Simple Tattoos for Beginners: Designs and Ideas | tattoo 101 (2023)

There is a "tipping point" that every new tattoo artist must grapple with: going from paper to skin. The most common mistake during this transition is trying to start with a large and complicated piece.

The best way to get comfortable with how it feels to work on the skin, and the best way to avoid leaving a bad tattoo behind, is to start with easy tattoos for budding artists.

Easy skull tattoo designs for beginners.

This simple skull tattoo can be kept smallmiIt allows you to avoid the trickier parts of the skull tattoo: the shading and the teeth.

The simple design of the skull tattoo allows you to play with the angles... without having to deal with the 3D aspect.use simple linesto create a smile and add character with simple, single-line "eyebrows."

If you have difficulty drawing straight lines, this skull is the perfect practice - any wobble or tremor can be used to create "cracks" in the skull.

Most artists learn traditional American designs first because they use bold lines and a limited color palette. This skull allows you to practice clean lines andshadingwithout asking you to mix many different colors.

Human faces are incredibly hard to get right, even in the form of a skull. If you're still perfecting your facial drawings, choosing an animal skull like this will allow you to practice on your skin without leaving behind an oddly shaped human skull.

To betraditionalThe design allows you to add some personality to the skull image without asking you to create detailed facial features. The shading in this image has been clearly defined.sectionsof shading, which is perfect for people still working to keep blends smooth.

This flash uses a simple color palette, allowing you to practice color matching and shading.

Another "half skull" image, this simple tattoo design allows you to implement more shading without having to worry about it being perfectly symmetrical on the other side.

This line drawing of the skull keeps the teeth simple and spaced apart so they don't look "overcrowded" or off-center. Using this simple rose saves you from making too many small petals.

easy tribal tattoos for beginners

Large tribal designs are difficult because of the way they wrap around the body. Using a simple design like this allows you to showcase an image in a smaller space while still staying true to tribal style principles.

Tribal patterns often require "woven" lines of some kind. This tribal spider design allows you to incorporate that element without asking you to create a complicated pattern.

This tribal lizard allows youpractical packaging in black inkleaving a margin of error in the design. If you have a shaky line, this design has plenty of negative space so you can add a better, cleaner line and fill in the space behind it. (This is a great option if a friend wants an animal tattoo and you're not comfortable with the blend or skin texture.)

Learning to create lines parallel to each other is an important skill for a tattoo artist. You will get practice with this with a layout like this. The lines are far enough apart that small errors can be easily covered and they are curved so if you are slightly off angle it is much harder to tell.

Howling wolves and roaring lions are common tattoo images. If you're not ready for something realistic, giving that tribal wolf is a great way to incorporate that element without having to get super detailed.

Tribal is all about thick dark linesthatflow with the body. While simple and fairly easy to apply, this type of design allows you to create a stellar looking piece without incorporating too much detail. Simply align the design with the flow of the body to accentuate the curve of a muscle.

cute tattoo ideas for beginners

If you're very new to tattoos, creating a full outline with the correct shape can be tricky (and lead to wobbly lines). This simple tattoo idea allows you to create the illusion of a full face without having to draw the actual shape.

This is one of those rare images that looks 3D without shading, making it perfect for budding tattoo artists.

Many people get their pets tattooed as a way to honor their furry friend. But most beginners struggle with creating a realistic coat and capturing the small details that make a single pet look unique within its breed. New artists can opt for a memorial paw print instead (or a simple pet tag tattoo if you want to get more personal).

Fruits and vegetables are good starters. They use simple shapes and a single color without too much detail.

The folds of the fabric make it appear three-dimensional without shading, and the "eyes" add depth without asking you to recreate detailed pupils or eyelids.

This design is ideal for beginners due to its whimsical nature. If the tires are not perfectly round, they will fit the character of this bike and you will not need to draw fine lines to create the spokes of the wheels.

This arc design leaves room for error for new artists learning to shade. Imperfect shading will not ruin the appearance of the dimensions of this bow. (Conversely, incorrect shading on a face can completely change the person's appearance.)

This teapot design can be simplified for new artists (remove small teapot leaves) and is a great way to practice stipple shading.

A ladybug design like this allows you to pack a lot of color and personality into a simple tattoo design.

This image can be broken down into simple shapes, making it a great design for new artists. And since kites can vary quite a bit in size and shape, if the shape isn't perfect, it will still be easily "readable" as a kite after you add the centerlines and tail.

Easy Animal Tattoo Ideas

This elephant design only uses one outline so you can create a beautiful 2-D design that requires no shading.

The shell of this tortoiseshell design allows you to practice sewing. If it's a bit out of date or the shading isn't perfect, the drawing will still be easy to read because of the clear outline.

