It's something that I've done from very early
on in my career.
Anything from suicide attempts
to self-harm,
mastectomy cover-ups, even abusive relationships
that have caused scarring.
It's always been something that people have
asked me to do, and I've always
really enjoyed doing it.
It's a really rewarding part of my job.
The first scar that I covered as a tattooer
was actually for a really close friend of mine
who had a suicide attempt on her wrist,
and that was the first experience
that I'd had doing that,
and it was such a rewarding experience.
It brought about such a lot of confidence in her.
So it's always been something that I've been
really drawn to helping people through
that healing process, really.
People are reclaiming their body, you know,
they're reclaiming a part of themselves
that were lost there.
It's healing something really traumatic.
You know, whether that's something that's been
caused, some harm that they've caused themselves
or something that they've had, you know,
if they've had a part of their body
mutilated or cut off.
It's very special to be chosen to be part of that
healing process for people.
You know, for some people, they've never even shown
anyone the scar, you know?
There's a lady that I tattooed who never even showed
her boyfriend the scars that she had on her arms.
You know, she wouldn't go on holiday, she'd always wear
a T-shirt so, you know, even to show me is a huge...
it's a huge step in their healing process.
It's interesting because you have to be very
sensitive, obviously, to the scar tissue but also
to the trauma that the person has been through.
So besides the emotional sensitivity that you have
to be prepared for, there's also a technical
aspect to covering the scars with a tattoo.
Some of the scars are very delicate skin.
So obviously, you have to go quite gently over that.
Some of the scars are quite tough.
Some scars are also very bumpy so, you know,
not only do you have be quite sensitive about
how you tattoo them, but you also have to
be sensitive about what you put over them.
You know, if you imagine that you've got a bumpy
raised scar, and you put a straight line over it,
then you're gonna draw more attention to that scar.
Whereas, if you can work with the, how raised or dented
the scar is, if you worked that into the design
somehow so that it hides it, and it blends it into
the skin, then you get a much more successful result.
I try and get people in as quickly as I can for
something that's as important as this.
Some projects can get completed in one day, but
some of the bigger projects could even really take
a year.
You have to let the tattoo heal completely before you
work back on that area again and especially with
scar tissue can sometimes take a little bit longer.
It can be quite sensitive, so the healing process
in between sessions can be a little bit longer.
I think very often when people come to me,
they want to get the tattoo as a
celebration that they've survived.
You know, it's a memento for them of how strong
they have been through some sort of adversity.
So Edwina's project was a lumpectomy removal
from her breast.
She had triple-negative cancer,
and she went through chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
She had the lump removed.
Edwina wanted to have a sunflower tattooed over her
scar as a reminder to herself
of how strong she was
and how lucky she was to come through.
But it was also a memory for a really close friend
of hers who wasn't so lucky.
Who didn't survive the battle.
I think that covering over scars with tattoos
is something that a lot of people would never
have thought of or wouldn't really expect.
But I think that the healing side of tattoos is a
really important, really beautiful side of tattooing.
I really wanted to inspire people to make positive
change with their bodies.
I always wanted to be a tattooer, even from when I was
a teenager.
It's the only job I've ever done, and it's my dream job.