Woman who impulsively received face tattoo advised she ”ruined her face’ however ‘regrets nothing’
Alitia Thoburn, 20, from Bristol, has always been passionate about tattoos since she was eight years old, and had her face inked on impulse by her tattoo artist fiancé
A woman who impulsively got a face tattoo says she “regrets nothing” despite strangers assuming she is “stupid” and a “criminal”.
Alitia Thoburn, 20, has been passionate about tattoos since she was eight. The tattoo enthusiast let her tattoo artist fiancé, Jonathan Saunders, 37, ink her arm when they spontaneously decided to extend the design onto the right side of her face. The design is a large brush-like stroke of ink that extends down to her collar bone and connects with her other tattoos.
Despite trolls telling her she has ”ruined her face” and that ”nobody is going to be with her”, the inking remains one of Alitia’s favourites.
Alitia, from Bristol, said: “I don’t understand why people always thought that tattoos meant you are a thug or criminal. I always thought it could be something positive like a memorial or something you simply enjoy.”
“I’m lucky enough to have a face tattoo. I did not know it was going to happen it just felt right. I don’t have any regrets about it.”
Alitia began practising tattooing on herself at the tender age of 14 after purchasing a stick and poke kit online. She started her apprenticeship at 18 and now works full time at a studio in Oxfordshire.
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Alitia has spent up to 50 hours in sessions tattooing the rest of her body and got her first face tattoo in May 2023. She had been contemplating a face tattoo for some time but was initially committed to finishing the rest of her body first.
However, when she sat down with Jonathan for an arm tattoo, he spontaneously suggested, ”why don’t we just do the design on your face then?”.
Alitia has since added some floral elements to make the tattoo “look more feminine”. Despite her love for her tattoo, she admits to receiving a significant amount of online and in-person hate, with people telling her “you’ve ruined your face” and “nobody is going to want to be with you”.
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Alitia responded: “The people who think I will regret my tattoos let them, I don’t care what they think. “She reveals that she often receives disapproving looks in public and strangers tell her she will “regret it in the future”.
An elderly woman even confronted Alitia, asking “what the f*** have you done to your face?” before calling her a “stupid b***h”. However, she also receives plenty of support, with many people complimenting how well the tattoo suits her.
Alitia has plans to cover her entire body in tattoos, creating one large interconnected design.
