Claire is used to getting a few looks every now and then when she is out with her kids.
Security guards will often monitor her activity, and strangers cross the road when they see her.
But the mum-of-four won’t let anyone tell her she’s an unfit parent – particularly just because she is covered in tattoos from head to toe.
While the ink on the UK mother’s body doesn’t cause too much attention in her daily life, it’s the 14 pieces of art on her face that cause the outrage.
People questioned why she would “ruin” her face with tattoos
Claire she’s been brandished as a “criminal” and made to feel like a “bad mom”.
“There’s this huge misconception that if you have a face tattoo, you’re wild and irresponsible or a criminal, which is so far from the truth,” she told The Sun.
She also claims others tell her that she’s “ruined” her looks.
“I’ve also had questions like ‘Why would you do that?’ and comments like ‘You used to be so pretty!’” she explained.
“Having face tattoos doesn’t make me a bad parent”
Getting her first tattoo at 15 years old, she continued tattooing her body with artwork such as stars, mermaids and a portrait on her neck and chest.
While she used to worry about what people would think, the mom – with kids aged between six months and 12 – has since changed her tune.
“I don’t have to defend myself, and it’s not worth my energy,” she insisted.
“I’m a good mom, I have a successful business, and I’m in a secure relationship. There’s nothing wild about my life, and I love nothing more than a night in, in my pajamas!”
Working in retail and an office, Claire was used to covering up her tatts with “high-necked tops and scarves all year round”.
However, after a cancer scare at the age of 25, she quickly realized it was important to live a carefree life.
“Life’s too short not to express myself with a face tattoo”
“At that time, I was obviously heavily tattooed everywhere else, but I’d always been afraid to get one on my face even though I’d always wanted one,” she explained.
“I was worried about being judged, but I realized life was too short to not express myself.”
So she got “queen” tattooed above her right eyebrow – an experience she called “empowering”.
She has since inked “love” and “hope” under her eyes and has other work on her chin, along her jaw and cheeks.
Despite the “freedom” she felt after getting her first face tattoo, Claire knew that she would get more looks than before.
“Having a tattoo doesn’t affect what I’m like as a mum at all!”
“There’s a huge jump from having your body tattooed and having your face tattooed, however, and it’s a very different reaction you get from others,” she said.
“You get ten times more looks, and the judgment is really upped.”
Luckily, her tattoos haven’t prompted any negative comments about her parenting.
“No one has said it, but the last thing I’d want is my parenting to be judged. Having a tattoo doesn’t affect what I’m like as a mum at all!”
