PHOTO: COURTESY @DEMARATATTOO VIA INSTAGrAM
Tattoos are a major decision, but what about one on your collarbone? The placement is often overlooked because it’s so visible, but that shouldn’t keep you from feeling like your most sexy self with this type of ink. The best tattoos are meant to be seen, and if you’re worried you don’t have to get a massive design. collarbone tattoos are particularly exquisite when drawn just-so along the line of the bone.
While this location for ink is definitely one for the books, there are also many things to think about. Can you show it at work? Absolutely (especially with good foundation), but they can be small enough to leave on display if you want. Does it hurt to get them? Um, yes. Quite a bit actually. Because the tattoo literally sits on bone, the application is substantially more painful. Should this stop you? No way! These particular pieces of badassery will make you the talk of the town.
Since we have your attention about the placement, here are 20 of the most gorgeous pieces of inspiration for your new collarbone tattoo.
Celebrity Collarbone Tattoos
While collarbone tattoos are pretty common among the masses, celebrities and worldwide trendsetters have a distinct love for the placement as well.
Rihanna (@badgalriri on Instagram) is one of the most popular female celebrities in the world today, and her ink is a definite inspiration to most. Her collarbone tattoo is unique in that it is written backward, so she can read the words in her mirror. As this demonstrates, your tattoos should be meant for you and you alone, while you may share them with the world. Rihanna’s collarbone tattoo says the words, “Never a Failure, Always a Lesson,” a motto of sorts for her. What a beautiful way of verbalizing the changes life throws at us, Rih.
The recently christened “Mrs. Bieber,” Hailey Baldwin (@haileybieber on Instagram), has one of the most delicate and tiny collarbone tattoos I have seen. Artist JonBoy tattooed the black-line heart in early 2018, a sweet addition to Bieber’s collection. The heart is impossibly tiny and a perfect tattoo for ladies who live for the tiny-art aesthetic.
One could swear Ruby Rose (@rubyrose on Instagram)) doesn’t have a collarbone tattoo with how well she hides this particular piece on her social media. Collar bone tattoos are easily hidden with the right collars and makeup, and Rose demonstrates this fact tastefully. Her collarbone tattoo is reminiscent of her time as a model for makeup brand Maybelline and says, “Maybe she’s born with it,” in a fun font.
Newly-wed actress Sophie Turner Jonas (@sophiet on Instagram) took a temporary lipstick-print collarbone tattoo for a spin in 2016, but we wish she had it for real. Its placement was nearly on her shoulder, and just small enough that covering it would have been a snap! Since the collarbone is a pleasing spot to litter with kisses in the bedroom, we can’t help but give this collarbone tattoo two thumbs up, even if it wasn’t real.
New mom and R&B songstress Kehlani’s collarbone tattoo is one of my favorites. Her collarbone tattoo expresses a rather prominent part of who she is-- her gender fluidity, with the word “fluid”-- and she elaborates on her truth in an interview with Paper Magazine, “Once I really understood that if someone likes me, they like me for all of me," she says "I started being myself depending on how I felt that day, not based on who I was dating at the time.” Her collarbone tattoo distinctly tells her story.
Botanical Collarbone Tattoos
As with most tattoos, flowers are extremely common with the collarbone tattoo. These botanicals will keep you coming back for more! Not only are they beautiful, but they’re also delicate and have deeper meaning sometimes.
Emily Ebers (@evebers on Instagram) is a pro with cover-ups, as she demonstrates with this impeccably designed rose trio. The detail is impressive with layered shading on the rose petals.
Makayla Morris’ (@makamorr on Instagram) traditional style collarbone tattoo is making us beg for more. We love the cherry red vibrancy of the color.
For those who prefer smaller flowers, Martha Bocharova’s (@martha_bocharova on Instagram) floral collarbone tattoo is the best design. It features simple, black linework-- the perfect choice for a woman who wants that delicate-as-a-petal aesthetic.
The gorgeous simplicity of this collarbone tattoo by Hayleigh “Hazey” Brind (@hayleigh_hazey_brind_tattoos on Instagram) is exquisite. She expertly adorned her client’s collarbone with a tattoo of massive emeralds and black-line peonies. Together, they yield a delightfully pretty collarbone tattoo. We love the design.
These gothic roses are decorated with spiderwebs, and we are loving the collarbone tattoo. Ladies, you will be living for this look of the night during this year’s spooky season. Artist Alicia Anderson (@aandersontattoo on Instagram) uses teeny dots to complete the realistic shading of the roses.
Tattooist Joanna (@cracovianca on Instagram) shows her talent with this olive-branch collarbone tattoo. It’s an effortless design to wear well and has a sweet meaning relating back to biblical times-- peace on Earth.
Tattooist Donghwa (@donghwa_tattoo on Instagram) paints a tiny cloud, autumn leaf and lotus blossoms on the collarbone of the client. It is such a delicate design, perfect for any nature-lover.
“Bee” Inspired Collarbone Tattoos
These adorable, bumble-bee and fruit-inspired collarbone tattoos will have everyone around you buzzing. They are so cute and are the quintessential inspo for our lovely nature fairies.
Tattoo artist Hanna Manna (@hanna_manna_tatu on Instagram) is the ultimate bee-keeper for collarbone tattoos. She pairs these fuzzy boys with dot-work, shaded honeycombs that make us yearn for their cloying sweetness.
This teeny pumpkin by Ovenlee (@ovenlee.tattoo on Instagram) is the unopposed leader of the fall season in our book of collarbone tattoos. It is purely colored, with zero outlines for the image. Where is our pumpkin spice when we need it?
Artist Demara (@demaratattoo on Instagram) brings this collarbone tattoo to life with these vivid and realistic-looking honeybees. The yellow is a welcome pairing with the black.
Daniele Lugli’s (@danielelugli) collarbone tattoo is delivered to us in the refreshingly tart shape of a lemon. The tattoo features only colored ink and is defined by brown lines instead of the traditional black. How sweet it is!
Spiritual and Mythological Collarbone Tattoos
We all know and love the stories our families pass on of faith and belief, and collarbone tattoos are one of the most beautiful locations to tell these stories on your temple of a body. Let the Universe make your spirit happy with these incredible collarbone tattoo designs.
Talented tattooist Simon Martin of Basement Tattoo (@basementtattoo on Instagram) decorated this beauty’s collarbone with a tattoo of the moon’s phases. The royal purple hue of the piece is flamboyant and attention-grabbing in the best way.
Tattoo artist Emily Ebers (@evebers on Instagram) shows off her own collarbone tattoo in this image she posted in honor of the 2019 Summer Solstice. Her moon is given a face, and we love the personality it brings to the ink.
Greek mythology speaks of half-bird women call sirens, depicted by this intricate collarbone tattoo by tattoo artist, Khrys (@khyrstattoo on Instagram). The piece is inspired by, 'Odysseus and the Sirens' by John William Waterhouse, per Khrys’ caption on the image.
Freehand calligraphy is difficult in any language, let alone as a tattoo. The artist for Tattoo Dreams Studio (@tattoo_dreams04 on Instagram) writes this “Hanuman Chalisa” devotional hymn reference on the collarbone of her client, in perfect calligraphy no less.
So What Do We Think?
Collarbone tattoos are attention-grabbers to say the least. We definitely hope these babies will gain popularity in today’s day and age, as tattoos become more common in the workplace. The placement of a collarbone tattoo can be varied and can very easily be covered. It’s a major upside if you ask us. We will have to wait and see where the collarbone tattoo takes us in the future, but for now, we encourage you to put these pieces of inspiration to good use.