Della Hargrove
Tattoo Design Specialist
Tattoo artist and designer with 12+ years working across American traditional, Japanese, and modern minimalist styles. Della writes about design choices, placement, aftercare, and the meaning behind popular motifs.
Della Hargrove has been working in and writing about tattoo design for over a decade, across traditional American, Japanese (irezumi-influenced), and contemporary minimalist work. Della’s writing focuses on the practical decisions behind a good tattoo: design, placement, sizing, and the cultural context of motifs.
Areas of Expertise
- American traditional and neo-traditional design
- Japanese tattoo style and motif symbolism
- Minimalist, fine-line, and single-needle work
- Placement, sizing, and how designs age on the body
- Aftercare and healing through the first 4 weeks
Writing Approach
Della writes the way a tattooer talks across the chair, direct about what works, honest about what doesn’t. Every design article names a real placement, a real size range, and the cultural roots of the motif. Aftercare guidance comes with timelines, not vague “follow your artist’s instructions” platitudes.
Articles by Della Hargrove (206)
What Does a Mandala Tattoo Really Mean?
What a mandala tattoo means in Hindu and Buddhist Tantric practice, where rings stay legible, how long sessions run and how to protect the healed design.
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Where Should You Put a Turtle Tattoo?
A turtle tattoo's meaning shifts with species: sea turtles signal protection, tortoises signal patience, and detail sets the size and placement.
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Bee Tattoo Design Choices That Hold Up Over Time
A crown, a hive grid or a lone worker bee changes what a bee tattoo says. Compare styles, placements, pain and a week-by-week healing timeline.
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3 Fox Tattoo Sizes and Where to Place Them
Small outline foxes fit the wrist or ankle, realistic fur needs 4-5 in or more, and SPF 30+ reapplied every 2 hours protects a healed fox tattoo.
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Owl Tattoo Sizes: 3 Poses, Sessions and Placements
From a 3-inch forearm face to an 8-inch back panel, here's how pose, size and cultural meaning decide your owl tattoo's placement and healing.
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Scorpion Tattoo Meaning Styles and Placement Guide
Pose decides everything: a striking scorpion reads as a boundary, a defensive curl as protection. Find the right scorpion tattoo style before you book.
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Sacred Heart Tattoo: Meaning, Styles and Placement
Get one element wrong on a sacred heart tattoo and you've built a different devotion entirely. Here's how to design it right, from thorns to placement.
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Mother Son Tattoos: Symbols, Designs and Placement
Anchors, arrows, and split phrases are the strongest mother son tattoo picks - here's how to match style, scale, and placement so both tattoos age well.
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Sun Tattoo Meanings, Styles and Placement Guide
From the Filipino sun's 8 rays to solid blackwork discs, each sun tattoo style carries a different meaning - and ages very differently on your skin.
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Moon Tattoo Meanings, Designs and Placement Guide
Every moon tattoo design has a size minimum and a style that ages it well - crescent to full phases sequence. Here's how to pick before you book.
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Lettering Tattoo Styles and Ideas That Age Well
Font weight and letter height decide whether your lettering tattoo stays legible at 40 - match style, size, and placement before you book.
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Angel Tattoo Meaning, Designs and Placement Guide
Guardian, archangel, fallen angel, or wings-only - each angel tattoo signals something different. Match your intent to the right design before you book.
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