Tess Holliday once described her tattoos as a “living journal.” In 2016, she estimated she had about 30, with both arms covered; that was her count at the time. Her first tattoo was a fairy on her left shoulder blade, chosen for her eighteenth birthday.

Tess Holliday’s right-arm portrait sleeve

Holliday’s right arm has portraits of women and characters she admires. Inked describes the sleeve as black-and-gray realism, credits the portrait work to Nikko Hurtado, and identifies a magnolia tied to Mississippi. Holliday has said much of her other collection is American traditional, so the two styles sit side by side.

A 2015 Guardian profile records Holliday’s explanation of the Miss Piggy portrait: she saw the character as glamorous and confident, someone who could be feminine and showy without apologizing for being noticed.

Vogue España identifies Dolly Parton’s portrait on Holliday’s forearm, and the Guardian also names Parton among the women on her arms. Inked identifies Mae West and Divine; an Associated Press profile describes the figures as outspoken women. Holliday has said the portraits are of people who inspire her, but the sources don’t give them one shared meaning.

In an Inked interview, Holliday recalled working retail in Seattle in 2004 and meeting a woman with full sleeves. She already had several tattoos but felt self-conscious about her arms and kept them covered. Seeing someone else wear sleeves openly helped her picture doing the same.

Holliday has linked getting more tattoos with confidence and bodily autonomy, and said she felt less need to cover up. She has also said she chooses clothes that show her ink. A 2021 Inked photo shoot drew on Pamela Anderson’s film Barb Wire, including the leather and motorcycle styling. Holliday said she built the concept around the film and wanted to see a woman of her size in that kind of glamour. It was a fashion reference for the shoot; the arm tattoo Anderson wears in the film is not Holliday’s.

In the same interview, Holliday discussed an older makeup-themed sleeve connected to her former work as a makeup artist. She said she might not choose the same design now, but that doesn’t mean she hates it. It belongs to an earlier part of her life.

Family tributes and the tattoos on her legs

Holliday has said she has a tattoo on the back of each leg for her grandparents, whom she calls Paw and Maw. She also described a baby in a teddy-bear costume as a tribute to her son.

Vogue España identifies a Hello Kitty tattoo on her right calf. The source gives its location but no detailed personal story for the design, so it’s best not to infer one from the character alone.

In 2016, Holliday said her tattoo inspirations included artists, nature and travel.