With so much Irish heritage in Australia, it is no surprise that many of our clients want to honour their ancestry through Celtic-style tattoos. But what is the history of this style?

In Celtic society, the highest honours were held by warriors. Fierce and intimidating, Celtic warriors were the epitome of masculinity, brave and fearless. As part of their intimidation tactics, warriors fought in battles topless – or even naked, with their hair dyed bright colours and sticking up at all angles. Imagine a crazy-looking naked man, covered in battle scars and with wild hair bearing down on you on the battlefield!

As part of the Celtic warrior look was the inclusion of indigo-coloured tattoos. These were created using the Woad, the leaves harvested and dried, boiled and strained to create a blue paste that was tapped into the skin.

Design-wise, symbolic knots in Celtic tattoos offered protection, while stylised animals imbued warriors with their strength and power in battle. Of course, the mysticism of Celtic religion is also important, with trinities, swirls and circles representing the interweaving nature of life and spirituality.

Today, Celtic symbology is often added to designs through complex knotwork and crosses, and can be intricate, delicate and beautiful as well.

Whenever you are thinking of getting a Celtic tattoo, it is important that you take time to give it serious consideration. You are marking your body permanently – so it needs to be exactly what you want it to be.

You may have an idea for a design – whether it be Celtic, tribal, a portrait or some meaningful words, but taking that design from your mind into reality is something that you will need some help with. Our Melbourne Celtic tattoo team will get you from dream to reality!

Placement of the tattoo is also important. Certain areas of the body need different levels of care – for example, a hand tattoo is more likely to fade quicker due to friction, so will probably need to be retouched in order to look great in a few years’ time, whereas a back piece is more likely to hold colour and detail well. It is important to get advice from your artist regarding your desired location to ensure that not only will the tattoo fit, it will also be easy to look after.

Although some tattooists are happy to work on those under 18 with parental permission, we have a strict over-18s policy. This is because we offer premium tattoos and take our time in the process to create real art that you can be proud of.

Whatever you are looking for in terms of your ideal body art, come to Good Luck Tattoo and let us help you create a masterpiece.