40 Unique And Cool “Glitter Tattoos”

To learn more about these amazing glitter tattoos, we reached out to an expert on the topic, Maryland based tattoo artist Amanda Graves. This entire article was actually inspired by a video Amanda posted on Facebook informing viewers about how awesome glitter tattoos are and showcasing some of her loveliest work. Within this list, you’ll find many of Amanda’s gorgeous pieces, so she was the perfect person to explain what exactly glitter tattooing is.

“‘Glitter tattoos’ have been a style for years, but in the last year, I took a whole new approach to it,” Amanda told Bored Panda. “In my glitter realism style, I try and emulate the look of actual glitter by using a technique similar to stippling. The art term for it is technically pointillism,” she explained. “The difference in how I approach it is when I execute my pointillism, I take my knowledge of contrast & color theory to give it the illusion that it is shimmering. Different colors bring out the best in other colors, and I take advantage of those blends.”

We were also curious how Amanda got into glitter tattooing. “I’ve been tattooing for a long eight years, and I have dabbled in most styles along the way,” she shared. “Studying under different people gave me immense amounts of knowledge and techniques that have kept me growing in my craft.”

The idea for glittery tattoos came from an unexpected place, though. “It seems irrelevant, but my years of being a competitive cheerleader always kept me obsessed with glitter,” Amanda told Bored Panda. “My daughter now competes, and as a coach/cheer mom, I’m still involved. One day when I was doing her makeup, I thought to myself ‘I wonder if I can use this shimmer as a reference for my next project?’. It sort of took off from there!” Amanda also says she definitely prefers creating these sparkly tattoos to the art she used to do. “I love seeing my clients giddy over their shimmering pieces, and I enjoy the actual process every time I do it!” 

Amanda has created countless amazing pieces, as you can find shared on her Instagram and Facebook page, but we were curious if any tattoos stand out as her personal favorites. “Every week I feel I have a new favorite, but I will highlight a few,” she said. “My Lisa Frank inspired Chef cat, my Beetlejuice Sandworms, my grim reaper, my Finding Nemo Squirt, and my Venom have got to be the ones that stick out the most to me.” But Amanda made it clear that she’s proud of every single piece. “Clients are my sole reason I am able to work and do this style, so I put my heart into every project.”