The Rising Trend of Embroidery Tattoos

Trends of Embroidered Tattoos

Do you remember how your grandma would sew days-of-the-week tea towels that were stretch tautly across wooden hoops? She would sit in her chair by the fire, reading glasses perched on the end of her nose, and would make small precise stitches to create the image. I can practically smell the rose-scented perfume she always wore when I think about the hours she spent sewing in that chair.

Well, you’re not going to believe this, but grandma’s arts and craft time have made its way into your tattoo studio. And it’s a lot cooler than it sounds.

While the embroidery tattoo trend has nothing to do with tea towels, it does have to do with a fantastic technique that looks as if your badass grandma has a side job as a tattoo artist.

The trend is called embroidery tattoos, and you are going to love them.

Embroidery Tattoos

During the process of creating an embroidery tattoo, the artist draws the design using a series of tiny x’s, just like what grandma did with embroidery floss on her towels and pillowcases. In fact, the process of embroidery and tattooing are oddly similar. Both require the use of sharp needles to complete the artwork. When done well, both embroidery and embroidery tattoos give the appearance of seeming 3D. During both processes, the artist can use a wide variety of colors of thread or ink to provide a stunning appearance to the finished project.

Crewel Tattoos

Similar to the embroidery tattooing technique, crewel is also gaining in popularity. For those of you not up-to-date on hand-held sewing techniques, crewel is a process of using thick, wool thread to create an image. While embroidery designs are typically counted as x’s or small stitches, crewel is a style of free embroidery. Crewel has come in and out of fashion over the years, but it had its heyday during the 1970s when peasant shirts with crewel detailing were popular.

For lack of a better word, crewel designs look thicker than basic embroidery. Not only is the thread thicker, but the sewer overlaps the thread more in the design. Talented tattoo artists are able to recreate this technique with ink.

Patch Tattoos

While you are looking at embroidery and crewel tattoos online, you may also see tattoos that look exactly like an embroidered patch. Clever artists not only create the patch using varying shades of ink, but they also outline the patch, usually in dark ink, to make it look as if it is sewn onto the skin. The detail work on these designs can be amazing. In fact, talented artists make the tattoo look like the thread is unraveling just a bit along the edge of the outline.

As we learned last week, more females than males are entering tattoo studios nowadays. Also, 3D tattoos are gaining in popularity. It’s not a surprise that most women are choosing to have embroidery or sewn tattoos.

Popular Designs

Many of the sewn tattoos are floral designs. A skilled artist can alter the color of several of the “threads” of ink to make the petals look stunningly realistic.

Women are also choosing vines, birds, and symmetrical floral patterns that one would have found along the edge of grandma’s pillowcases. You may also see outlined images of animals that look as if they were created with skillful even stitching.

The embroidered patch technique is popular with men and women. Cartoon characters adorn many of these patches. You will also find tattooed patches that look as if they were straight out of the 1970s. Embroidered letters from high school letter jackets are popular with men and women, as well as patches depicting the logo of professional sports teams.

How Do You Pick a Tattoo Artist?

Are you interested in getting an embroidery tattoo? Maybe you are interested in getting a tattoo that looks as if it was sewn onto your skin. How do you pick the right artist for the job?

Ask around

Start by asking your friends and family members for recommendations. Ask strangers where their tattoos came from and the artist who completed the work. Just from those simple discussions, you can discover a few places to check out and perhaps a few places to avoid.

Visit some studios

Of course, make sure the studio is clean. Cleanliness and sanitation should be a top priority for studios.

Meet the artist

Ask questions. Look at his or her portfolios. If you are particularly interested in the embroidery tattoos, ask to see samples of similar work completed by that artist.

Check out embroidery tattoos on Pinterest. You really are going to love them.

Please call us at 353-1-561-5663 to book a consultation today!