The Best Mermaid Tattoos and Designs. #1 is Insane!

Magical mermaid tattoos! From “the Little Mermaid,” to one woman who turned her whole leg into a tail tattoo.

20. Mermaid in America

Simplicity draped in Stars and Stripes. This tattoo features clean line work and nice, bright coloring, and plays homage to everything Americana, with a Wonder Woman-esq flag suit of the freedom variety wrapping this icon of the sea in the tell tale red, white and blue of the good ol’ USA. A fun, to the point, inscribe that celebrates the spirit of ocean voyage and flies high in patriotic glory.

19. A Sailors Life for Me

 

A clean, classy tattoo with a classic concept. Very well placed on the upper thigh, a great canvas for larger pieces, this work is cleanly done with ultra smooth lines and nice detailing. True to tradition the nautical brand here has a mermaid resting on, and attached to, an anchor which is symbolic of stability and a strong foundation, though it can also be a much simpler notion referring to the general ideals of being at sea. The mermaid herself is a powerful symbol of the ocean, beautiful and alluring, and represented here in traditional fashion, curvy and quaint with long locks of wavy hair. A well executed tattoo across the board, neatly inked and full of maritime spirit.

18. Skeletal Siren

 

Skeleton siren rising up from ocean’s deadly waves. This bony shadow of woman turned fish is lovely and bold with a wonderful array of greens in the tail, highlighted by yellow glow, that compliments her incredibly indigo mane in psychotic style. I love the way this cadaverous water spirit holds a nautical star close to heart seemingly symbolizing that she has no life without the ocean, and also indicative of celestial navigation – a crucial element of life on the waves. And after all we all need to find our way home. A great tattoo that’s fun but holds meaning, with beautiful line work and gorgeous color injection.

17. Mermaid Motherhood

 

Brilliant composition and marvelous shading really make this a special piece. A mermaid embracing her new child is symbolic of love on a profound level, as these mystical creatures are often associated with love godesses like Aphrodite and Venus. Very neatly placed in the central lower back, this tattoo draws you in with its spiraling tail bending and curving back on itself, almost creating a full circle to encompass the pair which gives the illusion that the entire piece is a womb. Both graceful and beautiful, this tattoo artfully shows the ocean of love created by motherhood.

 

16. Tribal Oceanid

At first glance this tattoo reads like a tribal body band wrapping its way round the torso like a charcoal snake squeezing its imprint into flesh. But these tribal patterns hold a secret siren revealed upon closer inspection of the brand, and this enchanting goddess of the sea soon becomes clear accented nicely by rare streaks of scarlet red. Lining and fill-in work are impeccable in this ink, and the composition quite brilliant. A refreshing take on tribal emblem with a hidden nautical spirit that brings a feminine touch to a very traditional tribal aesthetic.

 

15. Watercolor Wonder

Simple, well injected lines and washes of color that bleed into the canvas make this tattoo a complete success, and its placement is just as perfect, topped by the pale skin tone this looks like it was torn from an artist’s watercolor sketch book. A very flowing design, giving a very whimsical feel, is highlighted by the rippling ribbon tail and lightning bolt lines that make up the hair. This mermaid is pretty and elegant, emboldened by the fierce mix of orange and red that represent the turnings of fire and both creation and destruction. Spring blues make up the color streaks on the body and blue-black of the ocean splash around her suggest a cleansing, healing, psychic element that adds to the mystery of this fairy of the deep. Love it.

 

14. Ursula’s World

So this tattoo may not be all mermaid, but it is classic The Little Mermaid imagery and this octo-axis of evil genius couldn’t be ignored. Gorgeous, bold colors on fair skin really make this work pop and the placement, central to the solar plexus is perfect.  Every-bodies favorite classic mermaid depicted in the middle, along with her leading man, within crystal ball, are clearly being manipulated by the invisible strings in Ursula’s hands. Shading and highlighting in all the right places really make this tattoo a colorful dream within a nightmare for mermaid Arial. “Now I am the ruler of all the ocean. The waves obey my every whim!”.

 

13. Siren of the Swamp

This toxic tattoo is like a mermaid on anti-freeze who was caught in a shallow rock pool, briefly experimented on, died, flushed into a green sludge pit of waste which magically resurrected her, turning her into this emaciated, woman-fish hybrid of hell. And that is why it’s awesome, every perfectly inked drop of it. The hollow horror captured on her face, one can only imagine translates into a ghoulish howl which transfixes it’s sea-faring victims and twists them into a rocky, watery grave. Lovely!

 

12. Penny for the Ferryman

This tattoo is made stylish and elegant by fine, delicate line work and shading. Traditionally mermaids are the cause of death for any folk who gets ensnared in their mesmerizing trap of incredible beauty and sultry song. However, here we have a mermaid playing the role of Kharon; the Greek demon of the underworld, ferryman of the dead.  It is quite a dainty piece, yet heavy in meaning, we will all take that boat ride someday, and the carrier of souls to the afterlife turned mermaid symbolizes that there is beauty in death. As an inevitable part of life, one should embrace death and make peace with the world we know, and live every beautiful moment as loud as we can.

 

11. Capricorn Charms the Sea

An unconventional mermaid hybrid of goat headed madness. This is Capricorn meets water nymph with sexy in the middle. A very well executed tattoo with extremely clean lines and great black to grey scale gradients that make this needlework stand out boldly and with pride. The deep blasts of fiery color in the red and golden yellow on the fins and tail, reappear on the face and horns nicely tying the piece together. An ambitious tattoo for a true Capricorn, and a great, vibrant depiction of mer-sea-goat.