Koi fish are incredibly popular in Japan.tattoo style. While they often have intricate facial shapes and overlapping scales, starting with simpler koi fish like these allows you to get familiar with the shape... without having to work out all the details.

Animals, and their facial expressions, are very difficult to recreate, especially when you're trying to replicate one.specificpet. Using easy tattoo outlines allows you to capture the personality of a favorite pet without having to deal with facial symmetry, expressions, eyes, or coat texture.

This simple design allows you to create a cat without worrying about fur, whiskers, or many facial features.

This layout allows you to use negative space to your advantage. You don't have to draw fine lines and can instead focus on packing in the black ink.

This snake uses contour to its advantage. With no facial features or scales, you can keep this design simple while creating a dynamic piece.

Since these black and gray tattoos only use an outline, you won't have to deal with eyes, beaks, or gnarled claws.

Usually, a butterfly tattoo means making perfect symmetry for the wings. But a design like this saves you from putting black in small areas or having to do a lot of fine lines.

This dinosaur is long and short, which means you can fit the entire design on one part of the body without having to worry about bending an arm or leg. The "shading" is done entirely from lines and hatches, which is a great option if you have a hard time creating smooth blends.

easy space tattoos

This little spaceship requires very simple line work and no shading, making it the perfect simple design for new artists.

This image is misleading because it looks difficult, but a beginner can do it. This design cuts out the most difficult part of the face, the eyes, and greatly simplifies the lips. It uses a rough outline to create a "cracked statue" look (and allows you to avoid creating a soft blend between the tattoo and the surrounding skin).

In tattooing, spherical elements often require complicated shading with two light sources. In this project, budding artists can take advantage of the 2D cartoon style and avoid using a broad spectrum of grays.

Constellations are great tattoo designs for beginners. They use short lines and no shading, but still look classy.

Constellation designs can be simplified by using dots instead of stars and made bolder by connecting the lines together. This allows you to create a sharp image without having to prepare a complicated image.

When in doubt, choose a design with simple lines and shapes. Completely black eyes make it easy to tattoo a "face" with almost no detail.

This kite and planet design allows you to practice mixing colors without also having to focus on shading.

Although this spaceship has overlay images, they are all very basic and do not require many complicated twists and turns. All details use aline width, and you don't need to embed any panels, buttons, scripts, etc. (That's why cartoon imagery and traditional tattoos are a great place to start before diving into more complicated styles like realism.)

Deceptively simple, this Milky Way tattoo allows you to use dots to create the illusion of thousands of stars and depth.

This one is perfect if you want a challenge when it comes to using negative space. However, it looks a lot more complicated than it is, since the 3D effect is done with just a few lines.

Simple nature tattoos for beginners.

This wave tattoo is easy to recreate and instantly recognizable.

This sun allows you to use negative space so you don't have to draw a circle with thetattoo machine. You can use a circle on your template as a guide and then draw the lines from there.

If you have a hard time getting smooth, straight lines, a mountain tattoo is a perfect way to practice on real skin. You won't need to make a perfect line, since rocky terrain already has that "shaky" line.

Most flower tattoos require very careful shading. With the wrong shading, you can make the flower image hard to see. This outline-only tattoo allows you to recreate a blooming magnolia flower without shading.

If you want to do some shading, this floral design allows you to practice shading without having to do a lot of overlapping petals or leaves.

If you're worried about creating a symmetrical circle, this half sun tattoo will look great on you... and will allow you to achieve it just by drawing a half circle on your skin.

This easy natural tattoo has no shading and very simple lines. Since the sheets do not have any detail, you can save themtattoo needlethroughout the work.

Minimalist tattoos are great for new tattoo artists because they don't require you to use perspective drawing or shading. The tree here is just a wavy line, so you don't need to create detailed branches or leaves either.

This shell only uses two different thread weights, making it a great tattoo if you have limited supplies.

While it's a traditional piece, it doesn't require a lot of blending (the leaves have separate sections and the lemons can be blended (yellow and orange) or remain solid yellow.

easy music tattoos

The challenge of this design is the line (the details on the petals and on the surface of the wood). However, due to the easily recognizable shapes (the sunflower and the turntable), a small slip will not destroy the overall design of the tattoo.

Musical notes are great tattoos for beginners. They require no shading and you can easily thicken any wobbly lines.

A layout with piano keys that are not fully contoured prevents the keys from appearing “uneven” or noticeably larger than one another.

Musical instruments are incredibly detailed images, so sticking to line work tattoos makes your job easier while you learn.

This design looks complicated, but it actually allows you to create a fun design (even if you have a hard time creating consistent pieces). If you look at this layout, you can see that the flags for each note are very similar, but none of them are perfect. This would be more noticeable if they were placed next to each other.

