Swallow Tattoos - Old School Sailor Tattoos Making a Comeback
Swallow tattoos are considered old school sailor tattoos. But they have been revived and are making a great comeback. Swallows symbolize freedom, love and loyalty. You see many people with pairs of swallows, one looking forward and the other looking back, representing ending one chapter and starting a new chapter in life. You can use your imagination and come up with a unique twist to your swallow tattoos if you have the right tools. I'll tell you what those tools are.
Many people get swallow tattoos and sparrow tattoos confused. Swallow tattoos have a lot of symbolism associated with them. Swallows are known to return to the same place year after year. Many of us have heard of the swallows making their trip back to San Juan Capistrano every year. Sailors got swallow tattoos as a symbol that they would return home safely from a trip.
It was also believed that a swallow carried the souls of the dead away. So if a sailor did not return, a swallow carried their soul. Many people get swallow tattoos as in loving memory tattoos of fallen soldiers. A new sailor would get his first swallow tattoo after 5,000 miles, then another after the next 5,000.
It is believed that swallows mate for life so swallow tattoos represent the wearer's belief that he (or she) can find true love. If any of these symbols stir feelings in you then perhaps swallow tattoos are something that you should think about. You want your tattoo to be meaningful. A tattoo that you get just for looks wears off after awhile. A tattoo is meant to be with you for life so you want it to be personal.
If you want to get a swallow tattoo but not quite sure how you want it portrayed, go online to a good tattoo gallery and search the files. The good membership galleries have pictures of swallow tattoos on real people. You can see what a certain design actually looks like. As you browse, use your imagination and think of what would make your tattoo unique.
As a member of an online tattoo gallery, you have unlimited download rights to as many tattoo designs as you want. You can print off several that you like and put the different parts together to make your unique tattoo.
Old School and Traditional Designs of Ink
Traditional tattoos are the original designs made popular by the early patronizers of tattoos - the bikers, sailors and servicemen. During the early days, a lot of these old school tats can be commonly found tattooed on their arms. Back then, they were usually identifiable to a certain group, such as nautical star or anchor for sailors and harley davidson logos for bikers. The original traditional or old school tattoos are generally simple with more black ink than colors. However, with the development of modern tattoo equipment, the ones being adopted today are more colorful and vibrant.
When talking about old school tattoos, the name Sailor Jerry is always being mentioned. He operated a variety of tattoo shops in Honolulu in the early 1930's while alternately sailing the Pacific and Far East as a merchant mariner. He was the great and talented artist whose tattoo works earned him the reputation for bringing in bold designs that artistically reflect the minds of his clientele. He collaborated with other tattooers around the world to continually develop and improve the tattoo industry.
When tattoos started appearing in the mainstream, a lot of images and styles came into play. The old school tattoos sort of faded and were replaced with designs such as different kinds of flowers (cherry blossoms, lilies, lotus) zodiac signs and lettering tattoos. However, there are still a large crowd that opt for these old school types mostly because of them being considered timeless and vintage. They no longer appeal to just a certain type of people as even the younger generations have taken interest in them.
Unique Tattoo Design Ideas
Tribal Tattoos - In tattoo reference, the word Tribal encompasses native styles from prehistoric cultures around the world. Tribal tattoos originated in areas such as Hawaii and Samoa. Tribal tattoos are bold with heavy black lines and shading of geometric shapes. Someone who specializes in these tattoos says their popularity is somewhat due to the wide resurgence and acceptance of Tribal Tattooing, and the increased availability of images of these tattooed people. These tattoos generally have a particular "meaning", connecting the wearer to a past tribal culture, not just something from a book of pictures. Some of the artists that work with tribal styles are some of the most highly respected artists of today.
Old School Tattoos - Many of these designs have been popular for decades, such as ships, anchors, and panthers. Some other types are generally associated with gangs, ex-cons, or white supremacists. Many of the old school tattoos are associated with the military, like anchors, hula girls, mermaids, and eagles. Some tattoo artists have been experimenting with some of these designs by adding some newer techniques and brighter colors.
Memorial Tattoos - Like the old school tattoos, memorial tattoos have a long history, and are still popular today. Most familiar of these is the heart with the "I love mom". Names and initials are still popular as well. Many people today choose to honor loved ones with a portrait, whether it is a spouse, child, or even their black Labrador retriever. These tattoos can usually be done with a single needle in a very realistic way. Many artists discourage customers from having names of sweethearts tattooed on their bodies for obvious reasons.
Prison Tattoos - Tattooing is generally forbidden in prisons, but is still popular among inmates. They find very creative ways to decorate their fellow inmates. As we know, they did not become inmates because they followed the rules. Inmates make tattoos from guitar strings, pen parts, and other things. Books with designs are not available, so the artists there work freehand. They use their bodies like a canvas. The tattoos in prison generally have symbolic meaning unique to the individual wearer.
Temporary Tattoos - As the name suggests, temporary tattoos can be removed. They are popular with kids and adults that do not necessarily want to be permanently marked. These tattoos are generally created on paper and transferred to the skin by removing the wrapping, and wetting the back with a damp washcloth and pressing firmly. After about 30 seconds, the design is applied; leaving a tattoo that can be removed generally with rubbing alcohol. These tattoos are generally available everywhere from the local quickie mart, to most grocery stores. Children exchange them as gifts, they are used for Halloween, and adults can use them to "try out" having a real tattoo.
The Most 3 Popular Tattoo Designs
If you are thinking about having a tattoo, there are so many different styles of tattoos to choose from. This article will explain you about the most popular tattoo designs such as Tribal, Dragon, and Old School that been around more than a decade. After reading, you will learn some technical terms that common use in tattoo art and it will help you easily communicate with tattoo artist.
Tribal
Tribal Tattoos is one of the most popular designs. Tribal Tattoos have been around for many centuries and become more popular today. Most of traditional tribal tattoos is black color and cover the arms and legs. Many of the native and ancient cultures participated in some form of ritualistic tattooing. In the past, Tribal Tattoos were done by hand with a rough tools and inks. It took many years to complete especially for the large design. Today, tribal is very popular type of tattoo for men and women. There are many new tribal designs that adapted from original tribal but make it looks more modern but still keeping the main concept of using strong black color and line work. Moreover, some artist combines the tribal with the old school design such as roses and creates a new contemporary tattoo design concept.
Old School Design
The old school tattoo design or traditional tattoo design was born in the 20th century and developed by Sailor Jerry who had tattoo shop in Hawaii. They are very popular among the sailors and biker. Even there are many new style of tattoo today, Old school tattoos never quite disappeared from view same with tribal. Old school tattoos are usually simple design, with a lot of black ink and little color because of the lack of color in the early years of tattoo art. However, the old school designs we see today has a lot more color than the past because of the technology. The example of old school are Nautical star tattoos, Naked mermaid tattoos, Cherry tattoos, Pin up girl tattoos, Heart tattoos, Anchor tattoos and Eagle tattoos.
Dragon Tattoo Design
Dragon design is also another one of the popular tattoos design which comes in many different shapes, styles and sizes. There are many different styles of dragon to choose from such as Japanese dragon, Chinese dragon or Tribal dragon. The most popular dragon style is a Chinese & Asian dragon with its flaming red and gold colors. Dragon tattoo is very popular in male and most males tend to have them cover one side of their chest or the upper region of their arms.