Our guest writer Katie Houghton shares five of her favourite rose inspired tattoos…
While June may be home to ‘National Corn on the Cob Day’, and you’re god damn gutted that you missed out, June also happens to be the month of the rose, and we’re all over that. A natural emblem of love and passion, roses as tattoos have been one of the most constant designs since ink touched skin. While some signify death, some eternal love, some balance and some signify the relationship between a sailor and his favourite bird (mother dearest), we know that rose tattoos are an anything-kind-of-game, and we’ve decided to find five of our favourites.
Harriet Heath/Lone Rose Tattoo
I love the plump attitude behind all of Harriet Heath’s work and designs, and the name Lone Rose Tattoo was too good an opportunity to miss on a list of rose tattoos. The tattoo above has sass, it has slant, and the little rose touches on the head band give the whole piece a cute and continental pop that gives her portrait work a recognisable edge.
I don’t know a lot about Tommy Oh!, but I don’t think I need to. Provocative and full o’ spunk, his blackwork is bold, it’s brazen and now I want spider webs on all edges. Standing out due to the thickness of leaf, location and line work, Tommy’s work is unapologetic and pricks like a bloody thorn.
Emily Malice: Parliament Tattoo
If you’re familiar with the work of the stunning Emily Malice, you’ll know that she’s both saint and sinner combined. Generating provocative work, and bold statement tattoos alongside simple custom designs, Emily’s able to add a firm pop to a botanical rose piece like above that remains feminine, but still has grit and chew.
Jenna Hayes Tattoo: Hand and Dagger
Give Jenna a rose and she’ll give you a snake. One of the more traditional artists on this list, I think it’s not only the subtle colour work on this piece that stoods out to me, but the blend of hard edge and soft flora. Clearly able to master thick lines with an honest consistency, Jenna Hayes has got me dreaming of pythons and bouquets.
Sophie, you had me at origami. You also had me at elephant origami (with a rose shaped peony for kicks). A tattoo artist that knows colour craft and consistency like the back of her hand, not only does Sophie generate beautiful pieces (from fauna to flora) that fuse great tones, these origami pieces are creative, they’re pieced together perfectly, and can even be converted to koala should you fancy.
