Black and grey wolf head tattoo on the outer thigh, half realistic fur and half ornate mandala pattern, with dotwork along the edges.

Half-realistic wolf head on a thigh

Realism · Other · Black and grey · Photo

A wolf head faces forward, with the left side of its face shaded realistically in fur and eye detail. The right side is filled with intricate mandala-style linework and fine dots. The design is shown in black and grey ink on a thigh, with a dark floral skirt at the top of the frame and a pale wall of cut-out prints behind.

Realism Dotwork Other Wolf Animal Mandala Ornamental pattern Dot

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Take it to an artist as a reference. A good artist will make it yours rather than copy someone else's tattoo.

A story inspired by this tattoo · fiction

Dear Win, I've taken the cloakroom at the Marlow Ballroom, the job Mrs Ashby had before her hip gave out. It pays a shilling more than the mill and I get to hear the Saturday band through the coat rail. The place smells of Brylcreem and wet wool, and the sprung floor hums under your feet like something alive.

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Mr Pryce, who leads the band, has a grey wolf painted on the front of his bass drum. Half of it is proper fur, the kind you'd want to stroke, and the other half is all lace-work, scrolls and little dots like the pattern you'd pin on a christening gown. He says his brother painted it in Hull the summer before the war, that the lace side is for the ladies who dance and the fur side is for the men who try to dance with them. I told him that was daft. He laughed so hard the cymbal fell off its stand.

Last night a fellow came for his hat and asked me which side of the wolf I thought was the true one. I said the one that got him home. He didn't tip me. Afterwards Edie turned up asking for Mrs Ashby's old coat, and we sat on the stairs with the band tuning up and talked about Mother's lace cloth, the one we never finished.

I've put a pin in it for you. Come up at Easter and bring the bobbins. We'll finish the border together, and I'll show you the wolf. Your loving sister, Ivy.