good thing is most tattoo shops have already purchased a wide array of flash for you to choose from. Some tattoo shops are also willing to draw up tattoo designs for free, as long as you plan to get the tattoo inked by their artists. Here are some other resources for free tattoo designs:

• Tattoo Design Gallery has free tattoo designs to download and print out, perfect for taking to your tattoo studio.
• Tribal Shapes has tribal and kanji tattoo designs for free.
• Tattoo Galaxy offers a wide range of free tattoo designs.

Another good way to obtain a design for free is to allow someone to "practice" drawing a tattoo design for you. That way, you're getting someone's artistry at no cost, and the artist is gaining valuable experience. Just be sure that you are happy with the design before getting it inked, because practice tattoo drawings may not be up to par with other art.

Whatever tattoo design you choose, whether you pay someone to design it, or you choose a free image, be sure you pick a design you will want to keep forever.

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