Blending in Confined to a wheelchair, Tess Daly often felt self-conscious about her disability as she grew up. Now, the 31-year-old is proud to stand out, having made a name for herself as one of the UK’s leading beauty bloggers Writing | Suzanne Baum
pplying makeup takes confidence, patience, and a steady hand – traits Tess Daly is the first to admit she doesn’t have in abundance. In fact, it’s only through using a robotic arm that the disabled beauty blogger has been able to fine-tune her online makeup posts and tutorials that have seen her amass more than 200,000 Instagram followers. Tess was born with spinal muscular atrophy – a neuromuscular disorder that means she has never been able to walk. Despite being in a wheelchair since the age of two, she grew up refusing to let her disability get in the way, having from an early age a determination to one day work in the creative world. “I was always interested in fashion and beauty,” Tess tells me as we chat in her Sheffield home, where she relies upon a team of carers to help her with everyday tasks. “I had my heart set on becoming a fashion
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designer. I studied art in school, and spent every spare minute drawing clothing and shoe designs. “Unfortunately, during my GCSEs, I rather inexplicably lost the use of my right hand, which meant I was unable to do lots of things, including my own makeup.” In a bid to feel as normal as possible, Tess began paying makeup artists to do her face for a night out almost every weekend throughout her early 20s. “It was an expensive affair, trust me! But I always prided myself on looking good on the outside to make myself feel better inwardly.” However, things changed a few years ago when a friend – who also has spinal muscular atrophy – shared a video of her applying eyeliner with the help of a piece of equipment called the ‘neater eater’. It’s attached to the wheelchair and functions as a bionic arm to manipulate the limb; although designed for helping to feed yourself, Tess found it worked just as well when applying makeup – and it changed her life.
With the use of what she nicknamed ‘the bionic arm’, Tess was able to teach herself to do certain things again, including her own makeup. “I found ways to make things work, and I have always preferred to talk about the things I can do, rather than stuff I can’t do, as there’s no point thinking of negatives.” When I suggest that Tess is an ‘influencer’, she’s quick to point out she’s not. “I’d much rather be known as a ‘role-model’ – standing up for people with disabilities, who don’t often see themselves represented in the beauty industry.” Having perfected the use of the bionic arm, Tess – who never used social media much – began posting pictures of her progress on Instagram, tagging the makeup brands she was using. After a few months, she gained more than 10,000 new followers after her work was shared by makeup guru to the stars, Anastasia Beverly Hills. >>>
