Upper arm tattoos for women: placement and size

Where the design sits on a rounded arm

A rounded arm has no flat plane, so a circular design drawn on paper reads as an oval once it is on you. Artists compensate by placing the visual center slightly toward the front of the arm, where you and most people looking at you actually see it. Ask to see the stencil while standing with your arms relaxed at your sides, not while your arm rests on the table.

Height gives you more room than width here. A design that runs 18 cm from just below the shoulder cap to above the elbow uses the arm properly, while a wide piece disappears around the back. If you want a large single image, such as a portrait or a full flower, expect it to sit closer to the shoulder where the arm is widest.

Three positions on the upper arm

• Outer arm, front facing: seen in conversation, visible in a t-shirt
• Outer arm, wrapping to the back: seen from behind, hidden face on
• Inner arm: private, only visible when you raise your arm or in a vest

The pain gap between outer and inner

The outer upper arm is the softest placement most people will ever sit for, around 3 out of 10. There is muscle and fat between the needle and the bone, no nerve runs close to the surface, and three or four hours is comfortable for a first large piece.

The inner upper arm is a different experience at 6 to 7 out of 10. The skin is thin and rarely exposed, so it is more sensitive, and the area closest to the armpit has lymph nodes and nerves underneath. Many artists work the inner arm in shorter bursts. If you are booking a full outer and inner wrap, ask for the inner section at the start of the session rather than hour four.

Healing with straps, sleeves and skin on skin

The inner arm rests against your ribs when you walk, so a fresh tattoo there rubs constantly and gets warm and damp. Loose sleeveless tops help, and some people sleep with a folded towel between arm and body for the first few nights. Sweat is the practical issue, which makes summer a harder time to heal inner arm work.

On the outer arm, bag straps are the thing people forget. A cross body bag or a rucksack strap sits right across the top of the outer arm and grinds on healing ink every time you walk. Switch to a handheld bag or wear the strap on the other shoulder for two weeks, and do the same with a bra strap if the design runs high onto the shoulder.

How weight change moves an upper arm piece

The upper arm holds more fat than the forearm and changes shape more with weight. A gain or loss of ten kilos will widen or narrow the canvas and can pull a tight geometric pattern noticeably out of true. Organic subjects, flowers, animals, flowing shapes, absorb that change without looking wrong. Strict grids and evenly spaced mandalas show it first.

Skin on the back of the upper arm also loses some firmness with age, which softens fine detail there earlier than on the front. If you want small, closely detailed work on the upper arm, putting it on the front outer face rather than the underside gives it a longer clean life. Plan on a touch up somewhere around year eight to ten for fine line work.