A model who claims her eyebrows had been "scalded" in a hot wax beauty treatment is suing a beauty salon for €38,000 damages.
The president of the Circuit Court, Mr Justice Matthew Deery, heard yesterday that Tara Murphy had been temporarily cosmetically deformed and had lost photographic modelling engagements as a result.
Ms Murphy (32), Galtymore Road, Drimnagh, Dublin, told her counsel Frank Beatty that her eyebrows and the bridge of her nose had started to bleed following the treatment in Buttercups Beauty Salon, Powerscourt Centre, Dublin.
She had undergone the eyebrow waxing procedure without incident at Buttercups on a number of occasions but on May 10th, 2002, her usual beauty therapist was not available and she had been told the girl standing in was "pretty okay." Ms Murphy said the therapist had failed to test the wax on her own or Ms Murphy's wrist. Immediately the hot wax had been applied to her left eyebrow she had complained about how hot it was but the therapist said it was normal.
She said wax had then been applied to her right eyebrow and the bridge of her nose, which had never been done before, and she complained again about the burning sensation. The therapist had then removed the hot wax and had completed, in seconds, a procedure which previously had taken about five minutes.
Ms Murphy said that on leaving the salon, run by owners Celtic Beauty Salon Ltd, which trades as Buttercups, her vision became blurred and she had vomited on the street.
Her eyebrows and nose had bled and a taxi man who had driven her to her home had turned down the rear window and placed her head on the window sill to see if the breeze would cool down her face.
She had been treated by her doctor. After a couple of days scabs had formed over the treated areas of skin and when these had healed she had been left with red marks. It had been a year before her eyebrows had returned to normal.
When cross-examined by Eamon Marray, counsel for Buttercups, Ms Murphy denied that pre-treatment tests had been carried out or that she had never complained of a burning sensation during the treatment.
The case continues today.