Top Old School Tattoo Designs For Real Manly Men OnlyWhen someone thinks of an old school tattoo they usually conjure up images of a tattoo heart with a banner saying "Mom" going through it. However, there are a ton of really great old school tattoo designs. At one point in history these tattoo designs were relegated to the ruff and tumble guys. People like Bikers and sailors often were the main ones getting tattoos. During this time in history women did not get very many tattoos because it was not as socially acceptable.
However, the sailors and bikers were getting large forearm tattoo designs. If you have a grandfather or an uncle that was a sailor or in the military chances are he probably has a forearm tattoo. Well, like anything fashion cycles and things that once went out of fashion come back into fashion. This is so with old school tattoos. Recently due tot he major growth in the tattoo industry there has been a real rebirth of old school tattoos.
These designs have been combined with the new color inks readily available to make for some really hot looking designs. If you are thinking about getting such a design here are some places to start looking. It is not that you have to completely just copy of the older designs or styles. You can take the ideas and modify it for a modern application and a wonderful design that hearkens back an pays respect to those hardy men.
Sailor Jerry Tattoo Designs
Sailor Jerry is probably one of the most famous of the old school tattoo artists. There is a lot of history on the internet that can be found about Sailor Jerry. Essentially, he did his work from a small tattoo shop in Hawaii where Sailors were frequently stationed. He did a ton of really unique and original designs that people have really fallen in love with. You can find many of his designs on the internet these days as their has been a real renaissance of old school designs.
Gambling
Another very popular theme among these designs is gambling. If you think about it one of the main vices that sailors and other ruffians had available to them at the time was gambling. Of course gambling was illegal a the time but this did not stop a ton of guys from getting cards, and dice as part of their tattoos.
Pin Up Girls
Of course if you were a sailor out at sea for long periods of time a pin up girl tattoo might be just the thing. Many of the guys back in the day got pinup girl tattoos. These have stuck around and always been popular however recently men and women are getting pinup girl designs. The truly sexy designs are often very eye catching.
Sailing Anchors and Ship
if you are a sailor then of course getting a ship or a anchor is a great tattoo idea. Many of the sailors would get big elaborators ship designs on their chest but also on their forearms. These might be of a ship they were stationed on or a pirate ship with a huge set of sails.
Old School Tattoo Flash Options
Old school tattoo flash has some characteristic elements that have made it popular on and off throughout the ages. In the 1990's, there was a significant movement toward realism in tattooing which tended to relegate the more old school designs to second choice. The 1990's in general represented a renaissance in tattooing where the art moved from the underground to a decidedly acceptable position in society. Over the years, the older style flash tattoos have seen a gain in popularity as more and more people have decided to decorate their bodies with tattoo art.
Old school tattoo art tends toward simpler designs and more comic-book styled depictions than do the more modern forms. Many of the themes of this art center around the underground from which tattooing emerged. Cards, wild women, motorcycles and other themes tend to predominate. Military devices are also popular as tattooing is one of the ways in which veterans of the past tended to wear the record of their service literally on, or under, their sleeve. Some of these tattoos hearken back to a different age and have a nice, historical feel that can liven up a very modern sleeve or collection of tattoos.
Old school tattoo flash tends to employ bold and simple colors, little shading and a more two dimensional feel than modern flash. Where modern flash tends to be photorealistic or very two dimensional, such as is the case with most tribal artwork, old school flash tends to fall somewhere in-between the two. If one thinks back to the tattoo work that may have been seen on the hipsters and motorcycle riders of old, one will have a good idea of what to expect from this style of art. This may or may not be desirable to the individual.
Old School flash also has elements which lend themselves to work which is comprised of several different tattoos rather than to a sleeve which has a consistent theme throughout. Many individuals in the past had specific parts of their arm or body tattooed but the sleeve was a rare find in the past and really only became all the rage within the last 20 years. For those who don't want complete coverage but who would like more than one tattoo on their arms or back, old school flash is a good place to look for more individual pieces of art.
Finding old school flash online is a good way to get a start in one's quest. One can search by specific popular tattoos from the past-Betty Boop, for instance-or by specific themes. If one is looking to get their military division's logo on their arm or another part of their body, looking toward the older designs may offer a unique way to do it. Some of the old school flash versions of these logos are more based in the historic renditions of unit symbols and may offer more of a connection with the past than conformity with the present.