InkCraftForearm Tattoo Designs for Men: Hair and Cuffs
32 men's forearm tattoos photographed on skin for InkCraftBy Uladzimir TumanauUpdated
On many men the forearm is muscular, hairy and on show, all at once. These forearm tattoos for men are photographed on the inner and outer forearm, and the notes below cover what the taper, the hair and a rolled shirt cuff mean for size and line weight.
- linework · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white linework raven tattoo on a man's forearm
- biomechanical · black and greyTry it on — Black and grey biomechanical anchor tattoo on a man's forearm
- Japanese · colourTry it on — Color Japanese tattoo on a man's forearm
- ornamental · black and greyTry it on — Black and grey ornamental lips tattoo on a man's forearm
- fine line · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white fine line tattoo on a man's forearm
- illustrative · colourTry it on — Color illustrative tiger tattoo on a man's forearm
- illustrative · black and greyTry it on — Black and grey illustrative crow tattoo on a man's forearm
- neo traditional · colourTry it on — Color neo traditional lily tattoo on a man's forearm
- Japanese · colourTry it on — Color Japanese tattoo on a man's forearm
- tribal · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white tribal compass rose tattoo on a man's forearm
- fine line · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white fine line tattoo on a man's forearm
- dotwork · black and greyTry it on — Black and grey dotwork eye tattoo on a man's forearm
- dotwork · black and greyTry it on — Black and grey dotwork cat tattoo on a man's forearm
- fine line · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white fine line tattoo on a man's forearm
- linework · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white linework tattoo on a man's forearm
- new school · colourTry it on — Color new school tiger tattoo on a man's forearm
- tribal · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white tribal rose tattoo on a man's forearm
- biomechanical · colourTry it on — Color biomechanical tattoo on a man's forearm
- neo traditional · colourTry it on — Color neo traditional tattoo on a man's forearm
- geometric · colourTry it on — Color geometric sunflower tattoo on a man's forearm
- linework · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white linework moon phases tattoo on a man's forearm
- fine line · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white fine line lotus tattoo on a man's forearm
- linework · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white linework flower tattoo on a man's forearm
- linework · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white linework tattoo on a man's forearm
- biomechanical · colourTry it on — Color biomechanical tattoo on a man's forearm
- fine line · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white fine line tattoo on a man's forearm
- watercolor · colourTry it on — Color watercolor tattoo on a man's forearm
- illustrative · colourTry it on — Color illustrative dragon tattoo on a man's forearm
- biomechanical · black and greyTry it on — Black and grey biomechanical tattoo on a man's forearm
- geometric · black and whiteTry it on — Black and white geometric tattoo on a man's forearm
- neo traditional · colourTry it on — Color neo traditional tattoo on a man's forearm
- biomechanical · colourTry it on — Color biomechanical tattoo on a man's forearm
Every pair is one tattoo: the design as it was drawn, and a photograph of that same design on the body.
These 32 tattoos on men's forearms, in numbers
- Body parts
- 1
- Black and grey
- 19
- Colour
- 13
- Most common style
- biomechanical
A taper that runs out of room at the wrist
Measure a man's forearm and the problem is plain: it is thick and wide just below the elbow, where the muscle bellies sit, and narrow at the wrist. The more the arm is trained, the steeper that taper gets. A straight-sided design ends up overhanging the sides near the elbow and pinched near the wrist, so the shapes that settle best are broad at the top and narrow at the bottom, the way the arm itself is.
Scale follows from the width. A small symbol that would fill a slim forearm looks marooned in the middle of a broad one. Either take the piece up to the size the surface asks for, or set it high and to one side, where later work can join it without leaving a gap. Lean, vascular forearms add one more complication: a large area of pale grey wash can look blotchy over raised veins, while solid black and bare skin do not.
Shaving, regrowth and the rolled shirt sleeve
Most men's outer forearms carry noticeably more hair than the inner side. The artist shaves the area on the day, but within a few weeks the hair is back over the healed work. Bold outlines and solid fills read straight through it; thin lines and soft stippling turn grey and vague until the next shave. If you have no plan to keep the arm shaved, give the fine work to the inner forearm and the heavy work to the outside.
Then there is the shirt. A t-shirt shows the whole forearm and a buttoned cuff hides it, but a sleeve rolled two or three turns stops on the upper forearm, often right where a design is at its widest. Decide whether the piece should vanish when the sleeve is down or stay whole when it is rolled, and set the top edge to suit. Pain, healing and the inner-or-outer question are on the forearm page.
Common questions
- Do I need to shave my forearm before the appointment?
- No. The artist shaves the area as part of setting up, with a fresh disposable razor. Many prefer you to arrive unshaved, because razor rash from shaving at home the night before is harder to work over. Whether you keep shaving afterwards comes down to how much of the fine detail you want to see.
- What size forearm tattoo suits a muscular arm, large or small?
- Either large enough to cover most of the outer face, from just below the elbow to a few fingers above the wrist, or small and deliberately set in one corner. The awkward size is in between: a piece centred on a broad forearm, too small to fill it and too central to build around later.
- Should writing on a man's forearm face him or other people?
- Pick one before the stencil goes on, because it cannot be both. Lettering turned so you can read it when you look down at your arm is upside down to anyone facing you, and the reverse is also true. A common split is outward-facing script on the outer forearm and self-facing script on the inner.
- Which forearm tattoo designs suit men?
- Ones drawn to the length of the arm. On the outer face, a tiger, a raven or a compass rose in neo-traditional, Japanese or biomechanical work has the solid black to read through regrowth and the height to fill the taper. Fine line and linework suit the smoother inner forearm. Any of these can open a forearm sleeve later if its edges are left free.
See it on your own skin first
InkCraft places a design on a photo of you — scaled, wrapped and shaded to the spot you pick, so you can judge the size against your own body before it is permanent.