Art is immortal, and for certain people, it becomes very literal when they choose to display it on their bodies. Flowers have been the symbols of beauty, grace, and purity, amongst others. They are popular with both men and women, although the latter takes the win.
Fresh as a Daisy!
The Gerbera daisy is the fifth most popular flower in the world, and is one of the most tattooed daisies.
Flowers have always be portrayed for their beauty, colors, and because they symbolize life, love, purity, and innocence. It is no wonder then, that when people get tattoos, flowers always make it to the list of options.
Daisies are a type of wildflower from the sunflower family, have been around for over 4,000 years, and are even depicted in artwork and hairpins found in those times. Its name is derived from the Anglo Saxon word “daes eage”, which means “day’s eye”. This is because its petals open up to the sunlight in the morning and close up during the night. They have been a favorite for tattoo lovers, especially women, ever since the art form came into being. They can look good as stand-alone pieces or with a background or added elements.
This article explains the meanings and symbolism behind this flower’s designs, which range from big to small, abstract to detailed, and everything in between!
SOME DAISY TATTOO IDEAS
ABSTRACT
Modern tattoos incorporate some beautiful colors and creativity when it comes to taking conventional tattoo designs and turning them into abstract art. These tattoos look good on upper arm sleeves (below the shoulders), the two shoulder corners, feet, calves, or thighs. We have shown you an example of a thigh tattoo with an intricately designed daisy.
BLACK AND WHITE
If you want your tattoo to have a classic look and an elegant feel, then these black and white tattoos are a good place to start from. The flower has some nice detailing, which is brought out with the shading technique used. These flowers flow well on the arms. They can also be used on the back or the ribs.
DAISY CHAINS
To give the flower a more natural flow on the body, there are daisy designs that have individual flowers joint by intricate lines. These types of tattoos are highly popular when placed in the rib cage area or around the waist. Alternatively, you can also use them to make a bracelet pattern, winding around your wrist.
COLORFUL AND DETAILED TATTOOS
We often want pictures to look realistic as well as artistic when it is placed on the body. If you’re ready to bear the pain and the long sittings, this is the one for you! These tattoos look good as large pieces on the back. Some can even be on the chest, or as full sleeves.
OUTLINE
These tattoos look simple yet elegant, and they show the daisy in their truest, most natural form. These look good on any part on the body, but the lower back would be our pick!
SIMPLE
If you’re looking for a no-frills, pretty little tattoo, that can be well hidden if needed, you should go for such tattoos. These can be placed anywhere on the body from the calves, to the hands, to the spot behind your ears, but it looks great on the wrist!
DAISY WITH CREATURES
If you want more body to your tattoo and want to depict a scene right out of nature, then these look great. With little butterflies, honey bees, lady bugs, or other insects hovering around, the tattoo looks very organic, and naturally (pun intended) very beautiful. Try these out as an upper arm pattern like the one shown above!
DAISIES WITH HEARTS
Who can deny the logic behind incorporating hearts into a flower design to form a nice girly, pretty tat? Well, here are some cool ideas of putting daisies and hearts together to create a cute little piece. These tattoos look great on the nape (back of the neck) like the one we’ve shown, but can be incorporated elsewhere like the feet, the calf, or the wrists.
DAISY WITH NAMES
We often make tattoos as a homage to the people in our lives, or as remembrance of the ones gone by. These pictures show you a nice way to incorporate names into your daisy tattoo to create a nice piece of memory. They look good above the heart (below the collarbone, left corner), or on the side of the neck, but you can choose to put it in a spot of your liking.
DAISIES WITH NUMBERS
Like names, numbers can be inked as a way to capture and engrave a special or important time in your life, or other numbers that hold some significance. These can be placed anywhere, but one of the coolest places is right above your heart, to indicate the importance it holds for you.
DAISY WITH OTHER ELEMENTS
Like with the creatures, other elements can be added to give a dual meaning to your ink, or even to add to the appeal of the picture. Daisies have been used with crosses in many Christian art because it symbolizes purity. You can also add other elements, like the peace symbol, doves, quotes or phrases, and backgrounds like skies or a garden. The options are endless, and this allows you to make the tattoo a truly unique piece that only you have in the world. Isn’t that cool? These look great on the shoulders for the smaller pieces. But if you have bigger ones, choose a spot like the back or the ribs. Be careful though; the last one would hurt a bit!
DAISY TATTOO MEANINGS
Daisies are symbols of beauty, innocence, and purity, and this is their central meaning.
It also stands for the following qualities of:
- Love
- Loyalty
- Hope
- Chastity
- Simplicity
- Strength
- Youth
- Freshness
- Fertility
- Family
- Motherhood
- Transformation
How does it stand for all this? We’ll tell you!
- According to Roman mythology, Vertumnus, the Roman god of gardens, agriculture, and flowers, was obsessed with the dainty wood nymph named Belides. To avoid him without hurting his feelings, she transformed herself into a daisy. Thus, the daisy stands for transformation, chastity, and purity.
- In Christianity, it is a symbol of the Virgin Mother Mary, thus symbolizing chastity, purity, and grace, and also to depict Christ, the child, thus representing youth. It is also believed that when the Three Wise Men went in search of Jesus, they saw a field of daisies, and figured that they must be close to where he was born. It is thus depicted as a symbol for life.
- Contrary to this belief in Christianity, in Norse mythology, it is the sacred symbol for Freya, a love goddess. It is, thus, shown as a symbol of love, loyalty, and motherhood, along with the idea of an untainted youth.
- The Celtics believed that the daisies came from the spirits of babies who died during the birthing process and grew to bring closure to the parents’ pain. It is, thus, a symbol of innocence.
- The Victorian Lady Mary Wortley explains that during a time filled with chastity and demureness, lovers passed on daisies secretly to each other. Getting one back meant that love was reciprocal. Thus, it stands for love and loyalty. The practice of ripping away each petal with the chant “(S)He loves me. (S)He loves me not.” is also said to have begun with daisies in this era.
- As mentioned earlier, the daisy blooms in the day and closes up in the night, so it represents a new beginning, freshness, and hope for each day.
Based on colors, daisies take up new meanings:
» Yellow: Vitality, radiance, cheerfulness, creativity, wit.
» White: Purity, chastity, innocence, peace, simplicity.
» Red: Strength, courage, youthfulness, energy.
» Blue: Peace, serenity, calm, patience, kindness, gentleness.
Numbers and names when used with a daisy show family bonds and strength to carry the past, but persevere in the present.
TIPS
- Think carefully before you choose something, because once it’s on your body, it is there for life, unless you choose to go for laser surgery, which involves immense pain!
- Make sure you choose an artist who is capable of bringing your vision to life, or you’re going to end up with a disappointing mistake and wasted money.
- Even with daisies, the meaning changes based on the way you represent them, so think about that.
- Aftercare of your tattoo, whether big or small, is of utmost importance. If you fail to do so, your tattoo doesn’t heal properly, the color doesn’t set in the right way, and you are susceptible to infection.
- The designs and the placing given here are suggestions; you may choose to go with them or come up with something of your liking in the event that you plan to go through with the process.
- For all the guys reading this, don’t get put off by some of the feminine images! Daisies can be used on both men and women, and you can always incorporate your own style while getting inked.
Now that you have all the tools you need, go out there and get some daisy ink!
