It’s kind of amazing how the mainstream acceptance of tattoos has grown in recent history. A hundred years ago, the only place you’d find ink was on grizzled soldiers, Polynesian warriors and Japanese yakuza. Now it seems like everybody has at least one tattoo, and maybe more. I have been studying tattoo art and culture for many years now, and in this article I want to focus on a certain body part – the leg.

For a woman, the leg is one of the primary indications of attractiveness. If you want to get some body art on it, you will need to think very carefully about what to get and where to put it. I’ll provide some suggestions and tips from my personal experience, as well as some things to watch out for if you’re considering making the plunge on a leg tattoo.

The first thing to consider when you’re planning a leg tattoo is position. A leg is composed of two major muscle groups – the thigh and the calf. I would strongly advise against getting a tattoo on your thigh, for a number of reasons. First, many women have concerns about the size and shape of their thighs, especially as they age. Putting ink on the thigh does nothing but draw attention to it, and that attention may not be good. Once you’re above the knee, hotness is all about symmetry and shape, and not necessarily decoration. Besides, if you get a tattoo up there, your opportunities to display it are extremely minimal – the beach or the bedroom. If you do decide to go against my advice, stick to something small and subtle, preferably on the inner thigh.

So now we’ve narrowed the location down to the calf. This is an area you’re much more likely to display, so let’s figure out how to make your new tattoo the most flattering it can be. A general ground rule is to stick to vertical lines and compositions whenever possible – these will elongate the calf and make your legs seem more shapely. Horizontal and circular forms can make your legs seem chubby and less attractive. A popular place for women to get calf tattoos is running up the back, where the seam in a pair of stockings would be. This results in a tattoo that is distinctive but subtle. Some possible ideas are ivy, flowers, or even giraffes – anything that has a strong vertical profile.

Of course, you may not want to be subtle about your new body art. The calf is a great place for impressive body art. The relatively smooth surface of the flesh is a great canvas for traditional Japanese-style designs, and because the legs receive less sunlight than the upper part of your body, the colors will stay strong for a longer period of time. Of course, as with any tattoo, the best course of action is for you to find an ink artist that you trust and sit down for a consultation before you commit to anything. Anything worth doing is worth doing right, and a professional will make sure you know the ramifications of your tattoo before you take the plunge.

Whatever you choose, rest secure in the knowledge that with your new tattoo, you have joined the modern tribe of ink. This means choosing to repaint your body to your own design and not be subjugated to Mother Nature’s limited palette.