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Well, the Ambigram concept is not new at all, but maybe you are not 100% confident about what it means or how many different types of ambigram are.
Don’t worry, this article is for you, here you can find:
So, let’s go!
We always try to keep our explanation as simple as we can and, this time, the concept is really easy to tell:
That’s all.
The point is, at least in ambigram tattoo, you can play with the characters in two different ways:
This is the first example of an Ambigram Tattoo we want to show you, because it is one of the most classic ones.
You can read “I’m fine” but, if you turn the image, you can read “save me”, and that is the point.
The tattoo is made by Grey Sunz, from Kent, just South Seattle, in Washington State, in the US.
Well, Ambigram tattoo is inside lettering style, because, you know, the leading figure here are just words and letters, isn’t it?
Because of this, Ambigram Tattoos used to be on a horizontal basis (not always, of course), so the preferred placement for these tattoos are in the forearm and legs.
This is not a rule, of course. Some Ambigram tattoos perform perfect in the back, chest or wrist, depending on the design.
Well, we can say Ambigrams and palindromes have been with us for thousands of years, because the first one was discovered in Pompeii, around 79 b.C., something like 2200 years ago.
Then, as always, the concept evolved so we have now 7 types of Ambigrams we want to show you.
And now, you can see another classic one, but this time in the 3D Ambigram Tattoo sub-trend.
These tattoos are quite difficult to perform fine, like this example, because you have to be very clean and straight in your drawing.
And, as you can see, these types of tattoos are fantastic to share with another.
This work is done by Vicktor Nasa, a very talented tattoo artist from Caracas, in Venezuela.
Again, we are going to be short and sweet, just a couple of sentences for each type.
These are just words or groups of words that can be read differently if you put the word in front of a mirror.
Nice and sweet.
This time is not a mirror, this time is about rotation.
The point here is, when you rotate the tattoo (sometimes 90, sometimes 180, sometimes another figure), the words seem to change so you can read something different.
These tattoos usually are difficult and more creative than Mirror Ambigram ones.
In a 3D Ambigram tattoo the word changes because of the 3D effect, usually depending on the angle you see it.
Maybe this kind of Ambigram Tattoos are one of the most difficult to do, but 3D tattoos have evolved a lot the last 10 years so you “only” need a fantastic tattoo artist.
This time you have here a difficult one to read.
Usually, the second (or more) word begins before the first end, so the tattoo overlaps some letters.
The effect could be fantastic, of course.
The simpler and the most harmonic one by definition.
These tattoos are Ambigram because of the words themselves, for example:
If you write “bud” on a piece of paper and you put it in front of a mirror, you get another “bud”, isn’t it?
Well, there are a lot of words with that effect.
These tattoos are analogous to Chain Ambigram tattoos, but in an opposite way.
If Chain Ambigram Tattoos, the words overlapped, this time the different letters in a word have blank space to feel with something to get the other reading.
Another difficult one, this time, the tattoos are in 2D but you can read different words depending on the direction you see it.
Just magic.
And now, this is our selection about Ambigram Tattoos, and we do hope you enjoy it!
Something different now, so you can get inspired.
Usually ambigram tattoos are lettering but, as you can see, it is not the only option.
Because of this, we want to share with you this ambigram tattoo of two heads in black and gray.
This tattoo is made by Mr.Black Tattoo, from México, and he got a lot of amazing jobs at his Instagram account.
Now it is time for something different.
Usually, ambigram tattoos are about lettering (characters, you know), but, as you can see right here, you can do it in other ways.
This tattoo is an ambigram but about an image and, if you turn the tattoo upside-down, the image changes completely from a lady to a demon.
This tattoo is made by Darcy Nutt, a very talented woman tattoo artist working at Chalice Tattoo Studio in Boise, Idaho.
And, just after the two image ambigram tattoo, now let’s go with something more classic.
In the ambigram tattoo trends, maybe one of the most popular is this one, from one side, Sinner, from the other, Saint.
This kind of ambigrams when you can read one word and the opposite meaning one are a thing, and here is just an example.
The tattoo is made by Kyle Lambert, he works at Bay City Tattoos at Ybor City, in Florida.
Another nice ambigram tattoo with a word and the opposite meaning is this one.
Here you can read Angel but, if you turn it 180º, the word to read is Devil.
As you can see, the same point as the Sinner and Saint one, but with another pair of words.
This tattoo is done by Junkie Tattoos, in Hildesheim, Germany, and this tattoo is more difficult (and hurts a lot more) because of the placement, it is not the same to get tattooed in the belly that in the arm.
Well, Faith and Hope are not the opposite of one from another, on the contrary, one word should strengthen the other one, isn’t it?
The other big subtrend inside Ambigrams Tattoo is this one, so you can get more power in the same concept with a pair of words.
We do like this tattoo because it is made in dotwork style (and lettering, of course), and the tattoos made with dotworks are just a piece of work.
The tattoo is made by Omaha Dotwork Tattoo, and you can follow them at their Instagram account.
Let’s go with another kind of Ambigram now.
Instead of turning the design and reading another word, with this tattoo you can read the same if you turn 180º.
So, it is “Weird” and “Weird” if you turn it.
This kind of design is fantastic in almost every placement, but take care of choosing the neck for your next tattoo, because it really hurts.
The tattoo is made by Bruno Moreno, working at Crooked Tree Ink, in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
Another one of this list of words to strengthen one another is this Live and Life tattoo, nice concept, isn’t it?
These two words together are always a nice concept and we do like the design and the placement too.
Choosing one leg and getting ink turned 90º to the usual way we read makes it unique and the red and black ink make the design more powerful.
So, this nice work is from Mad Mike, a very talented tattoo artist from New York, in the Queens area.
Next in the list is this tattoo, another classic in the Ambigram Tattoo trend!
In this case, you can see a pair of words with opposite meanings like Love and Pain, so you can say this is a classic ambigram, 100%.
The tattoo is made by Monink, we cannot find more about this woman tattoo artist, we think she is somewhere in the US, but nothing more.
We are going into the same concept with this tattoo, this time with the pair of words blessed and cursed, as you can see, another time, the opposite concept.
This tattoo is another classic, not only for the concept, but because of the lettering style too, and we think you should know about it.
The tattoo is done by Joel Luque, a tattoo artist from Watts, in Los Angeles, US, of course.
Now there is the time for another ambigram tattoo but, this time, you can read the same word if you turn the tattoo upside down.
The word is witch, and, you know, witches have a lot of things to be fascinating creatures.
The tattoo is made by Habitaelvacio, a fantastic tattoo artist from Mexico.
Another classic in this list, because yes, we want you to know the classics too!
This time is the lettering ambigram about Family and Forever, a couple of words very tattooed from a long time ago.
We know nothing about the tattoo artist (sorry), we always try to search for the authorship, but, this time, we were unable to find it!
And now, again the concept of a pair of words with opposite meaning again, like Loyalty and Betrayal.
Nice one, isn’t it?
We do like this tattoo not only because of the meaning, but for the black and white pattern, which is different in every character of this lettering tattoo.
This tattoo is made by David Bennett, a tattoo artist from Milton Keynes, in the UK.
This Still Here Ambigram Tattoo reads the same way if you turn it 180º, and we do like it a lot.
Not only for the design itself, we do like the red and black ink and, moreover, the placement of the tattoo, with one word on each leg.
Just funtastic.
The tattoo is made by Pretty Dangerous Tattoo, a tattoo parlor from Houston, Texas, in the US.
This is the end of this Ambigram Tattoo Guide, we do hope you enjoyed it!
The Tattoo Artist Community.