This traditional design allows you to use simple lines to create depth in the design without having to incorporate any three-dimensional shading.

There are no overlapping elements or shadows in this design, so you can start simple.

With this registration, you avoid having to draw a perfect circle on the skin, and by including black in most of the drawing, you don't have to go through every groove on the disc.

Since this tattoo has simple shapes and black packaging, you can avoid doing too much intricate line work.

An image like this allows you to make a realistic looking 3D design without a lot of shading.

Easy traditional tattoo designs for beginners.

Traditional style roses are generally considered a "right of passage" for most new tattoo artists. They feature thick, solid lines and only a few layers of petals, making them an easier starting point as you work your way up to more intricate work.

Using black and gray in a traditional design allows you to focus on shading instead of mixing colors.

You can make this tattoo easier or more difficult depending on your skills and comfort level. Instead of mixing or using colors, the star can alternate with no fill and straight black. Or you can use black and gray shading on both sides to make the star look metallic.

This rose knocks out any blending for new artists who struggle to create smooth mixes. Instead, use dark outlines and black ink to create a bold, clear contrast.

This design "cuts through" the skin, dividing the longer lines of the design into more manageable pieces.

Traditional archery is a great way to work pulling long lines.

Azaleas are commonly used as decoration in traditional designs due to their elegant simplicity. On their own, they make great tattoo designs for beginners because they don't feature complicated shading or overlapping petals.

Since most of the anchor is just black ink, you don't have to worry about too much shading in this design.

This compass is a great design to work on after trying the traditional star and azalea, as it incorporates elements from both designs. While it's a bit more complicated than the other traditional pieces on this list, it stays true to the traditional style with itsfundamental shading techniquesand clear, bold lines.

character tattoos

For new tattoo artists, it can be difficult to recreate realistic images of celebrities or make a perfect replica of a famous cartoon. As you continue to learn, creating "character" tattoos using recognizable symbols (instead of faces) is a great alternative. For example, this symbol from the Deathly Hallows will be much easier to tattoo than one of the characters fromharry potter.

Rooting a design in the traditionaltattoo techniqueit can make creating a character piece much easier, like in this image from Disney's "Mandalorian."

Non-human characters are a great way to honor a movie franchise without having to recreate a human likeness. For example, BB-8Star WarsFranchise makes a very simple tattoo made up of basic shapes and limited shading.

Characters with highly recognizable symbols allow you to make small, simple tattoos with little shading or detail.

If you're looking to create an image of a real character, opting for a simplified "cartoon" version can help reduce the amount of shading and detailed line work required to produce a strong tattoo.

Finding innovative ways to position characters (like having them face up) can help you avoid perfectly capturing their facial expressions (a problem that can quickly ruin a tattoo).

The good thing about choosing to work with a lot of cartoon characters is that they are made simply. This is particularly true for characters that the artists had to draw over and over very quickly. These simple shapes mean less shading and easy-to-reproduce images.

This stripped down version of Simba from Disney's "The Lion King" lets you create a quickly recognizable version of your character without any complicated lines, eyes, etc.

The Genie Lamp from Disney's "Aladdin" is a great way to practice packing in color. If it's not completely consistent or fades a bit, the result will still be a proper "smoke" effect.

Superman's symbol is an iconic image... and uses only a bold outline and two colors.

BONUS: 5 Easy and Fun Tattoos

These matching tattoos are easy to recreate due to the simple smiley faces and limited colors.

These matching tattoos are easy to recreate due to the simple smiley faces and limited colors.

This design uses simple shapes, no shading, as well as stick figure arms and legs, so you can create a fun tattoo... without having to struggle with any shading or blending.

This black cat design allows you to show off the entire body of the cat without creating stripes, spots, etc.

These aliens are simple outline tattoos. The only thing needed for the eyes is to pack in black, and the cartoonish hands save you from having to put in a lot of little details.

5 sentimental tattoos

Lots of people get memorial tattoos, but creating realistic faces with a tattoo machine is incredibly difficult, especially for beginners. Instead, tattooing an important date can turn a great idea into a simple tattoo. (Roman numerals are recommended.)

Keys are an easy way to memorize an important place using just an outline drawing: if you're going for a more cartoonish look, the lines don't have to be completely straight. (This idea works well for couple tattoos: first apartment, first house together, etc.)

Simple sibling tattoos can use very basic shapes and shading.

A simple "travel tattoo," a city skyline puts every detail in the line work, but there's no other defining feature on the buildings themselves, making it a beginner's piece.

State outline tattoos help commemorate a place without complicated imagery. It is enough to place a heart to symbolize the capital, "where we met", where the person was born, etc.

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