95+ Luxurious Lace Tattoo Designs – You Have Never Been This Pretty Before
During the 16th century a delicate type of fabric gained popularity; an intricately patterned open fabric called lace. Since then women have been choosing hand woven or machine made lacework to adorn everything from dollies, dresses, and hats to sensual undergarments like bra’s and garters.
When it is used to design delicate underclothes it has a hypnotic effect on men, who associate this openwork fabric with the intimate female form.
Over time this fabric started to become available to even more people and no longer just in white either; sexy black and racy red laces were up for sale as well. Fast forward to today and we see a new trend in the world of tattoos – lovely lacy designs that are fit for any lady!
Now women can choose to express their individuality and femininity in a more permanent way in an ever beautiful lace design tattoo.
Today we’ll explore the elaborate world of these lacy tattoos and learn more about their meanings, the designs available, and the placement on the body, as well discover more about 3D and hyper-realistic tattoos and how to choose your very own lace tattoo!
Contents:
The Meaning Of Lace Tattoos
To understand the symbolism and meaning of lace we need to think about what it is used for, its history and its effects. Let’s look at some of the popular associations that people make with lace:
Femininity
Lace has always been associated with women as they are the sex most likely to use and wear the lightweight fabric. When we think of bridal outfits or lingerie we inherently think of this patterned material. Most women who choose this type of tattoo do so because of this connection with femininity.
Sensuality
Together with other sexy fabrics like silk; lace is often used to design female undergarments in colors such as black and red.
Women who choose red or black lace design tattoos may be trying to tap into this erotic association and may even choose to use designs to replicate such garments such as garters or corsets.
Innocence
White lace is symbolic of purity, it is a fabric which is often used to make christening dresses or socks for babies, and is used in the design of traditional wedding dresses.
In this way, it denotes a certain innocence, in sharp contrast to its sensual side. This duality is an interesting element associated with lace.
Luxury and Power
When lace first gained popularity, it was favored by the elite upper classes. This is because firstly their lifestyle made it possible for them to wear the fabric and not ruin it (it would not have been very suitable for say a washerwomen or farm hand in that era) and secondly because only the rich could afford it.
It was originally made with gold, silk, silver and cotton threads – not something that just anyone could afford. Today we still see lace as a totem of luxury and power.
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Design Choices For Lace Tattoos
Once you’ve decided on a lace style tattoo you’ll be spoilt for choice when it comes to the design. The range of lace styles and subjects is huge. We’re now going to find out a little more about these and why you may like to choose them:
Flowers and Lace
Flowers, which are also a strong feminine symbol, are often chosen for lace designs because flowers are popular as patterns for lace fabric as well as being a popular tattoo subject choice for women.
Roses are commonly seen in lacy tattoo designs where the rose has been colored in a traditional way with lace in the background or combined in a more complex way. Red roses and black lace are frequently used together.
These designs will sometimes include other elements such as a chandelier effect or green leaves.
In patterned flower designs, the artist will fill the outline of a flower with a lacy pattern. This type of tattoo will often be used together with other outlines as well, such as leaves or shapes and be varied by asking your artist for a bold outline with more delicate lines for the lace.
Bows and ribbons
Lace in the shapes of ribbons and bows hint towards femininity and the idea of a gift. Tattoos in the shape of ribbons (long strips of lace) are used to create sexy garter or bracelet designs as well as the trendy lace tied bow which is a hot tattoo choice right now.
Butterflies
People associate butterflies with transformation and change and many women wish to combine this subject with a delicate lace design. Here the butterfly may be drawn and filled in with a lace pattern or the lace may be subtly added to hyper-realistic or even 3D tattoo.
Some ladies like to combine butterflies to make a pattern which can wrap around a limb.
Lace chandeliers
A chandelier is an ornate light fixture that has been decorated with a combination of luxury elements such as candles, crystals, chains, pearls, beads, and sometimes even feathers.
A chandelier lace tattoo is seen as a beautiful body decoration and is often seen designed as a pendant for smaller artworks while bigger pieces are tattooed on the back or thighs.
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The Placement of Lace Tattoos
Lace designs are fantastically versatile and can be used on almost any part of the body to create anything from a tiny lace bow to an expansive sleeve or back piece. But what should you be putting where? Well, that’s all up to you, but here are some of the common placements and designs for this type of tattoo:
Wrists and Ankles
Lace bracelets and anklets are wraparound designs for the wrists and ankles that are usually tattooed as a piece of lace ribbon but may include small flowers or other subjects as well. Sometimes a lace bow is also incorporated.
Thighs
One of the most popular designs is a lace garter tattoo on one or both upper thighs.
