130 Fabulous Half Sleeve Tattoo Ideas, Design & Meanings 2018

Making a tattoo on the hand is considered to be one of the best variants for different reasons. 

Tattoo sleeve butterfly on shoulder

If you know what a sleeve tattoo is, it is not difficult to guess the meaning of a half sleeve tattoo. 

Tattoo sleeves on a female hand – pocket watch, rose and inscription

The difference is the part of hand which it occupies. 

Tattoo sleeves on a man’s hand – a fiery phoenix

This kind of tattoo has two location options, from the shoulder to the elbow and from the elbow to the wrist.

There is a huge variety of half sleeve tattoos

One more nice variant for girls, but this time – a lower half sleeve

The Advantages of a Half Sleeve Tattoo

Before drawing a tattoo, everybody thinks whether he or she wants other people to see it or not.

So, a half sleeve tattoo allows you to hide it as well as to show it. There are some advantages of making a half sleeve tattoo over other ones:

1. The possibility to choose one of two ways of its location;

   Tattoo sleeves on a man’s hand placed on his shoulder – hidden under clothing

A very feminine half sleeve floral tattoo

1. Relative painlessness during tattoo making compared to other parts of the body;

Inking of a half sleeve tattoo is a relatively painless prosedure

1. The possibility to hide a tattoo by wearing clothes with long sleeves;

Tattoo sleeves on a female hand with sunflowers

Tattoo sleeves on a female hand with a lily and a hummingbird – juicy picture

1. People`s skin incurs less changes due to age or weight gain in this area, so it means that your picture is saved as it was in the beginning. 

A man of a certain age with quite fresh looking half sleeve tattoos

1. However, there is also a negative side to it. In summer, people prefer to wear clothes with short sleeves, though for hiding a tattoo, it is necessary to put something on with a short one.

An extravagant spicy half sleeve tattoo reflects the girl’s spirit

The Feeling of Pain during the Application

Fortunately, a hand doesn’t belong to painful parts of your body for making tattoos.
For this reason tattoo half sleeve is spread among girls as well as boys. It is worth remembering that every person has his or her own sensibility, and it is better to do a test tattoo for getting to know your perception of pain.

The process of putting on a tattoo – though a bit painful – may be quite a fun

The meaning of place

The sense of a certain place for drawing a tattoo is determined by the audience for which it is available. So, half sleeve tattoos are for all people in the summer and only for closed ones in winter. A person decides by himself to whom exactly to show it, with which people to be more open. 

However, a tattoo always influences its owner , in spite of the season or someone who is able to see it. 

The girl chose a very individual half sleeve tattoo design to express herself

Designs for Men and Women

A couple with a curious half sleeve tattoo designs

There is an opinion that boys strive to experiment with their bodies, try new ideas. Conversationally girls choose the way that is already proven by others. So, men’s tattoos can surprise, shock by their unique touch.

An elegant fairy half sleeve tattoo design

A brutal half sleeve tattoo shows a fire phantasmagoria

A conservative butterfly can be exceptional in a proper half sleeve tattoo

Women often choose floral patterns, sometimes animistic, for example cats, fish, and butterflies. 

Men also prefer to make animalistic tattoos, but unlike women, they usually take vermin and birds. Besides, they often choose images of people. 

There is no doubt that a bird has something to do with air. And though, everything depends on the exact kind of bird. There are some examples of their meanings. 

1. An eagle is an embodiment of strength, vigilance, speed.

A half sleeve tattoo with an aggressive bald eagle

A meaningful half sleeve tattoo with an eagle on a scull

1. Owl – wisdom and fear, loneliness, supreme intelligence, sadness and joy 

A wise and lonely owl in a half sleeve tattoo design for a man

An owl may look very cute in a girl’s half sleeve tattoo

1. Swallow – hope, youth, freedom. It is a symbol of returning home. 

1. Of course, a photo of a fish is associated with the power of water. Like birds, different kinds of fish have various various meanings.  

A half sleeve tattoo with a carp may be aimed at attracting good luck

Tattoo after-care

The process of repairing a tattoo doesn’t differ from the repair of an ordinary one. Tattoo masters will tell you how to tender it in detail by himself or herself. And yet, there are some general moments which are important  to know.  The area of a newly made tattoo must be rubbed with a napkin using a special burn ointment. Pain will disturb you for several days, but when it is gone, there won`t be any need to take care about it anymore.

You will have to be careful in the sun not to allow the tattoo to be spoiled by the sun’s rays.