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Celebrity Tattoos For All Your Ink Inspiration, From The Subtle To The Spectacular

All the A-list ink inspo.

By Team ELLE
celebrity tattoos
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From Bella's tiny angel wings to Zayn's ode to Gigi, you'd be hard pushed to find a celebrity who doesn't boast a tattoo these days. Check out our round up of the best celebrity tattoos for all your ink inspiration.

1

Billie Eilish

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Eilish has shared a photo of her new back tattoo, which has shocked several fans. Sharing a carousel of images to her Instagram account, one image sees the singer lying flat on her stomach, with her back arched, to show a brand new ink motif that stretches from the nape of her neck and down her spine.

'Please show us the fully coloured in version of your tattoo as it looks absolutely killer,' one user commented on the picture.

'What’s that tattoo,' asked another.

'THE TATTOOO,' emphasised another fan.

2

Thandiwe Newton

celebrity tattoos
Francois G. Durand//Getty Images

Thandiwe Newton revealed her new chest tattoo when receiving the Deauville Talent Award at the 48th Deauville American Film Festival in France on Tuesday September 7.

The actor's new ink shows a drawing of a human heart, which she debuted with a plunging powder pink suit and a chic bob haircut.

News of her distinctive tattoo comes after the mother-of-three's reported split from her husband Ol Parker.

3

Selena Gomez

Gomez recently revealed the meaning behind her new tattoo of a pink rose dripping down her back, which matches her friend's British model Cara Delevingne.

Speaking on the Live with Kelly and Ryan show in January 2022, she started by saying: 'It means a couple of different things' before explaining its link to close friend Delevingne.

'She calls me Rosebud so it's a nickname. And I've always wanted a rose and now I got one, and I love it.'

The watercolour design, created by Keith Scott 'Bang Bang' McCurdy was shared on the artist's Instagram page in December last year.

The accompanying caption read: 'Thank you for always being wonderful,' with Gomez's name tagged.

He first teased the photo of her tattoo by way of a black and white post.

A day later, McCurdy shared another photo, only this time of Gomez's friend, Delevingne, who was shown with the same tattoo, but on her side.

'I had so much fun making these tattoos— thanks for always trusting me Cara,' McCurdy wrote in a caption showing a video clip of the model.

He continued: 'Fyi I didn’t tell them til the end that these were my first watercolour tattoos ever.'

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4

Chrissy Teigen

The proud mum has shown off her latest inking on Instagram sketched by her five-year-old daughter Luna.

'Luna drew this butterfly on me today and it seemed fitting to make permanent. I wanted @winterstone to move and centre it, due to issues I also discuss in therapy, but in the end we decided to leave it right where she belonged,' she explained.

'A little imperfect, a little messy, but hell she’s here to stay.'

In the caption, the star also alluded to her recent Medium essay in which she apologised for comments she’s made over the years on social media, describing herself as a 'troll'.

‘Not a day, not a single moment has passed where I haven’t felt the crushing weight of regret for the things I’ve said in the past,’ Teigen wrote in the post.

5

Adam Levine

celebrity tattoos
Adam Levine//Instagram

The already proud owner to many tattoos showed off his latest inking on Instagram on March 25, which was a full leg tattoo.

According to People, the Maroon 5 frontman shared several videos of the process which took three days in total. The full inking, which appears to be a collection of different shapes like ocean waves and colour blocks, extends up his entire leg from his ankle to his thigh.

6

Gigi Hadid

celebrity tattoos
YouTube

The model has seemingly shown off a new tattoo in honour of her daughter Khai.

In a make-up tutorial shared on YouTube on February 4, the 25-year-old lifted up a foundation bottle and appeared to reveal a small tattoo on her left bicep that bears an uncanny resemblance to the red Arabic inking of their child's name her boyfriend debuted last month.

'Did anyone notice the tattoo that’s on her arm it’s her daughter’s name. OMG THATS SO CUTE. BEST MAMA EVER [sic],' one fan commented on the clip.

