An Australian TV personality Tilly Whitfeld is urging her followers and others to be wary of viral beauty hacks after her own DIY procedure landed her with over 12K in medical bills.
In May, Whitfeld, 21, revealed how she often appeared on Australian Big Brother with a blue clay face mask to cover a patchy red reaction on her cheeks and nose.
It was “the result of attempting to remove scarring I inflicted on myself trying to replicate an at-home beauty procedure I saw on a TikTok video,” the reality star wrote alongside several Instagram selfies and close-ups of her complexion.
“Please please don’t try any ‘DIY’ or ‘at home’ beauty procedures. I ended up in hospital with temporary loss of vision in my eye due to swelling and was very sick from the infection, not to mention my face was somewhat unrecognizable. Leave it to the professionals ????????✨” Whitfeld shared, adding that the photos show “deep below surface level scaring and dark pigmentation.”
Whitfeld did not specify which TikTok beatuy hack led to her taking the leap but in a new interview with the New York Times, Whitfeld said it was the result of attempting to give herself freckles.
RELATED: TikTok Mom Pretends To Be Her Children And It Is Hysterical
The trend of adding fake freckles (applied with henna, an eyebrow pencil or even products specifically created to give natural-looking spots) can even include sewing needles to prick yourself with ink.
Allegedly, if all goes according to plan, the results should fade within six months.
The clip Whitfeld discovered reportedly did not specify what type of ink to get, so she settled on purchasing brown tattoo ink from eBay.
RELATED: Mom Recalls Baby Shower Gift From Her Late Mom In Viral TikTok
“It didn’t hurt at all, so I didn’t think I should stop,” Whitfeld admitted. She later discovered the ink she purchased was a counterfeit product with “high levels of lead in it,” and has since spent nearly $12,000 on doctor’s visits to correct the scarring.
She has yet to find a solution. “The main response has been that I’m stupid, and, yeah, I agree,” Whitfeld said.
She later added to her Instagram caption: “Whilst I’m fortunate enough to not have keloid scaring and the surface of my skin is smooth, the pigmentation is very dark and obvious. I literally shoved needles deep into my skin this is not a rash lol.”