125+ Christmas Tattoo Ideas to Bring Out Your Christmas Spirit!

Christmas is my all-time favorite holiday, so I get excited whenever clients come in wanting Christmas-themed tattoos. I like doing ones based on Christmas movies, especially The Grinch. There's just a nice message of changing for the good in it.

But apart from going the Christmas movie route, there are a bunch of different Christmas tattoos out there. Each has its unique meaning, like snowflake tattoos emphasizing uniqueness and delicacy. With this in mind, I thought about running through the most popular Christmas tattoo design ideas around, and their meanings!

Best Christmas Tattoo Ideas

Here are all the best Christmas tattoo design ideas around.

Christmas Ornament Tattoo

To start this list, I thought about starting with something simple, like a Christmas ornament tattoo. Christmas ornaments usually aren't super intricate, so you can get away with a small tattoo: you don't have to worry about losing any important details.

I love how bright Christmas ornaments usually are, but if this is not up your alley, you can always tone them down for your tattoo. A good way to do this is with basic line art, some light shading, and some highlights here and there.

Here are some Christmas ornament tattoo ideas:

Christmas Hat Tattoo

While on the topic of keeping it simple, you can also get a Santa hat tattoo. It's a good way to incorporate Santa Claus without getting Santa himself tatted. Plus, Santa hats are simple, so you can go small with the tattoo, which works great if you're on a budget or just don't have much space to work with.

Here are some Christmas hat tattoo designs:

Candy Cane Christmas Tattoo

You can also get a candy cane tattooed. Most of the candy canes that I've done have been on the arm area since it's long and fits well here. Just yesterday, I did one on a client's wrist. I thought the placement made it look dainty. Also, to make your candy cane tattoo extra eye-catching, you can add a bow to it, or even some mistletoe.

Here are some candy cane Christmas tattoo designs for your body art:

Christmas Ghost Tattoo

When you think of ghosts, you don't think of Christmas time. But a neat tattoo idea would be a cute Christmas ghost-themed tattoo. Think of a ghost wrapped in a sheet having fun and celebrating Christmas - it's a cute way of emphasizing how special Christmas magic is.

Here are some ghost Christmas tattoos:

Christmas Cookie Tattoo

A family tradition of mine is baking cookies with my kids on Christmas Eve. It's something I've been doing since they were little, so Christmas cookie tattoos always make me feel super nostalgic. I've noticed that this is the case with a lot of clients who want Christmas cookie tattoos, which may be the boat you're in too.

To make the tattoo as Christmas-themed as possible, you can be smart with the cookie shape. I always try to make the tattoo look like a Christmas tree.

Here are some Christmas cookie tattoos:

Speaking of Christmas cookies, you could go the gingerbread route. They're another reason I get excited for the Christmas season. For your tattoo, you can go with either a gingerbread house or a gingerbread man - they each work well in my opinion.

If you're going with a gingerbread house, you can make it seem like the house is in the North Pole, which ties in with the Christmas season even more.

Here are some gingerbread cookie Christmas tattoos:

Snow Globe Christmas Tattoo Design

Snow globes aren't necessarily Christmas-themed, but what you add to them can change this. I always add scenes from the North Pole or Santa on his sleigh inside of snow globes. You can also add some elements surrounding the snow globe to amp this up, like lights or mistletoe maybe.

Here are some snow globe Christmas tattoos:

Decorated Christmas Tree Tattoo Design

Whenever I think of Christmas, the first thing that comes to mind is Christmas trees - this is probably the case for you too, so why not get a Christmas tree all decked up as your tattoo? You can go for a more eye-catching piece if this is what you want: you can add a lot of ornaments and designs to your Christmas tree tattoo - this is the route I always take whenever I'm sketching.

Here are some Christmas tree tattoos:

Christmas Light Tattoos

Christmas lights do a good job of emphasizing the holiday cheer since they're so bright and colorful. Most of them that I've done have been a whole string of lights, but you can always just get one or two if you don't have the most space for your Christmas tattoo.

Here are some Christmas light tattoos:

Santa Portrait Tattoo

If you want a show-stopping Christmas-themed tattoo, perhaps consider getting a portrait of Santa Claus. You should go for a bigger tattoo when doing any type of portrait - you want all the little details to pop.

Also, look around before booking a tattoo artist. You want a tattoo artist who's a pro at doing portraits. It's a skill and a lot of the other tattoo artists in our studio send their clients over to me whenever they want realistic pieces done.

Here are some Santa portrait Christmas tattoos:

Reindeer Tattoo Ideas

Speaking of reindeer, you can make one the star of your tattoo. They're not only a great way to signify the holiday spirit and the festive season, but they're also super resilient animals. This shouldn't be a surprise since they live in the Arctic. So, opting for a reindeer-themed Christmas tattoo can showcase how strong you are.