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7

Halsey

best celebrity tattoos
Instagram

Having announced the news that she's pregnant, Halsey posted a candid photo of her new bump on her Instagram stories. In the image, Halsey points to a new tattoo that reads 'BABY' carefully placed to cover stomach scars that the singer acquired as a result of multiple endometriosis surgeries. The mum-t0-be has previously spoken out about her traumatic experience of suffering multiple miscarriages as a result of the condition saying, 'It’s the most inadequate I’ve ever felt.'

Halsey completed the personal post with the caption 'the scars that got me this angel' with arrows pointing to her bump and the 'BABY' tattoo along with the hashtag '#endowarrior' providing her 23.2 million followers with an empowering and inspirational message of overcoming the odds and endometriosis to have a child.

8

Zayn Malik

zayn malik get tattoo in honour of baby khai
Zayn Malik //Instagram

Zayn Malik has seemingly added an Arabic tribute in honour of his daughter, Khai, according to fan speculation.

After his girlfriend Gigi Hadid revealed the name of the pair's four-month-old daughter on Instagram last week Thursday (January 21), eagle eyed fans were quick to notice that Malik was displaying a new tattoo on his wrist in a recent Instagram Live (January 17).

In a photo uploaded on Twitter on January 22, one fan pointed out that the star was sporting a new red ink wrist tattoo, that they believe spells out 'Khai' in Arabic.

9

Brooklyn Beckham

The 21-year-old aspiring photographer has inked up yet again in honour of his fiancée Nicola Peltz.

Beckham took to Instagram on Saturday (January 23) to showcase his new tattoo on the back of his neck.

The tattoo is a copy of a love letter written by his 'future wifey'. In the now everlasting missive, the 26-year-old American actress, to whom Beckham became engaged in July 2020, writes, in part: 'You have the kindest heart I've ever met and hope I never go a day without your love.'

This is the fifth inking inspired by his fiancée that the eldest son of David and Victoria Beckham has undergone. Others include the name of Peltz's late grandmother's.

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10

Chrissy Teigen

Chrissy Teigen has posted a video of herself on Instagram getting inked by go-to celebrity favourite Daniel Winter (aka Winter Stone).

The intricate spinal tattoo, unveiled on social media on January 12, is a sweet tribute to her husband John Legend's 2020 song 'Ooh Laa' - a ballad he penned for wife.

'ooooooooh la. shoowap shoowap [sic],' Teigen wrote alongside the three-minute video.

The mother-of-two opted for the two word track title to be inked on her back, with her and Legend discussing when the model heard the sweet melody - in their bedroom - as she underwent the inking.

'We actually played it on repeat the first time,' Legend notes in the clip. 'It was a good conversation starter.'

'What a blessing to honour Chrissy with this ooh laa tattoo down her spine, [sic]' Stone wrote in the caption on his own post of the tat. 'John wrote this sexy song for her, so naturally she should have it tattooed on her right? [sic]'

This is the second time the presenter has enlisted the celebrity tattoo artist to commemorate a personal memory in tattoo form on her body - the first being a touching tribute last November in honour of her son Jack, who passed away pre-term.

11

Madonna

Madonna has officially been 'inked for the very first time', according to a series of Instagram photos shared by the pop star on December 8.

The singer opted for a delicate tattoo in honour of her six children: Lourdes, 24, Rocco, 20, David, 15, Mercy, 14, and eight-year-old twins Stelle and Estere. The inking is made up of her kids' first initials.

The tattoo comes after Madonna shared a rare family video of the brood earlier this month.

12

Bella Hadid

Bella Hadid has shown off her newest, intricate tattoos.

After teasing her latest inkings with a photograph of herself in a tattoo artist’s chair earlier in November 2020, celebrity tattoo artist Dr. Woo has now confirmed the model’s new tats, which appear to be a tribute to her Palestinian heritage.