Although garters, which were used in the past to hold up women’s stockings, are not widely worn today the garter is still a symbol of both sexuality, as it is sometimes included in lacy lingerie designs and sentimentality due to its importance in wedding traditions.
The design you choose can have a big impact on how the tattoo will look at the end, especially for garter pieces, so take your time.
Back
The advantages of using your back as a canvas for your tattoo artwork include reduced pain and a larger surface area for bigger designs such as a dragon tattoo.
Another design with a distinctly baroque feel is the corset lace tie tattoo that imitates the look of the traditional undergarment that was tightly fastened to slim the waistlines of fashionable women. On occasion, the corset lace design is also used on the thighs.
Solar Plexus
This is generally regarded as the area from beneath the breasts to just above the hips. Common designs that are seen in this area include tattoos that reach from one side to the other underneath the breasts or between the hips, lace chandeliers, and bows.
This type of tattoo is more personal as it can easily be covered with clothes.
Shoulder
Not only is the shoulder an excellent spot for first-time tattoo clients, but it is also one of the easiest places to show off your tattoo. Simply don a backless or spaghetti strap top, don’t forget the sunscreen and head out! Designs commonly seen on the shoulder are bows, flowers, and chandeliers.
Arm and Leg (Full or Half Sleeves)
Lacy designs are often used to create full or half arm or leg tattoos. These types of tattoos can include a wide range of subjects or colors. Lace is sometimes included in eye-catching steampunk sleeve where it is used as filler art.
Neck
Hardcore tattoo fans may choose a lacy neck choker design sometimes with chandelier elements. Remember this type of tattoo will be painful and is difficult to conceal if you need to.
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Colors And Lace Tattoos
As mentioned earlier lace was originally available mainly in white, but as the years went past, designers started to sell it in all colors. Red and black lace is commonly associated with sexy lingerie and lacy tattoo designs are usually created with black ink.
As this tattoo design catches on we are seeing, even more variation with red, purple and pink lace designs becoming more fashionable.
While there is some debate on the longevity of white ink tattoos it is not stopping women from choosing it for hyper-realistic and even 3D tattoos, usually on the thighs.
Other Elements/Techniques You May Wish To Include
3D / Hyper Realism
Some tattoo artists are so highly skilled that by using shadow and proportions they can create pieces that look 3D dimensional, as though they are jumping off the skin or hyper-realistic tattoos (like an insect) that people could mistake for the real thing on first glance.
This technique is popular for creating lace butterfly or garter belt tattoos.
Script
Use caution when combining script with a lacy design tattoo. Placement is everything; putting the script too close to the lace may result in an awkward looking or off balance tattoo. The font is also important, keep in mind that lace is patterned and intricate and elaborate script may not enhance the overall feel.
Discuss this with your artist and take the time to find lettering that works.
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Choosing Your Lace Tattoo
Apart from choosing the design, color and subjects for your tattoo you could also look at pictures of the different variations of lace fabric to draw inspiration for the actual pattern within your tattoo.
Needle lace, which is made with a needle and thread, is used to make highly detailed patterns, cutwork lace is used for cutout type designs and is created by removing threads from a woven background and Chantilly lace is made with a bobbin and pin technique (lovely for garter designs).
Research online to find unique patterns!
Once you have a good idea about what you are looking find a reputable artist. Ask for referrals and if necessary shop around first because not all tattoo artists are skilled at creating this type of painstaking detail.
When you meet the artist you can ask if they have done this style of tattoo in the past and request to see their portfolio.
As with all tattoos make sure you choose to have your design in a location that suits your lifestyle. In the corporate or business world, you want to be palatable to all tastes and some people may not appreciate sleeve or choker tattoos.
Exposed tattoos (such as those on the hands or arms) require extra care, such as daily sunscreen to stay in good condition so consider if you are willing to do this first.
Lace tattoos are a beautiful way to express your feminine side; the delicate patterns are unique and can be used to create evocative designs that are sure to be conversation starters!
Whether you choose this design to represent femininity, sensuality, innocence or merely as a celebration of beauty the right tattoo will make you feel like a princess.
Choose a bow to symbolize the celebration of your life or a pretty ribbon that can permanently decorate your wrist. Go extreme with a lacy Gothic choker or add in elements that you can color such as flowers, leaves, butterflies or dragons and go with bright shades for the fill.
Tattoo lovers may wish for bold designs like corset ribbons and arm or leg sleeves, but lacy designs can look just as good within a small butterfly or heart. These types of tattoos are awesome additional for tattoo addicts, but they are also suitable for beginners especially when placed on the back.
If you love lace and all things feminine then this is definitely a tattoo design to consider!
