45 Crescent Moon Tattoo Ideas (And What They Mean)

Mid-Size Ankle Crescent Moon

This mid-size ankle crescent moon has a face, adding a bit of whimsy to the design. The artist also used some dots near the tips of the moon to act as shading, and around the outside to act as stars.

Finger Tattoos

"Most of mine/our clients love delicate and small tattoos; my job is to make them look aesthetically aligned with the body," explains Vasquez. "The outcome being dainty and beautiful, plus it being a mystical, magical, and enchanting symbol that represents so much, makes it a very appealing tattoo for all."

Saffron and Crescent Moon

This artist filled in the ends of the slender crescent moon, fading out the black with light dots towards the middle. The precise line work carries in the saffron illustration and constellation laying atop the moon.

Crescent Moon with a Small Hand

By adding a small hand holding the crescent moon, this tattoo puts extra emphasis on the delicate feel of the symbol. The filled-in moon adds some black art contrast to the line-art hand.

Watercolor Crescent Moon

The artist uses a watercolor-esque style on this crescent moon tattoo, comprising roses and colorful botanicals. While the symbols invoke a connection to spirituality and nature, the use of color allows the tattoo to be more aesthetically customized.

Crescent Moon with a Black Cat

“There is a huge subculture of people who love—or at least have an interest in—things like witches, moon phases, the occult, and other alternative styles who also find tattoos to be the perfect way to express their aesthetic and interests,” says Kim.

This crescent moon tattoo features the colors of a sunset, with a black cat sitting on its bottom tip. Adding a cat increases the symbolism, as they tend to be associated with witchcraft or goddesses.

Crescent Moon with Lily Flowers

In this moon and flower tattoo, the crescent features thin line art with dots on either tip for shading. The lilies at the bottom emphasize the beauty and divinity of the moon.

Single Flower Crescent Moon

The beauty is in the simplicity with a single flower and tiny crescent moon. Faded shading and crisp lines give this tattoo an inky, illustrated style.

Vasquez says that crescent moons are one of the hardest tattoos to accomplish. "Circles, straight lines, and anything that has to do with perfect geometry is always a challenge and could go easily wrong when not done with proper techniques and experience," he explains. "I've seen many banana-shaped moons, inconsistent lines, and wrongly placed crescent moon tattoos."

Mandala Lace Floral Moon

This floral crescent moon is a great way of showing how customizable tattoos like this can be. By adding a unique mix of embellishments like mandala lace or lotus flowers, a tattoo becomes a personalized piece of art.

Crescent Moon With a Rose

This crescent moon tattoo looks like what you might see in the night sky. Rather than a hard outline surrounding the entire crescent shape, we see a defined outer edge and a more realistic-looking fade of textured black, white, and gray. The rose stands out with its crisp outlines.

Black Crescent Moon With a Mermaid

This black moon tattoo takes on a dark and mystical approach. The mermaid completes the ink with an element of fantasy.

Geometric Back Moon

The artist used precise dot work to shape the crescent in this tattoo. This moon is particularly unique, as it's flipped on a side we don't normally see with crescent moon tattoos.

Minimal Crescent Moon

The size and simple nature of a crescent moon make it ideal for placing in a small, hidden place. "I love doing them behind the ears, ankles, the wrist, and pretty much everywhere," Vasquez says. "I love adding geometry or sometimes charms and beads to them. Incorporating designs opens a range of ideas and ways to make them flow with the shape of the body."

Colorful Moon With Birth Flower

Birth flowers are another unique way to personalize your ink. The mix of delicate black ink larkspur with a thin, saturated purple and blue moon has a gorgeous effect. Because the zodiac sign Cancer is ruled by the moon and July's birth flower is larkspur, we love this idea for Cancers born in July.

Dainty Wrist Moon With Flower

This tiny piece uses only a few strokes and makes the perfect minimal wrist tattoo. Note the way the artist doubled the moon's outline as the flower stem.

Red Ink

A simple, thin-lined crescent moon tattoo is a great way to experiment with color if you're afraid of going overboard. The red-ink crescent here is complete with a face on the moon.

Whale Tied to Tiny Moon

A tiny whale tied to an even tinier moon feels like something of a dream. Careful black and gray shading creates a whimsical but realistic tattoo.

Floral Crescent Moon on Back

A crescent made entirely of flowers ties in the feminine aspect of the moon while remaining slightly more ambiguous.

Upper Thigh Crescent Moon with Cherry Blossoms

This thigh piece proves there are countless ways to do a flower and crescent moon tattoo. Delicate line shading makes the cherry blossom petals gracefully pop against the crescent.

