For some, tattoos are much more than body art – they’re life-changing. Fiona Stubbs meets permanent make up artist Carly Smith
Carly Smith pushed her body to its physical limit as she tackled Derbyshire’s gruelling 21-mile Three Peaks Challenge.
But the punishing trek across the rugged terrain of Kinder Scout, Bleaklow and Higher Shelf Stones was little in comparison to what some of her clients have encountered in their health journeys.
Her challenge, in July, was to raise funds for the TATA Foundation, which allows Carly and other permanent make up artists to offer realistic 3D areola and nipple tattoos free of charge to breast cancer survivors and carriers of the BRCA gene, who undergo preventative mastectomies.
“It’s transformational,” she explains. “These tattoos are not just cosmetic; they’re a vital step in the healing journey. I chose to do the Three Peaks Challenge because, without TATA Foundation funding, many brave people who’ve already been through so much might not be able to access these transformative tattoos – or might only be able to access basic NHS options. I’ve always wanted to do things that make a difference to people.”
Medical areola and nipple tattooing is just part of Carly’s role as a permanent make up artist but one she is particularly passionate about – and is rooted in personal loss.
“My sister-in-law, Louise Mallender, passed away from breast cancer when she was 36,” says Carly. “She had the BRCA gene, which runs in her family [and increases cancer risk].
“Watching her go through that, really brought to my attention the effects of cancer and treatment, both physically and emotionally.”
As a TATA Foundation-sponsored artist, Carly offers restorative areola tattooing to post-mastectomy patients, helping them regain confidence and a sense of wholeness after breast cancer treatment.
“It’s transformational,” she explains. “These tattoos are not just cosmetic; they’re a vital step in the healing journey. I chose to do the Three Peaks Challenge because, without TATA Foundation funding, many brave people who’ve already been through so much might not be able to access these transformative tattoos – or might only be able to access basic NHS options. I’ve always wanted to do things that make a difference to people.”
Chesterfield-based Carly completed the challenge with her husband Adam and two friends, Rachael and Liam Mullen. Carly’s Just Giving page (https://www.justgiving.com/page/carly-smith-10) is open until 30th November.
Her award-winning work is the culmination of years of training and experience in the beauty and permanent make up industry – which includes helping people who have suffered eyebrow loss, through chemotherapy or alopecia.
After leaving school, Carly gained qualifications as a beauty therapist, going on to buy – aged just 19 – the Grassmoor salon she had trained in.
“In those days you could go to the bank and get a loan,” she smiles. “I didn’t have help from family. When you’ve got nothing to lose … why not do it?”
She went on to open a second salon in Hasland and ran both for a while before consolidating them into a single, larger premises with 10 staff.
“Then I felt I wanted to do something more specialist,” she recalls. “I trained in permanent make up, microblading eyebrows, while also running the business side of things. After a while, though,
I fell out of love with running the salon.”
She developed studio space at home and put her Hasland salon up for sale in autumn 2019. It sold during lockdown and Carly Smith PMU Artistry launched in August 2020.
“Initially, my clients were people wanting to improve their eyebrows through microblading,” she says. “You can create a really natural brow. Then I started to get interest from people with alopecia and clients about to go through chemotherapy. You can’t have eyebrow treatment while you’re going through chemo, but you can have it before, in preparation for hair loss. It makes a big difference to people. You can have a wig to replace your hair – but what about eyebrows?
“Whatever the cause of their hair loss, everybody is happy to have their eyebrows back. It’s nice to be able to help someone in that situation – it gives them back a bit of control over their own body.”
Carly’s treatments also include lip blush – a light tattoo process adding colour and definition to the lips, countering the effects of ageing. And, using a form of microneedling, she can help to repair and lessen the appearance and texture of scars caused by surgery, burns and self-harm.
• Learn more about Carly and her work at https://carlysmithpmu.co.uk/