Select an online tattoo design program. Many of these programs offer custom lettering design options. With these programs, you can enter the term you’d like to have inked and then view it in a variety of different fonts. Select your favorite and follow the instructions to print out your design. Websites that offer free tattoo lettering generators include: tattoodesign.com, tattoolettering.com, tattoobase.com and tattoogenerator.com.
Open a word processing program on your computer. Type in the phrase you’d like to use for your tattoo. Highlight the phrase and then view it in different fonts by clicking on the “Font” option in the top menu. Some of the most common cursive font families include: Mistral, French Script, Vivaldi, Edwardian Script, Lucida Handwriting, Brush Script and Script MT Bold. You also can recognize cursive fonts by looking for general terms like Script, Handwriting, Calligraphy and Chancery. Once you’ve selected your favorite font, you can adjust the size of the lettering until you find the perfect size for your design.
Draw your own cursive lettering freehand. If you have nice handwriting, or know someone who does, you can use a handwritten design. Make sure you use a calligraphy pen or heavy felt-tip pen so that the design can be easily copied and resized by the tattoo artist, if needed.
Bring a printout or copy of your lettering design to your tattoo artist. He will use it as a pattern to ink your tattoo.