Colour tattoo of a maneki-neko lucky cat with red ears, orange patches and a green bell collar on the upper arm, in a traditional style.

Enlarged with AI from a smaller original

Maneki-neko lucky cat on upper arm

Traditional · Upper arm · Colour · Photo

A large maneki-neko lucky cat sits upright with one paw raised, shown in bold black outlines with soft grey shading on the face and body. Its ears and collar are red, the patches are orange with black spots, and the bell and neckerchief are yellow and green. The design fills the upper arm, and a partial tattoo of a unicorn is visible at the bottom edge of the frame.

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 Ada,

Keep reading

The bell on that cat has rung every night since the gale, and I have stopped minding it. You said it would drive me mad up here, and you were nearly right. The old shopkeeper in Cable Street wrapped it in a tea towel and would not take a penny, only said it was for whoever keeps watch. I fixed it to the rail beside the lamp housing, paw lifted towards the water, so that any boat rounding the point would see something beckoning rather than something waving them off.

The Mary Jane came round on Tuesday with her engine dead and her lamp smashed. Jim Carrick told me afterwards that he had lost the light altogether in the spray, then caught a glint of gold through the rain and steered for it, reckoning no sensible cat would sit out in that weather for nothing. He was half joking, but I have thought about it since. The cat has no lamp and no wick. All it has is that yellow bell and a stubborn little paw, and somehow that was enough to turn a boat around.

The wind has dropped now and the sea has gone the colour of pewter. The gulls are back on the gallery rail, sitting in a row and trying to ring the bell with their beaks. I shoo them off every time, though I suspect they are only keeping the cat company.

Tell the girls I will be home for the Whitsun fair, and tell Mrs Okada her cat is earning his keep. I will bring the tea towel back with me.

Your loving husband, Tom

More like this

Colour tattoo of a white maneki-neko lucky cat with a raised paw and gold coin, in a traditional style, on the calf.
Maneki-neko lucky cat on a calf
Colour tattoo of a white and grey maneki-neko beckoning cat with a red hat, blue collar and bell, framed by red flowers, in a Japanese and neo-traditional style.
Maneki-neko cat with red flowers
Colour traditional Japanese maneki-neko lucky cat tattoo with a gold coin, shown on the arm.
Maneki-neko lucky cat on the arm
Colour Japanese-style tattoo of a maneki-neko lucky cat with a red sun, cherry blossom, lotus flowers and sushi across the upper arm.
Maneki-neko lucky cat with blossom on upper arm
Colour Japanese style tattoo of a maneki-neko lucky cat with a red lotus and cherry blossoms on an upper arm.
Maneki-neko cat with lotus on upper arm
Neo-traditional colour tattoo of a tabby cat with wide amber eyes, wearing a sailor cap with an anchor and a navy collar with a red neckerchief, on a forearm.
Sailor cat on a forearm
Traditional style tattoo of a black cat with large white eyes inside an oval gold frame with a red bow, on a forearm.
Black cat in an oval gold frame on a forearm
Colour tattoo of a maneki-neko lucky cat surrounded by pink cherry blossoms in a Japanese style, on the upper thigh.
Maneki-neko lucky cat with cherry blossoms
Colour tattoo of a seated pink cat with blue eyes and patterned lace-like shading, on the forearm.
Patterned pink cat on an arm
Neo-traditional colour tattoo of a grey cat wearing a red bow and a dotted halo, on the outer forearm.
Grey cat with red bow on a forearm
A painterly, multicoloured kitten tattoo with a long trailing tail on the forearm, in soft shades of blue, green, pink and yellow.
Multicoloured kitten tattoo on a forearm
Colour traditional tattoo of a grey cat wearing a monocle and red bow tie, set within an ornate orange and red frame on a lower leg.
Cat in monocle and bow tie on a calf

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