'Sleeping teen tattooist' backs down

The tattooist who inked 56 stars on the face of a Belgian teenager who claimed to be sleeping at the time has offered to pay half of the cost to have them removed.

Although Rouslan Toumaniantz refuses to accept blame for the extreme artwork that Kimberley Vlaminck claims has turned her into a "freak", he has accepted that 18-year-old is unhappy with the final result and wants to make amends.

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"I maintain that she absolutely agreed that I tattoo those 56 stars on the left side of her face," Belgian newspaper La Derniere Heure reported Mr Toumaniantz as saying.

"A witness, a woman who was present, has already been questioned by police, and she confirms it.

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"But be that as it may, Kimberley is unhappy and it is not my wish to have an unsatisfied client."

Ms Vlaminck's family launched legal action against the operator The Tattoo Box in the southeast Belgian city of Courtrai, claiming damages as well as $18,400 for laser removal.

Mr Toumaniantz, who himself is almost entirely covered in tattoos and piercings, says that the bizarre incident may even be good for business.

"I don't regret it," he said.

"To tell you the truth, this has given me some publicity."

The teenager claims she fell asleep in the artist's chair after requesting three stars around her left eye.

With her approving father outside eating ice cream, she allegedly drifted off to sleep while 56 black stars were needled into her face and nose.

"I cannot go out on to the street, I am so embarrassed," Ms Vlaminck said.

"I think he didn’t understand what I wanted. He spoke only fractured English and French.

"But I explicitly said in my native tongue, French, and also in a little bit of English when he looked confused, that I wanted three little stars only near my left eye."

The tattooist maintains his teenage client was happy with the work and the transaction only soured when her father and boyfriend saw the design.

"She asked for 56 stars and that’s what she got," he said.