Black and grey lilac sprig tattoo with stippled petals and two leaves on the thigh, beside a pencil drawing of the same flower.

Lilac sprig on the thigh

Botanical · Thigh · Black and grey · Photo

A sprig of lilac with clustered florets, unopened buds at the tip and two leaves along a curved stem is tattooed on the back of a leg. The linework is fine and dark, with soft grey shading and stippled dots inside the petals. The sprig runs diagonally across the frame, and a pencil sketch of a similar flower sits in the top left corner.

Find an artist for this

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 Mam,

Keep reading

The lilac by the customs hut came into flower the morning they took my case apart, which the officer said was a coincidence and I said was the first kind thing anyone had done for me all week. He let me keep one sprig. He said nobody crosses with cuttings, but he watched me tuck it into my coat and didn't say another word about it.

I'm writing this on the bus to Vrbica, so forgive the wobble. Kostas says lilacs grow everywhere on this side of the river, that the old women plant them by every gate so the bees have something to do in May. I didn't believe him until I saw the hedges. Purple heads nodding over the wire fences as if they were waiting for a train too.

The buds on my sprig haven't opened yet. Two of them are the tight green kind Granddad used to pinch between finger and thumb to tell us what colour they would turn. I've kept them wrapped in your old handkerchief, damp, the way you taught me. I think they'll last until the papers are stamped and I can say where I am.

Tell Dad the leaves are the same shape as the ones on the back wall, only darker. Tell him I'm not frightened. Tell him the officer had a little girl's photograph tucked behind his mirror, and that is the only reason I'm writing this with my hands steady.

Love, Anna

More like this

Fine line black tattoo of a hexagon with twigs and three small five-petal blossoms on the side of the ribs.
Hexagon and blossom branch on ribs
Small black fine line lotus flower tattoo with two dots above and below it, placed on the inner wrist.
Fine line lotus on the wrist
Black line-work tattoo of several open flowers, leaves and buds climbing up the inside of a forearm, in a botanical style.
Botanical flower cluster on a forearm
Black fine line tattoo of a stylised star and leaf motif on the inner forearm, set against a cream textured fabric.
Star and leaf motif on an inner forearm
Fine line black ink tattoo of a small sprig of tiny flowers on the inner upper arm, with a dotwork mandala tattoo visible lower down the arm.
Small flowering sprig on the inner upper arm
Black and grey botanical tattoo of a tall lupin flower spike with buds and star-shaped leaves on the upper arm.
Lupin sprig on an upper arm
Black and grey lily of the valley tattoo on the upper arm, drawn in fine line with dotwork shading on the leaf.
Lily of the valley on the upper arm
Fine line black tattoo of three outlined tulips on slender stems with two leaves, placed on the ankle.
Three tulips on an ankle
Black and grey botanical tattoo of a flower bouquet with dotwork shading on the inner forearm.
Botanical bouquet on a forearm
Black linework lotus mandala with swirling petals and trailing filigree, tattooed on the forearm in a fine line style.
Ornamental lotus mandala on forearm
Fine line black outline tattoo of peonies and buds arranged in a triangle on the inner upper arm.
Floral triangle on an upper arm
Black fine line lotus tattoo with dotwork chain drops on the forearm, shown in a black and grey photo.
Lotus with dotted chain details on a forearm

From the plentytattoo archive, uploaded by a user. Is this your work? Ask for credit or removal.