A mom-of-four with 14 facial tattoos has told that others believe she’s a ‘poor parent’ owing to her inkings, with some individuals even dubbing her a ‘criminal’.
Claire Elsie-Rose, 33, a tattoo artist, said she is often questioned about her artistic choices yet has no qualms about them.
The company owner lives with her four children, ages six months to thirteen, and her boyfriend of three years, Jonny, 30.
She claims that there is a ‘big misunderstanding’ about facial tattoos, with many mistaking them for ‘wild and reckless’ or ‘criminal’ behavior.
She said that she has also gotten “why would you do that?” and “you used to be so pretty!” remarks, meaning she has somehow damaged her appearance.
She used to argue back, but now she simply ignores it. She doesn’t need to defend herself, and it isn’t worth her time.
Claire, from Lincolnshire, UK, said she used to find the remarks annoying but now ignores them since she “knows she’s a good mother.”
The mother of four also said that she got her first tattoo when she was 15, spending just £10 ($19) for a little fairy on her wrist.
One of her few regrets is this.
She stated that she was too young, and wouldn’t recommend having one at that age. She adored it back then, but it’s hidden now.
Claire now has tattoos covering 60% of her body, having spent £8,000 ($15,107) in total despite having numerous tattoos done for free.
After her first tattoo as a youngster, she steadily added others, including a ‘lots of stars’ tattoo on her breast and a mermaid tattoo on her neck when she was 18.
Even in the heat of July, she had to be covered up when working in offices after school, wearing high-necked shirts and scarves.
Claire, however, was brought to the hospital at the age of 25 with respiratory issues, where doctors discovered cancer in her lung.
She said it turned out to be innocuous, but she didn’t realize it for a while, and it was terrible.
She said that it made her understand that they don’t know how long they’re here for, so she got a facial tattoo.
She stated that, although she ‘heavily tattooed,’ she was frightened of getting ink on her face because she was afraid of being judged.
She doesn’t care anymore, eight years later, with 14 tattoos on her face.
She continued that it was incredibly powerful because she could finally be herself, which was freeing.
Her first facial tattoo was the word ‘Queen’ placed between her brows.
Despite feeling much more liberated, she claims that the ‘judgement is really upped,’ with a tatted face saying she gets ‘ten times as many looks’.
Even when she went to the store with her children, the security guard followed her, or people would cross the street to avoid passing her.
She added that she used to find it pretty upsetting, and it was difficult to be evaluated on her facial tattoos, particularly considering why she got them done.
The last thing she wishes is for her parenting to be scrutinized. Having a tattoo has no effect on how she is as a mother, she continued.
