Wave tattoo ideas

1,081 photos and flash · 24% Japanese, 20% Fine line · Forearm most common

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Full back tattoo in a Japanese style showing a large red and brown owl beside cherry blossom branches and a pale moon, with a green bird sleeve on the upper arm.
Owl, cherry blossom and moon back piece
Traditional tattoo of a grey-shaded sailing ship with red sunburst, waves and a Sail On banner, on the upper back.
Sailing ship with Sail On banner on upper back
Close-up of a Japanese style tattoo on a back and upper arm, showing a red and yellow serpent with a dark scaled head and orange eye among black and grey waves.
Japanese serpent and waves across back and arm
Four small colour tattoos of emblems, a blue water symbol, a green earth symbol, a grey air symbol and a red fire symbol, stacked vertically on a person's upper back.
Four nation emblems down the upper back
Full back tattoo of a snake coiled around a skull with waves and clouds, in grey shading with small orange accents, placed across the back.
Snake and skull full back piece
Blue and turquoise wave tattoo inside a black outlined circle, centred on a person's back.
Blue wave in a circle on the back
Colour Japanese style tattoo of an orange koi fish with a pink lotus, pink cherry blossoms and blue waves across the upper back.
Orange koi with lotus and cherry blossom on a back
Traditional style colour tattoo of a sailing ship on green waves inside a waffle cone, with pink and orange flowers and green leaves below, on a lower back.
Sailing ship in an ice cream cone with flowers
Back view of a man with a large flowing wave tattoo in black outline and orange and brown fills covering the shoulder and upper arm.
Flowing wave tattoo across back and upper arm
Black and grey cherry blossoms and falling petals run down the spine, with a shaded lotus and pink water lines at the lower back, in a Japanese style.
Cherry blossom trail and lotus on a back
Four small black sea turtles in a diagonal line with faint wave shading on the upper back near the shoulder blade.
Four sea turtles across upper back
Black tribal tattoo with two horizontal blue wave bands in the centre, sitting on the lower back.
Tribal swirl with blue waves on lower back
Traditional black and grey rose tattoo with bold outlines and stippled shading across the back of a shaved head neck, with a snake and wave tattoo below on the upper back.
Black and grey rose on the back of the neck
Green-tailed mermaid tattoo in soft grey shading across a woman's upper and mid back, with rocks and waves below her tail.
Mermaid tattoo across a back
Abstract watercolour-style tattoo, a tall band of blue, pink, orange and teal, running down the spine from the nape of the neck across the upper back.
Vertical colour strip down the spine
Small blue wave tattoo with white highlights in a Japanese-influenced style, placed on the upper back between the shoulder blades.
Blue wave on upper back
Black ink sailing ship tattoo on the upper back of a woman with her hair pinned up, in a traditional style.
Sailing ship tattoo on upper back
Large realism tattoo on a person's back showing a woman's face framed by a feathered wing, red cherry blossom, lotus flowers and Japanese-style waves.
Realist woman portrait with lotus on a back
Black and grey fine-line geometric wave tattoo running from the upper back over the shoulder and down the outstretched upper arm.
Wave linework across back and arm
Woman seen from behind with a full-back Japanese style tattoo of a dragon and waves, extending over the upper arms and thighs.
Full back and leg Japanese dragon tattoo
Colour tattoo of a mermaid with a green tail rising from blue and white waves across the lower back, in a traditional style.
Mermaid rising from waves on lower back
Black and grey fine line tattoo of a sailboat on rippling sea inside a circle of sunburst rays, on the upper back.
Sailboat at sea in a circle on upper back
Solid black blackwork tattoo across a man's back, with bold abstract shapes over the shoulders and circular motifs running down the spine.
Black abstract back tattoo with spine motifs
Colour Japanese style full back tattoo design showing a pig-headed figure in a patterned robe, surrounded by orange flames, clouds and a snake.
