Fed up with feeling invisible, Scarlett made it her mission to become a living doll…
Scanning the supermarket aisle for a hair dye, I spotted a bold black shade.
This will do, I thought, popping it in my basket.
Rushing home, I excitedly applied it to my hair.
I was 14 years old and had always felt invisible.
People at school overlooked me and having mousy brown hair, I always got lost in the crowd.
I was shy and didn’t want to be the centre of attention, but I thought a bold hair colour might make people notice I was there.
‘Hi, emo,’ a boy sniggered the following day at school.
I buried my head in a textbook, mortified.
A couple of years later, I got a job in Sainsbury’s but after three years, people still thought I was the new girl.
‘It’s like I don’t exist,’ I cried one evening.
Studying my appearance in the mirror, I felt dejected.
The jet-black hair, the pale skin — the so-called ‘emo’ look — never really felt like me.
I’d always admired blonde hair and girlie pink accessories, but didn’t think I could pull it off.
What have I got to lose? I thought.
So, I booked myself in for an appointment at the hairdresser’s.
I emerged from the salon with platinum blonde hair and, for what felt like the first time in my life, a smile.
Ditching my pale powder, I filled my make-up bag with deeper shades of foundation and bronzer.
‘Hi, Tango face,’ the school bullies would taunt.
But I liked my new look — and felt my confidence rise.
'You're getting carried away'
Then, I decided to plump up my lips with some filler.
‘I love them!’ I exclaimed, admiring my new smackers.
But it became addictive, and I would go back for top-ups.
‘Enough now, Scarlett, your lips are massive,’ friends would say.
But I was pleased with my new pout.
Scrolling through Instagram one day, my timeline was filled with bikini snaps of busty influencers.
Their breasts are so perky, I thought.
‘You guys could do with a lift,’ I said, looking down at my size 30E chest.
I did some research, and discovered it would cost £3,500 for a breast op.
Deciding it was worth it, I went under the knife to take them up to a size H.
I was delighted with the results, but my banging boobs just drew attention to other areas of my body that I wasn’t happy with.
Running my finger over the bump on my nose, I sighed.
‘I want a nose job next,’ I said to my mum Diane and dad Howard.
‘Sweetheart, you don’t need one,’ they chorused.
But I had made my decision — the bump had to be banished.
It cost a whopping £8,000 — I paid for half of it and got the rest on finance.
Only, my new slender nose highlighted the lack of structure on my face, so I soon had cheek and chin fillers.
‘You’re getting carried away,’ my mum warned one day.
But she knew nothing would stop me from having more work done.
Next, I booked a flight to Turkey and got some veneers.
I was chuffed with my pearly whites.
Back on Instagram one day, I spent hours admiring Kim Kardashian’s perfect peachy bum.
Looking at my own derrière, I frowned.
‘Flat as an ironing board,’ I moaned.
I had read so many stories about Brazilian bum lifts (BBLs) that had gone horribly wrong, so I researched them thoroughly.
When I found a clinic in Marbella with glowing reviews, I announced my news to my parents.
‘I’m going to have a BBL,’ I said.
‘Please don’t do it,’ Mum cried.
She was worried I’d end up dead.
Friends warned me against it, too.
But it was no use — no one would talk me out of it.
And so, I flew out to Spain for my new rear.
The operation lasted two hours.
I had liposuction on my tummy, and the fat taken out of there and my love handles was put into my bottom.
The recovery was agonising.
I had to stand up for the entire flight home.
I wasn’t allowed to sit down for two whole months.
‘No more operations,’ my family begged.
But, six months later, I was back in Marbella for BBL number two.
I just wanted my bum to be bigger.
My surgeon took fat from my arms and legs and put it into my booty.
I must have spent about £35,000 on all my operations, most of which I got a loan for.
I’m thrilled with my Barbie girl looks now, but I’m eyeing up even more tweaks.
I want to have another nose job for a Barbie-like ski-slope nose and I’d like fox-eye surgery to give me sultry peepers.
I also want another boob job to make them even perkier — and I also covet a third bum lift to rival Kim K’s behind.
I’ve received hateful comments online from people telling me I’m made of plastic. Mum even said she didn’t recognise me.
But one thing’s for sure — you certainly can’t miss me any more!
Scarlett Gladwin, 27, Ongar, Essex