Dreamer Moon With Red Flower

A modern cursive font follows the shape of the crescent in this tattoo. The bright red rose brings out the tiny red dots along the moon's outlines, creating a minimal picture with just enough statement moments to elevate visual interest.

Crescent Moon Bow and Arrow

Here, the crescent moon is serving as the bow for this bow and arrow tattoo. Two very powerful symbols, the moon and arrow can come together to create a new and powerful combined meaning.

Upside Down Moon

This dot work moon is flipped to face down and is hanging with various flowers and botanicals. The artist used varying sizes and boldness in the dots, creating a sense of texture to contrast the dark outline.

Snake on Slender Moon

A solid black moon is perfectly on theme to pair with a fang-bore snake. The slithering creature provides a lot of placement opportunities for different ways to creatively coil around the moon.

Mountain Moon

Here, a mix of line and dot work creates an intricate mountain moon tattoo. The crescent shape makes the perfect framing for a second visual placed within.

Delicate Line Work

A super delicate piece made with the light hand of a professional, this crescent moon tattoo comprises precise line work, placed together to create a full picture.

Feathers and Flowers

Crescent moons provide a lot of opportunities to serve as a base for hanging decoration. Here, we have feathers, jewels, and flowers trickling off the moon like a dreamcatcher.

Gradient Moon with Detailed Flowers

This floral moon tattoo is hyper-detailed in the petals and leaves. The moon comprises a series of delicate dots, but pops to equal effect when juxtaposed with the bulk of the piece.

Minimal Sunrise Moon

Like the moon, the sun is also loaded with meaning when used in tattoos. This fine-line piece shows us a delicate example of combining the two together in a minimalist way.

Whale in the Clouds and Moon

Another dreamy whale and moon tattoo, this piece is even more otherworldly with the addition of stars and swirling clouds.

Ram Skull and Flowers with Crescent Moon

With the focus taken off the moon, the crescent we see here is almost more of an afterthought to the bundle of flowers and gems around the ram skull.

Matching Botanical Moons

Two crescent moons ensconced in botanicals are a great idea for a set of matching tattoos. While they correlate, each person retains a degree of individuality with their personal choice of flowers.

Simple Outlines

While simple, this line tattoo has several elements going on to create an interesting piece. The moon is shaped by flowers and surrounded by stars and tiny circles, giving it a whimsical appeal.

Constellation Crescent

Here, contrasting styles share the same astrological theme. The crescent moon uses shaded realism, while the corresponding constellation boasts precise line work and silhouettes.

Birth Flowers in Crescent Moon Shape

This large lunar birth flower piece is romantic and bold. Expertly sharp lines and delicate shading throughout give the flowers life and movement.

Realism Crescent Moon

Here, the artist used a black and gray technique to create a realistic crescent moon. The outer black edge is dark and bold to create a solid shape, and the speckled shadowing gives the illusion of the moon’s glow.

Sketched Moon With Face

The multiple lines denoting the shape of this moon gives it the look of a single line sketch. Leafy foliage brings an earthy element to the cosmic illustration.

Roman Numeral Clock With Crescent Moon

The bow of the moon doubles as the center of a Roman numeral clock in this tattoo. A combination of precise straight and curved lines add geometric elements, while a trail of stars plays on cosmic themes.

Crescent Moon-Shaped Roses

A vine with three roses arches to form a lunar bow. The artist uses sketch-like strokes to create the appearance of shading.

Moon and Sword

Here, a sword pierces a realistic moon that's complete with the tiniest crevice detailing. Sword tattoos hold their own meanings as well, often denoting strength, power, and courage.

Fine Line Owl on Moon

As another symbol of the night, an owl fits perfectly in place with a crescent moon in this fine line tattoo.

Single-Line Angel on Moon

Here, an angel sits on a simple crescent moon in an illustrative, single-line style. The artist also inked minimalist dots hanging like a jeweled chain from the moon.

Lilies With Mandala Lace

Mandala embellishments are a versatile option: In this tattoo, only a few strands of mandala lace hang from the crescent moon, along with delicate lilies and botanicals.

Miniature Rose Crescent

A tiny moon tattoo doesn't have to be limited to silhouettes and outlines. Here, a miniature-sized vine of roses curls into a dainty crescent behind the ear.

Tiny Moon in Flower Bunch

Exquisite line work forms these delicate florals in black and gray ink. Here, the small crescent moon tattoo is shaped by the use of negative space over the leaves' shadows.

Simple Wrist Flower Moon

Cherry blossoms adorn a single-line stem forged in a crescent shape. The artist used black and gray ink to carefully dot the petals, creating a faded look on the shading.