Pig-headed figure in flames, Japanese back design
Full back tattoo of an ornate colourful skull surrounded by clouds, beads and red peony flowers, in a neo-traditional style on a bare back.
Ornate colourful skull full back piece
Colour tattoo of a fox filled with a crescent moon, sun, clouds, daisies and stars, placed on a person's upper back.
Fox with sun, moon and flowers on back
Full back Japanese style tattoo of samurai warriors, flames, clouds and birds, with blue waves across the lower back.
Japanese back piece with samurai and flames
Person seen from behind with black and grey tattoos covering the back, neck and both arms, including a winged figure on the back and a rose on the upper arm.
Heavily tattooed back and arms seen from behind
Black and grey photograph of a bare back and side with a flowing abstract fine line tattoo of wave-like strands across the ribs and lower back.
Flowing black lines across ribs and back
Black and grey Polynesian-style tattoo with tribal bands and two flowers across the back of a woman's neck and upper back.
Polynesian-style neck and upper back tattoo with flowers
Large colour and grey back tattoo of two mermaids entwined in a circle, with an infinity symbol between them, red koi fish and fish skeletons around them.
Two mermaids in a circle with koi on a back
Full back tattoo in traditional style showing a swooping eagle above red roses, a sailing ship on waves and a red sun, with colour ink throughout.
Eagle, roses and sailing ship back piece
Black and grey realism back piece showing Poseidon with a trident above a sailing ship in a storm, placed across the whole of the upper and middle back.
Poseidon and a sailing ship across a full back
Black and grey realism full back tattoo of a dragon above a yin yang symbol, set among carved-looking clouds, waves and a Greek key border.
Dragon and yin yang full back piece
Full back tattoo in Japanese style showing a geisha holding fans, cherry blossoms, butterflies and wind lines in colour across the back.
Full back Japanese piece with geisha and butterflies
Black and grey Japanese style back tattoo of a geisha with chrysanthemums and wave patterns, covering most of the upper back.
Geisha and waves across a back
Colour Japanese-style tattoo of a red koi fish with a pink lotus flower and turquoise waves on the upper back.
Koi fish and lotus on the upper back
Person seen from behind with a full blackwork tattoo covering the back, buttocks and legs, featuring a lattice spine panel, swirling motifs and hexagon patterns.
Full back and legs blackwork tattoo
Full back tattoo of a red koi fish swimming among pink cherry blossoms and water swirls in Japanese style, across the upper and middle back.
Koi fish and cherry blossom on a back
Black and grey dotwork and linework tattoo of a whale tail among curling waves inside a circle, placed on a woman's upper back.
Whale tail in circular waves on upper back
Black and grey dotwork tattoo of a cat in a striped jumper fishing from a rowboat under a dotted crescent moon, on the upper back.
Cat fishing from a rowboat on the upper back
Colour Japanese-style tattoo of an orange koi carp, purple lotus flowers and grey waves across a person's back.
Koi and lotus on a back
Woman seen from behind with a colourful Japanese style koi and wave tattoo covering her back and left arm, against a dark red studio backdrop.
Full back Japanese koi and wave tattoo
Back of a woman with a black linework Japanese-style lotus and wave design across her lower back, and a peony and flower sleeve on her arm, photographed in a dim studio.
Lotus back piece and flower arm sleeve
Large Japanese-style back tattoo of a geisha with pink flowers in her hair, a red and green serpent, waves and chrysanthemums, shown across a person's upper back.
Geisha and serpent back piece
Back and arm tattoo in Japanese style showing a fierce warrior with a sword, a koi on the upper arm and peonies, in colour against a black background.
Japanese back and arm sleeve tattoo
Two photographs of a full body Japanese-style tattoo: on the left a back piece seen while kneeling in water, on the right a torso and sleeves with an eagle, cherry blossom and koi.
Full body Japanese-style tattoo in two views
Black and grey engraved-style tattoo of a lighthouse on rocks inside an oval laurel frame, placed across a person's upper back.
Lighthouse in an oval frame on a back