Book Tattoo
Traditional shaded spiderweb with a negative-space centre and scrollwork border across the forearm

Traditional Spiderweb Tattoo

A decorative spiderweb running across the forearm, built in the traditional style rather than as solid blackwork. I shaded each segment of the web with a soft black-to-grey gradient and left a clean circle of negative space at the centre, then framed the whole thing with a scrolled fleur border and dotwork. It sits below some existing animal work on the upper arm.

Webs like this live or die on the geometry. The radial lines have to stay even as the arm bends, and the gradient on every cell has to fall the same way for the piece to read as one surface. I gave it the decorative border to soften the outer edge into the surrounding skin rather than cutting it off hard.

For traditional ornamental work in Wellington, reach me at @pokestaytattoo or pokestaytattoo@gmail.com.

Book Similar PieceSee All Traditional

By Rhys Thomas at Whitetail Tattoo, Level 3, 41–47 Dixon Street, Te Aro, Wellington, New Zealand

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Common Questions About Traditional in Wellington

What's the difference between traditional and neo-traditional?
Traditional keeps to a small, classical colour palette (reds, yellows, greens, blues) with chunky outlines and limited shading. Neo-traditional opens that up with more colours, finer detail, and more painterly shading. Same bones, more flexibility.
Do traditional tattoos cost less because they look simpler?
No. Traditional tattoos look deceptively simple. Clean bold lines and solid colour packs are hard to execute well, and they're priced on time and skill required, not visual complexity.
Can a traditional design be personal rather than generic?
Yes. Most of my traditional pieces are custom subjects rendered in the traditional language. Bring your own meaning and I'll handle the visual grammar.