Swirl tattoo ideas

3,253 photos and flash · 24% Botanical, 17% Fine line · Forearm most common

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Woman's arm with a full sleeve tattoo of blue flowers, swirling black linework and small hearts, in botanical style across the upper arm and forearm.

Blue flower sleeve with swirling linework

Tribal shoulder and upper arm tattoo

White ink mandala tattoo with floral and paisley motifs covering the upper arm and shoulder of a woman in a white vest top.

White ink mandala on upper arm

Black moustache tattoo with curled ends and shaded hatching on the upper arm, below a pale sleeve, against a brick wall.

Moustache tattoo on upper arm

Colour traditional-style tattoos on an upper arm: a patchwork stitched ice cream cone in mint and pink, and a dark swirl with a purple base and a small black spider.

Two ice cream designs on an upper arm

Black line drawing of a woman with curly hair and a curved crescent shape on the upper arm, with pink, red and teal watercolour wash.

Line art woman with watercolour wash on upper arm

Colour Japanese style half sleeve tattoo of red koi fish and pink cherry blossoms over a grey swirl, covering the upper arm and shoulder.

Koi and cherry blossom half sleeve

Shirtless man with platinum hair and his face hidden by his hands, showing a black blackwork tree-line band on his right forearm and a dark ornamental sleeve on his left arm.

Forest band and ornate sleeve on a shirtless man

Lion head with tribal swirls on upper arm

Colour neo-traditional full sleeve tattoo of red poppies, blue-grey daisies and green leaves on an upper arm and forearm.

Full sleeve of red poppies and daisies

Colour tattoo on an upper arm showing four cartoon-style men with mop-top hair in a psychedelic illustrated style, surrounded by flowers and swirling patterns.

Four illustrated figures and flowers on an upper arm

Realistic black and grey owl face tattoo with orange eyes and swirling linework on the upper arm.

Owl face with orange eyes on upper arm

Black geometric armband tattoo with bands of chevrons, triangles and swirling motifs wrapped around an upper arm.

Tribal armband tattoo on upper arm

Full sleeve tattoo on an upper arm in Japanese style, with orange, green and red lotus-like motifs, swirling clouds and layered scale patterns.

Colourful ornamental sleeve on upper arm

Two panels show black and grey script lettering on an upper arm: the word Cursed in shaded lettering above, and the word Blessed in solid black script with swirling flourishes below.

Cursed and blessed script lettering on an arm

Maroon and black butterfly tattoo with fine line swirls on the upper arm, with a beaded chain draped across the skin.

Maroon butterfly with swirls on an upper arm

Colour floral tattoo across a shoulder and upper arm, with a purple iris, pink and red poppy-like blooms, a white hydrangea and green leaves.

Floral shoulder and upper arm tattoo

Side view of a shirtless man showing a bold black tribal tattoo across his shoulder and upper arm.

Black tribal tattoo on a shoulder

A glowing UV-reactive dreamcatcher tattoo with a flower of life centre and trailing feathers, sitting across the shoulder and upper arm, in geometric and fine line style.

UV-reactive dreamcatcher on upper arm

Black and grey tattoo of a realistic wolf head on the upper arm, with the right half of the face filled with an ornamental mandala-style pattern.

Wolf head with mandala pattern on upper arm

Black and grey blackwork owl tattoo with ornamental patterns on an upper arm, shown during application by a gloved tattooist using a machine.

Ornate owl tattoo being worked on

Black and grey tribal sleeve tattoo on an upper arm with a dimensional, cracked stone effect.

Tribal pattern on an upper arm

Black and grey tattoo of a dark shadowy figure with a reaching hand across a shoulder, with a swirl design continuing onto the upper arm.

Shadowy figure tattoo on a shoulder

Side-by-side photos of a botanical swirl tree tattoo in black ink above blue wave shading on an upper arm.

Swirling tree and blue waves on an arm

Black tribal-style phoenix tattoo with flowing feathers and swirls across a shoulder and upper arm.

Tribal phoenix on a shoulder

Black and grey braided armband tattoo wrapped around an upper arm, with a curling line rising from its upper edge.

Braided armband tattoo on upper arm

Bold black tribal tattoo with a large spiral and an interlocking knot band across the upper arm and shoulder.

Tribal swirl and band on upper arm

Colour tattoo of blue roses, a pink bud and red peonies on an upper arm, shown as purple linework, then in progress and finished.

Blue roses and peonies on upper arm

Neo-traditional colour tattoo of a sugar skull with swirls, a spider web and a flower, on an upper arm, framed by black smoke-like shading.

Colourful sugar skull on upper arm

Black and grey realism tattoo of a compass wrapped in a swirling ribbon with stars, on the shoulder and upper arm.

Compass and stars on shoulder and upper arm

Black ink tattoo of a treble clef, music notes on a five-line staff and a curling floral swirl on the upper arm.

Musical staff and swirl on upper arm

Black and grey Japanese style dragon tattoo covering a man's shoulder, upper arm and chest, photographed in black and white.

Black and grey dragon on shoulder and chest

Black outline tattoo of flowers, swirls and a geometric city skyline across a shoulder and upper arm, with red shading.

Flowers, swirls and a city skyline on upper arm

Black and grey realism tattoo of feathers and scrolling ornament on the upper arm and elbow of a person with long dark hair.

Feather and scrollwork tattoo on upper arm

Black and grey neo-traditional tattoo of a sugar skull woman framed by roses and a butterfly, covering the upper arm and shoulder.

Sugar skull woman and roses on upper arm

Colour tattoo of a red Chinese guardian lion with a gold-patterned ball and blue bell on the upper arm, in a realistic Japanese style.

Red guardian lion on upper arm

Shirtless man with a bold black tribal tattoo covering his chest, shoulder and upper arm, shown against a dark patterned background.

Tribal black ink across chest, shoulder and arm

Black and grey blackwork elephant with a lotus mandala above it, tattooed on the upper arm, with dotwork shading beneath.

Elephant and lotus on upper arm

Colourful painterly brushstroke tattoo wrapping a man's upper arm and forearm in orange, red, yellow, teal and black.

Painterly brushstroke sleeve tattoo

Black and grey ornamental scrollwork tattoo on an upper arm, with the shading softening and fading towards the lower edge of the design.

Ornate scrollwork tattoo on upper arm

Colour tattoo of a swirling blue and yellow night sky with orange stars across a woman's shoulder and upper arm.

Swirling night sky tattoo on shoulder

Colour tattoo of Van Gogh's The Starry Night covering the upper arm, with a swirling blue sky, glowing yellow stars and a dark cypress tree.

Starry Night recreation on upper arm

Black and grey tribal swirl tattoo covering the shoulder and upper arm of a shirtless person, photographed from behind.

Tribal swirl tattoo on shoulder and upper arm

Black ink Sanskrit script, om symbols and a dotwork mandala across a man's chest and shoulder, with more tattooing on the upper arm.

Sanskrit mantra chest and mandala shoulder piece

Colour tiger tattoo on the upper arm, framed by a black tribal band with swirling and triangular patterns.

Tiger within a tribal band on upper arm

Solid black tribal tattoo with sweeping spiked blades and an open central motif, covering a man's shoulder and upper arm.

Black tribal piece on a shoulder

Black and grey neo-traditional style tattoo of a cartoon girl with her hair in a bun, chin resting on her hands, inside an ornate scrolled frame on the upper arm.

Cartoon girl in a scrolled frame on an arm

Woman's arm with a colourful Japanese-style sleeve tattoo showing a red peony, a female figure and blue swirls, photographed in a mirror selfie.

Japanese-style sleeve with rose and figure