Of course, you can choose any design style for the reindeer. You can do what I mentioned earlier and make it look more cartoonish. But if you want a more dramatic-looking Christmas tattoo, you can always do a realistic-looking reindeer, possibly with Christmas lights too. But make sure to make this piece big, as there's just a lot of details going on.

Here are some reindeer Christmas tattoos:

Cute Santa Cartoonish Tattoo

Instead of doing a realistic portrait, you could go the opposite route and get a silly, cartoonish Santa tattoo. I'd say this is a cheery tattoo and does a good idea of spreading the Christmas spirit.

If you are up for it, you could do a whole scene with Santa riding on his sleigh. You'd have a more dynamic tattoo design, plus you can also make the reindeer look cartoonish which would make the piece extra cute.

Here are some cartoonish Santa tattoo designs:

Grinch Tattoo Design

My all-time favorite Christmas movie has to be The Grinch. He's not only a great way to honor Christmas, but also a great way to pay homage to probably one of the best cult classics ever made.

Also, I'd say the Grinch makes for a good tattoo if you want to symbolize transformation - the titular character, the Grinch, was cold-hearted and hated Christmas but changed in the end.

The last Christmas-themed tattoo I did was a Grinch tattoo design - one of my regulars wanted a tattoo of him looking menacing on his arm.

Here are some Grinch Christmas tattoos:

Nightmare Before Christmas/ Jack Skellington Tattoo

Yes, The Grinch is my favorite Christmas movie, but The Nightmare Before Christmas comes in a close second. A Nightmare Before Christmas tattoo works well if you want to signify light and darkness - the whole premise is a good blend of Halloween and Christmas since there are more dark motifs along with the Christmas-themed ones. So, perhaps this tattoo can be up your alley if you like both holidays and not just Christmas.

Most of the Nightmare Before Christmas tattoos that I've done have been of Jack Skellington. This shouldn't come as a surprise, since he is the main character after all. But more recently, this client came in wanting a tattoo of Sally. So, perhaps you can go this route too.

Nutcracker Christmas Tattoo

I watched the Nutcracker ballet when I was a kid and have been in love with it since. It revolves around this nutcracker toy being transformed into a prince. The play takes place during Christmas, so the Nutcracker has become a major symbol of Christmas time.

Considering the idea of transformation, the tattoo is also a good way to symbolize personal growth, and not just a way to pay tribute to the holiday season.

Here are some Nutcracker Christmas tattoos:

Snowflakes Tattoo Design

Snowflakes aren't as assertive or popular of Christmas-themed tattoos as some of the others on my list, but they're also a good tattoo idea you could go for. Also, snowflake tattoos have a lot of symbolism behind them: they do a good job of signifying uniqueness, as no two of them are the same. Plus, they can also represent the impermanence of life, as they're so delicate and come and go so easily.

Here are some snowflake tattoo designs:

Sleeve Christmas Tattoos

If you want something eye-catching, I'd suggest that you pay tribute to the holiday season by getting a full sleeve. So, essentially, you'll get a giant Christmas tattoo from the top of your arm or leg to the bottom. Since you'll be working with such a large space, you'll have to add a few different Christmas-themed motifs to fill in the space.

The last Christmas theme sleeve I did was on a client's arm, and he wanted me to do a Santa tattoo, along with a Christmas tree and Rudolph in there too: it was all in black ink so it looked pretty dramatic.

Of course, instead of a full sleeve, you can always do a half sleeve. It's essentially what it sounds like - you'll be doing half of a sleeve from the arm or the leg.

Here are some sleeve Christmas tattoo ideas:

Back Christmas Tattoos

If you want a big Christmas tattoo but aren't a fan of a sleeve, think about getting your back tattooed. There's enough space to go to town and highlight the holiday spirit.

Since you're working with such a large canvas, go detailed with the tattoo - I recently did Santa riding on his sleigh on a client's back. But of course, the final design is up to you.

Here are some back Christmas tattoo designs:

Leg Christmas Tattoo Ideas

Last but not least, you can get a Christmas tattoo on your leg. I'd say something long, like a Christmas tree or candy cane works well here. Also, depending on where on your leg you're getting tattooed, it might not hurt that much.

I always tell newbie clients to get their upper outer thigh tattooed if they want a leg tattoo but don't have the highest pain tolerance, since it doesn't hurt that much.

Here are some leg Christmas tattoo designs:

Why Should You Get Christmas Tattoos?

Christmas tattoos are a good way to highlight holiday cheer - the season is a time to spend with loved ones, so it might mean something extra special to you. I've done a few Christmas tattoos for clients because they wanted to honor their family - no matter how busy they are, they always come together to spend Christmas together.

Final Thoughts

There are a bunch of different Christmas tattoos out there, and they each have different concepts added on. One of my favorites to do is Grinch tattoos - it's just in my opinion the best Christmas movie ever. But of course, you can keep it classic and go for a Christmas tree tattoo, or even a candy cane.

All in all, I hope you found my ultimate guide useful, and know which of the different Christmas tattoos to go for!