Tattoo-loving mother-of-seven, 45, who admits she ‘can’t get a job’ due to her hundreds of ‘prison-style’ inkings shares throwback photo of what she looked like before her transformation
- Melissa Sloan, 45, got her first inking when she was 20 years old
- Mother says either she or her boyfriend will add to her collection most days
- Unemployed woman says she can’t get a job as a cleaner because of her tattoos
- Mother-of-seven says they cover her ’emotional scars’ from sexual abuse
A mother who is ‘addicted’ to tattoos and claims her ‘prison-style’ inkings stand in the way of her getting a job has shared a throwback photo of what she used to look before her dramatic transformation.
Melissa Sloan, 45, from Powys, South Wales, got her first inking when she was 20 years old and has since covered most of her body in hundreds of tattoos.
The mother-of-seven has even started going over her old tattoos with new designs and says her boyfriend inks her at home most days.
Speaking to the Mirror, Melissa – whose face is covered in rose and heart inkings – revealed that she also does her own tattoos too as a way of keeping control of her expenses.
While a crucifix inking would set her back £70 in a parlour, the mother claims it only costs £10 to do at home.
Melissa Sloan, 45, from Powys, South Wales, got her first inking when she was 20 years old. The mother-of-seven – pictured in 2022 – says they cover her ’emotional scars’ from sexual abuse she suffered at hands of her brother growing up
Melissa has shared a photo of what her face used to look like before she covered it in tattoos.
Melissa got her first tattoo 25 years ago and started covering her face inkings when she ran out of space on her body
Explaining how she gets an ‘adrenaline rush’ from each and every design, Melissa said: ‘I get a buzz, and I feel brilliant, then it wears off again in a couple of days’ time and I do it again.
‘People call me Crazy Melissa, but I just feel like Melissa – that’s who I am. If they don’t like it, they don’t have to look at me – I take no notice. There are some judgemental people out there, they judge you whatever. People stare at me, you get used to it.’
In an interview with the Daily Star earlier this year, Melissa claimed that her tattoos are standing in the way of her getting a job.
She said: ‘I applied for a job cleaning toilets where I live and they won’t have me because of my tattoos.
Melissa (pictured) covered her body in tattoos to blot out the memories of being sexually abused from the age of six
Melissa said she is ‘pleased’ that Gavin is now behind bars, but angry that her own claims weren’t investigated properly at the time
‘But, if someone offered me a job tomorrow I would go and work – I would take that offer. I expected this in life, I can’t fit in with people as I like to be me and I’m always going to be myself.’
In May, the mum revealed that her tattoos were a way of coping with the sexual abuse she suffered as a child at the hands of her elder brother.
Gavin Sloan, 46, was jailed 21 years for a string of sickening rapes and sexual assaults against other children earlier this year.
‘My tattoos help me cover the emotional scars that Gavin left behind,’ Melissa said.
‘They’re my mask and I hide from the world behind them. But now that he is finally in jail, I can begin to feel free.’
Melissa claims her complaint was not taken seriously by police and he was never charged with the alleged offences against her.
Melissa’s half-brother Gavin Sloan, 46, (pictured) was jailed in May 2022 for a string of sickening rapes and sexual assaults against other children
Melissa, who was abused by her brother until age 16, claims her complaints were not taken seriously by police. Pictured: Melissa and Gavin as children
She was horrified to read a news report of Gavin’s recent conviction for child sex offences involving other children.
Melissa said: ‘I am pleased that he is at last behind bars, but I feel angry too that my own complaint wasn’t investigated properly at the time.
‘I’ve suffered all my life because of the abuse. My entire body is covered with tattoos and it’s my way of coping with trauma of my childhood abuse. I try to blot out the memories by covering myself with tattoos.’
Melissa and Gavin grew up in Kidderminster with their mother, Doris, and two other siblings.
She said: ‘Gavin and I have the same mother but different fathers, but we were raised as brother and sister. As tots we shared a bath together, as siblings do.
‘But when I was six, and he was seven, Gavin touched me down below in the bath. I told my mum but we were both small children and she brushed it off. She didn’t really believe me.
‘But it carried on and it got worse when I was in my teens. Gavin and I shared a bedroom, and he took every chance he could to grope me, and he tried to make me perform sexual acts on him. He drilled a small hole in the bathroom door to spy on me.
‘I grew up thinking it was normal. He told me it was fine because he was my half-brother. I tried to fight back against him, but he was stronger and very aggressive towards me.
‘He called me sexual names and made inappropriate comments. I saw him kill birds and small animals and I was very frightened of him.’
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