Colour traditional-style tattoo of two lilies with blue petals spotted with white stars and red edges, with dark green leaves, on the side of a ribcage.

Star-patterned lilies on the ribs

Traditional · Ribs · Colour · Photo

The tattoo shows two lilies on a stem with dark green leaves and sweeping curled lines. The petals are filled with blue and red, and the blue petals carry small white star shapes. Bold black outlines define the forms against the skin, and the design climbs vertically along the side of the ribs.

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 Our Nell,

Keep reading

I have painted the cabin door again, as you said I would, with lilies down the side where the old roses used to be. Dad says they look like something off a fairground lorry, but he has not managed to say what he'd rather. The red came from the tin Mr Hollis sold us at Stourport, and the blue I mixed myself from the last of the Admiralty paint, which I am not supposed to have, so keep that between us. The stars were the hard part. I dabbed them on with the blunt end of a knitting needle, and they went wonky on every petal until I gave up trying to line them up and let them wander the way they do over the lock at night.

The boat goes down to Gloucester on Thursday with coal for the mill, and then Dad says we're for Sharpness, so I'll not have your reply until after the tide turns. Post it to the Bristol office and they will hold it. Tell me whether the baby has teeth yet and whether Tom has stopped running off to the rope yard.

A man stood at the lock yesterday looking at the door a long while, then asked whether I'd painted the flags on purpose. I said no, they were only flowers, and he laughed and said that was the best sort of patriotism, flowers that didn't know any better. I don't know what he meant by it. I have been turning it over all morning while the water went brown under the hull and a heron watched us from the bank as if it were waiting for a fare.

Write when you can. Keep the stub of pencil Dad gave you.

Your loving sister, Ada

More like this

Black and grey tattoo of two shaded roses on a vine with the script Life goes on, running down the side of the ribs.
Rose vine with script on ribs
Black and grey hibiscus flowers with scrollwork and Greek script on the side of the ribs, in a realistic botanical style.
Hibiscus flowers and Greek script on ribs
Full-colour tattoo of pink lilies and butterflies running down the middle of a person's back, in a botanical realism style.
Lilies and butterflies down the spine
Colourful butterfly tattoos in green, yellow and pink with black vines and small stars across the top of a foot.
Butterflies and vines across a foot
Traditional colour tattoo of orange butterflies and red flowers with green leaves running down the lower leg and onto the ankle.
Butterflies and flowers on an ankle
Realistic coloured tattoo of two pink lilies, a blue butterfly and black and green swirling vines on the upper back.
Pink lilies and blue butterfly on the back
Black and grey botanical tattoo of two flowers on long stems across the upper arm and shoulder, with dotted swirls beside the stems.
Two black and grey flowers on an upper arm
Watercolour-style red poppies and two black birds in flight, tattooed on the outer thigh.
Red poppies and birds on a thigh
Colour tattoo of pink lilies, a yellow flower, green leaves and two butterflies, one purple and one blue, on the side of the hip in a botanical neo-trad style.
Butterflies and lilies on a hip
Colour tattoo of a red lily with black swirling vines and grey shading on the ribs of a person wearing a green top.
Red lily and swirling vines on the side
Colour tattoo on an upper arm and shoulder showing a sugar skull woman with a cigarette beside red roses and a skull, with black ink splashes.
Sugar skull woman and roses on upper arm
Colour tattoo of pink peonies with grey lace-style ornament and hanging beads across the outer thigh, in a botanical style.
Pink peonies and lace on a thigh

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