Half Sleeve Tattoos

A half sleeve is one of the best ways to commit to a large-scale tattoo without covering your whole arm. Running from the shoulder to the elbow, it gives a design real room to breathe while staying easy to cover for work.

Most of the half sleeves I build are Japanese influenced — dragons, koi fish, foo dogs, cherry blossoms, and waves — but the same approach works for traditional imagery too. The key is composition: the design has to wrap the shoulder and bicep cleanly, hold up when your arm moves, and read clearly from across the room.

A half sleeve typically takes several sessions to complete. We'll plan the whole piece before the first needle touches skin so the linework, background, and color all work together, and so there's a natural stopping point if you decide to extend it into a full sleeve later.