Ornamental tattooing is perhaps one of the oldest styles in the game – while designs have culturally criss-crossed all over the place, many of their origins lie in ancient tribal traditions. The first evidence of human tattooing was found on a mummified corpse of a Neolithic Iceman discovered in the Alps in the early 1990s. He had 61 tattoos, most composed of lines and dots, and most of them were found to be located on or near acupuncture meridians, leading anthropologists to believe they served a medicinal role over an aesthetic one.

While this style of tattooing has become more an aesthetic choice today, Smithsonian tattoo anthropologist Lars Krutak notes that while some indigenous people did receive tattoos for purely ornamental reasons to enhance their appearance, this was more the exception than the rule. Most of the time, tattoos were meant to identify tribal affiliation, hierarchy within a tribe, or as with the Iceman, to serve as medicinal therapy or repel evil spirits.

How to style ornamental tattoo

Ornamental tattoos can work when you don't necessarily want or need your tattoo to mean anything, and just be beautiful. Unlike traditional Tribal tattoos or heavy Blackwork designs, Ornamental tattoos tend to look and feel "fancier," more intricately designed and energetically "feminine". They typically emphasize geometry, symmetry, and employ black shading or delicate pointillism. They can also be designed with heavier swaths of black, making them useful in "blastovers" (giving new life to an old tattoo that you might regret or not feel particularly aligned with anymore). That said, there can be a fine line between cultural appropriation and appreciation, so it's best to walk into the tattoo shop with an idea knowing where it came from, and what it can mean in that culture before you commit to anything forever.

What Are the Risks of Ornamental Tattoos?

The main risk not going to an artist who is highly skilled in ornamental tattoos. You want to check the portfolio with healed examples of the works - it is important to be sure the projects are not over-photoshoped and you can see detail and how accurate the tattoo is done.

Ornamental tattoo requires a lot of skill and years of practice. It is also one of the most time-consuming styles, because of that those kinds of tattoos should cost expensive. If you find an artist who is ready to do the work very cheap or for free - be ready that you will be a model to practice and the final result will be far from what was planned.

The risks don't stop once the tattoo is is done — after care is extremely important. Even the smallest scratches can cause missing ink on the healed tattoo. So, when you get a tattoo with ornament and a lot of details, you really have to be very mindful of how you treat your tattoo while it is healing and make sure you are using the correct moisturizer.