Warning over home tattooist after Newham friends are left with infections

Selena Hall's retouched tattoo (Image: Archant)

Selena Hall plans to report the tattooist to the police after being advised the woman, who is operating in Newham and Barking and Dagenham, probably used “dodgy ink” and could even have used needles more than once.

“People have been infected so badly they need antibiotics and my aunt has holes in her leg,” she said.

“I’m so angry with myself.”

Selena, who lives in Denny Close, met the tattooist while she was inking a friend’s 16-year-old son in Canning Town, despite him being two years under the legal age.

She thought the fact the tattooist did home visits was “convenient” and arranged to have the first part of a large pattern of butterflies and stars tattooed on her thigh three days later.

After a couple of sessions, the tattooist offered to do more of her tattoo for free if she held a “tattoo party”.

At the party, about 12 people had tattoos. Of those, seven have had issues since, including two who were advised to take antibiotics by their GPs.

Despite trying to get the tattooist to admit that she had done wrong, Selena failed to get answers.

“I called her and she made an excuse for everything,” she said. “She got quite angry and confrontational.”

After posting warning messages on the woman’s Facebook page, Selena received a number of messages from people who had had similar experiences.

“She doesn’t take responsbility that this is people’s skin,” she said. “I’ve had people say they were going to go to her and I’ve just told them: ‘Don’t do it’.”

Selina, who lives in Beckton, was forced to shell out a total of £350 to fix her tattoo and says she’ll never get inked anywhere other than a proper studio the future.

“The tattoo artist [who fixed the tattoo] said she’s probably buying dodgy ink from eBay and the needles could have gone back in the packet,” she said.

“I feel so stupid – it was a big mistake.”