The Daily Mail reports the two new tattoos – located on either side of her shoulders – translate from Arabic to English as ‘my love’ and ‘I love you’.

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13

Sophie Turner

celebrity tattoos
Instagram

Sophie Turner added to her already extensive tattoo collection with a tiny new inking in honour of her baby daughter Willa. Turner added a delicate letter 'W' design to her existing 12 tattoos as a sweet ode to her first child. The adorable ink sits on the new mum's wrist next to a letter 'J' tattoo that the actress previously had done in dedication to husband and father of her child, Joe Jonas.

14

Hailey Bieber

Bieber's tattooist, celebrity favourite Mr K, shared pictures of his latest works for the model showcasing a 'J' initial with a star on Hailey's ring finger - in tribute to her husband of one year Justin Bieber.

Beyond her finger, Hailey also underwent a new inking on her neck, tattooing the word 'Beleza', which is Portuguese' for 'beauty' there. Hailey's mother, Kennya Baldwin, is Brazilian where the native language is Portuguese. Hailey previously explained on The Late Late Show with James Corden that she knows some phrases and can understand the language but isn't fluent.

15

Kaley Cuoco and Zosia Mamet

The actresses have gone and had matching paper airplanes tattoos in celebration of the launch of their upcoming HBOMax series, Flight Attendant.

On Tuesday October 13, Cuoco shared photos of the friends’ inking experience after working together on the show’s first season.

Mamet decided to get her inking placed on the pack of her foot while Cuoco had hers tattooed on her lower calf.

'A special little tribute to our wonderful little show,' the Big Bang Theory actress captioned the snaps.

The Girls star added on her own post: 'After a full year and many adventures together we decided to get a little memento.'

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16

Halle Berry

On Sunday September 20, the 54-year-old actress shared an Instagram photo of herself walking on the beach in a backless black swimsuit, holding a wide-brimmed straw hat.

‘Back at the beach,’ she captioned the snap, which also showed off her tattoo placed just above her right bum cheek.

‘Oh my goodness,’ actress Mindy Kaling commented on the photo.

‘Stunning,’ added another.

It's unclear what the tattoo is of but unconfirmed rumours suggest that it is a sunflower and covers up her ex-husband David Justice's name.

17

Justin Bieber

The singer showed off his large neck tattoo of a long-stemmed rose on Monday September 7, days before celebrating his second wedding anniversary with wife Hailey Bieber.

The love-inspired tat was designed by celebrity tattoo artist Dr Woo and marks Bieber's second rose inking. For Valentine's Day this year, the singer gifted his wife red and white roses and a spa day to celebrate their relationship.

Hailey and Justin first tied the knot on September 13 2018 at a New York City courthouse before enjoying a traditional wedding in South Carolina on September 30 last year.

18

Kristin Cavallari

celebrity tattoos
Kristin Cavallari //Instagram

On August 25, the entrepreneur to showed off her new tattoos inked by tattoo artist JonBoy. 'Tattoo time @jonboytattoo,' Cavallari captioned a photograph of her during the inking.

Sharing photos of her tattoos on Instagram Stories, the 33-year-old revealed she had the initials of her children – Camden, 8, Jaxon, 6, and Saylor, 4 – inked on her left forearm and a butterfly on her right wrist.

'Butterflies have been such a sign for me when going through difficult times,' she captioned a photo of the latter.

Cavallari recently announced she was splitting from her husband Jay Cutler after 10 years together.

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19

Ashley Benson

celebrity tattoos
Instagram

Having previously revealed a permanent ode to her love of French fries, Ashley Benson has added to her ink collection once again, this time with a black and white etching of a delicious milkshake. Complete with whipped cream, a stripy straw and a cherry on top, Benson's new tattoo looked good enough to eat.

20

Justin Bieber

celebrity tattoos
Instagram

Justin Bieber added to his ever expanding ink collection with a massive new neck tattoo. The singer opted for a black laurel wreath design across his collarbone and debuted his new tattoo on Instagram just in time for his new album launch in February.

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