50 Black & White Tattoos That Are Starkly Stunning

Colorful tattoos get a a lot of praise for being so dimensional and gorgeous. The shading, the blending, and the illusions colorful tattoos are capable of often overshadow a back-and-white tattoo. But the truth is, black-and-white tattoos are capable of that and so much more. Firstly, everyone knows that  basic black will never go out of style, and that goes for clothing as well as tattoos. It has the ability to be classic and yet so modern and distinctive. To add to the appeal of a black ink tattoo, artists often make incredible use of the negative space and add in a bit of white ink to make the piece pop, which also adds dimension. 

White ink shows up differently depending on a person's skin's pigmentation, and if a person is in the sun a lot — this goes for all tattoo ink but it's a bit more so when it comes to white. When used right, white ink can mix with color to make the skin an even more stunning canvas. We love the look of white ink over black ink. We are huge fans of the way designs are drawn within other designs with just a bit of white for effect. Sometimes the white ink isn't even really noticeable, but it does add so much to the piece. Hints of white ink can be both subtle and bold, and always look amazing.

This collection is a testament to the skill of these tattoo artists. There are butterfly designs, birds, animals, flowers, and geometric patterns to inspire those black-and-white tattoo dreams. These designs are diverse in style but all will impress.

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Like a Cuff Bracelet

This beautifully dark and detailed tattoo is extra lovely with the negative space.

Bold Floral

The power of black and white can never be understated.

Such Lightness

The delicate black lines and lightness of the shading makes this tattoo absolutely magical.

Winged Beauty

The details in the bird's wings are so incredible, and we love the femininity of the flowers.

Tiny Portrait

A mini portrait looks gorgeous in black and white. Making it even more amazing is the fact that this tattoo is a replica of a Leonardo da Vinci painting. 

Next Level

There are butterfly tattoos and then there are butterfly tattoos like this one. This one is sheer perfection.

Snuggles

Perfect for animal lovers, this tattoo is adorable and sweet.

Enchanting

This is another gorgeous example of the lightness that a black tattoo can have.

Less Is More

With its vintage appeal, this flower tattoo plays with both light and dark.

Flowers on Your Shoulder

A talented tattoo artist can choose to highlight flowers in a number of ways. If going for a colorless look, adding a bit of white gives it extra beauty. 

Power

We love the highlighting on this tattoo. This lady is all power.

Mandala Magic

This gorgeous mandala tattoo is in such a lovely spot as well.

Detailed

Oh flower tattoos — how much we adore you.

Perched

Birds and botanicals are always in style … just like black and white.

Spectacular Picks

One can never go wrong with flowers. 

Dedication

This stunning look takes a lot of dedication, but it is such a gorgeous way to look at black and white ink together.

Cat Love

Who loves cats? This cat skull tattoo shows some major love for the felines.

Armed

This tattoo makes great use of negative space.

To the Moon

Looking to the stars, this design also features the white of the moon.

A Bit of Whimsy

This is such an adorable tattoo and clearly so very fitting.

Cat Power

The stark detail of this intricate tattoo really comes alive thanks to the colorless design.

Rabbit Rabbit

Could this rabbit be any sweeter?

What's Within

This inspiring design takes our breath away.

Roar

Tigers are totally a power animal — and the black-and-white design highlights that perfectly.

Peek-A-Boo Style

This beautiful leaf can be easily hidden when the hair is down. But look at how splendid it looks with her hair up!

Honoring

With a deep meaning, this tattoo is so intricately designed.

Adornment

Get lost in this incredible design.

Chime

This is such a lovely one. Such beauty in those details.

Hamsa

The hamsa is a protective amulet. This one is especially awesome.

Bat Love

Bats are such incredible creatures and we love this rendition. The stars are twinkling in the wings. 

Out of the Darkness

Out of the darkness of this fabulous tattoo are those pops of white. Perfect.

Sly Fox

Woodland creatures continue to be a favorite and look just as stunning with no color.

In Flight

We can always appreciate a great hummingbird tattoo.

The Astronaut

This space woman looks totally outer-worldly thanks to this gorgeous geometric frame.

Goddess

This lovely tattoo is slightly haunting and ever so enchanting.

Forever Rose

Roses are always great, but a rose tattoo on a hand and cascading down the thumb? Amazing.

Lotus Love

The lotus design makes for such a great tattoo, and adding in mehndi art feel makes it even more pretty.

Minimalist

While this tattoo is major thanks to the size, it's really quite minimal when looking at the outline and only a bit of shading.

Sunny

Gorgeous dark sunflowers are bumped up with that bright white in the center.

Petal Power

This tattoo has the perfect amount of white to make it pop.

Hogwarts Fans

Just for Harry Potter fans (and lovers of Hogwarts), this tattoo seems to twinkle with sorcery.

Blend

This ornamental mandala with flower is a lovely addition to the back of an arm.

Woodland Creature

The fox is a spirit animal for so many and this tattoo perfectly captures the incredible animal.

Bouquet

With bits of white, this predominantly black tattoo is about to really stand out.

Sharpshooter

This well-lined arrow has the best details.

The Negative Space

Stunning work — so bold, so cool, so original.

Customized

The way this tattoo flows with the arm is simply perfect.

Beauty and the Bug

This dark/light design shows such solid work.

Conceptual

This is such a sweet conceptual piece.

Major Coverage

This large flower takes up the shoulder and upper arm area so well. We love the shading.