 

10. Double Pin-Up Double Take

This is classic style mermaid pin-up art on real life pin-up canvas. Sitting in an oyster shell, this alluring beauty of the deep holds an anchor, which is a symbol of stability, and she is framed by it’s rope, both collected from fallen ships. She is perfectly designed and placed to follow the natural curves of the body, highlighting on the tail is sublime and appears to make mermaid scales shine, and overall this is a well done tattoo that will represent this damsel’s inner siren forevermore.

 

9. Deep Ocean Dreamer

Amazing! Incredible color saturation through high quality inks, and powerful imagery with living mermaid elegance captured and intertwined with eight arms of deadly, in vivid, seductively beautiful forever art. So many shades and blues have gone into this work creating a dizzying array of ocean garnished in fine style with both dolphin and shark lurking in the background. But we came for the mermaids, and this tattoo delivers in spades. This water spirit sits atop the murky rocks eternally gazing up and dreaming of the wonders above, and octopus companion tangled at her tail is deviously mesmerizing just like it’s toxic real life counterpart. Every stage of this piece from lining to color work is mentally magnificent. A treasure chest sits perched beside the mermaid queen as she longingly looks beyond the waves, but what she fails to realize, is that she is, herself, the jewel of the sea.

 

8. Love Conquers Death

This tattoo reminds me of something out of Dante’s Inferno, and then its snaps back from the dead with wonderful brightly colored heart, flowers and tail, injecting life into this hallowed art, and a sudden sense of love held dear with skeletal hand gesturing towards candy pink heart. This is symbolic of the victory of love over death, and the glistening rainbow of the tail would suggest that we never truly die. A nicely shaded piece that highlights every bone and strand of hair beautifully. The contrast between black/grey and color is stunning and creates a very visually appealing, very cool tattoo that is meaningful and artistic adding awesome flair to skin canvas.

 

7. Mermaid Zodiac

Charming, alluring Pisces represented perfectly in mermaid form. Ruled by Neptune, Pisces personalities are intuitive, spiritual and determined which nicely intertwines with the traits of the mermaid, and like their water spirit counterparts, Piceans sense the order of the universe and have a deep connection to their fellow man. This tattoo is absolutely well placed on either side of the lower back and joining in the middle which makes great use of the space and reads beautifully well on the canvas.  Clean lines and excellent shading tie this tattoo together finely and it represents mermaids and zodiac sign in sublime style.

 

6. Goddess of the Tides

I love this back piece that honors the moon and the oceans she controls. Emblazoned with an ancient water symbol, this seductress of the murky depths is reminiscent of a Hindu goddess with extra arms spanning out in all directions. But the most interesting and unique element to this mermaid inscribe is that she is manipulating the cycle of the moon as it floats around her head in full lunar diagram. The moon is symbolic of the ocean as it controls the ebb and flow of the tides, and also represents balance as it is the Yin to the sun’s Yang. A nice tattoo which is well positioned on the canvas, and the detail in the shading of the waves is marvelous. Sea goddess turned mermaid- very fitting.

 

5. Perfect Powder Effect

A simple, well executed design that turns basic line art into a cotton candy pastel party, bringing cheer to the wearer and a unique take on traditional mermaid creative. Through subtle shading with faint but outstanding color the artist has achieved the look of pale soft-hued powder splashed over fine lines making up this mermaid myriad of watercolor, bleeding into skin. A different take on a mermaid classic and it looks great.

 

4. Wild Mermaid Vision

Highly dramatic, black and grey mermaid art wonderfully etched across an entire back, this tattoo screams underwater seductress in brilliant detail and awe inspiring composition. Siren’s arched back is flirtatious and provocative and makes her appear to be spinning backwards through the bubble stream. The splendid detail in her tail is hypnotic and the addition of pointy fins around this vixen’s waist is a nice personal touch. The well shaded jellyfish is a cool addition, rounds off the piece well, and represents inner strength, transparency and truth. This tattoo is an amazing back piece, executed with class, an eye catcher for a lifetime.

 

3. Mermaid Princess

Simply beautiful. This ink is intricate, elegant and spiritual, conjuring up notions of Thai goddesses, gorgeously adorned in layers upon layers of jewelry and decoration. Suvannamaccha, meaning in Sanskrit, golden fish, is a mermaid princess in popular Thai folklore who, as the story goes, tries to spoil Hunaman’s bridge building plans but instead ends up falling in love with him. The tattoo here features clean, ornate line work and brilliant use of color that breathes life into the art. There is so much detail one really has to stare into this brand, and overall is it a divine tattoo that will bring luck, love and life to the wearer and permanently shine as a devotional motif forever at his side.

 

2. A Perfect Tail

Wow factor overload, this skin art is awesome and all those arduous hours of sitting through it and inking it in paid off big time. These tattooed legs are absolutely wonderful, every scale highlighted so that it appears to overlap the last and the fuchsia fins running down the lower leg onto the foot are exquisite. If this doesn’t transform you into a mermaid, all hope is lost, with rainbow scales wrapping the legs and perfectly fading in intensity down to the feet, this work is rare and wild. Symbolic of the wearer fully embodying the spirit of a mermaid, in turn the tattoo represents the wearer’s character traits; daring, bold, beautiful and committed, and all of a sudden the lines between human and mermaid become blurred, if only for a moment, and strangely out of focus. A really pretty tail, I mean tattoo, and a masterpiece to be proud of.

 

1.

Unique, tribal mermaid artistry balanced between shoulder blades. A great tattoo concept with ultra clean lines and excellent placement, this ink stands out against traditional mermaid design in its intriguing mix of tribal, henna and Zentangle aesthetics. Awesome contrast between thick and thin lines, and I love the way this body art seems to float up the back. Hearts and spirals surround the mermaid and weave into the pattern work, symbolic of love and the path leading from the outer conscious to the inner soul. All in all, a very stylized design with hidden meaning laced into it’s curves and a fanciful flow that keeps you coming back for another look.