A young girl who lost her hair after knocking over a deep fat fryer and burning 38 per cent of her body at five years old has had her Christmas wish come true after her plight was featured in MailOnline – a brand new custom hairpiece.
Grace Shaw, 10, of Talbot Green, Wales, was left fighting for her life when she accidentally pulled the contents of the cooker – which were as hot as 375F – all over herself while playing with younger sister Farrah on April 28, 2016.
Miraculously, thanks to the care she received from staff at the Royal Glamorgan Hospital – situated just minutes from their home – she overcame her horrific injuries after enduring a three-month stay in hospital and almost 100 operations.
The incident robbed her of her hair on the back and left hand side of her head; sadly, the deep scarring on her scalp means her hair will never grow back.
Grace Shaw, 10, of Talbot Green, Wales, who lost her hair after knocking over a deep fat fryer and burning 38 per cent of her body at five years old, has had her Christmas wish come true after her plight was featured in MailOnline – a brand new custom hairpiece
Grace, pictured in hospital, was left fighting for her life when she accidentally pulled the contents of the cooker – which were as hot as 375F – all over herself while playing with younger sister Farrah on April 28, 2016
After reading about her story on MailOnline, Bond’s & Co hair salon in Tonypandy, Wales offered to help.
Last weekend Grace ticked off the present at the top of her Christmas wish list as she had a £5,000 custom hairpiece fitted.
Grace’s mother Toni Grundy-Jones was reduced to tears by her daughter’s incredible transformation and told FEMAIL: ‘Grace told me months ago that it would make her day if she could have new hair by Christmas.
‘It really was her Christmas wish. We’re overwhelmed and so grateful that it’s been granted.’
Grace’s accident happened four-and-a-half years ago as she played in the kitchen with sister Farrah, now eight.
Toni says it was touch and go whether Grace might die from her injuries – but she rallied after a round of gruelling skin grafts
Toni, 29, from Llanharry, south Wales, had left a fryer full of hot oil cooling on her kitchen worktop.
When Grace toppled and pulled it over, the contents spilled on her head, back and arms.
Quick-thinking dad Gary Shaw smothered Grace in a damp towel before Toni rushed home from work at a local restaurant to find her daughter screaming with pain and wailing ‘I’m dying’.
She was taken to the Royal Glamorgan Hospital and then airlifted to a specialist unit at Bristol Children’s Hospital where she spent a fortnight in intensive care.
Toni says it was touch and go whether Grace might die from her injuries – but she rallied after a round of gruelling skin grafts.
Grace was taken to the Royal Glamorgan Hospital and then airlifted to a specialist unit at Bristol Children’s Hospital where she spent a fortnight in intensive care. She has made a full recovery but is left with extensive scars
Although she made a full recovery, Grace was left with extensive scars and just a tuft of hair on top of her head.
Support worker Toni explained: ‘Grace never let her injuries stop her. She took it on the chin and grew up a confident little girl who was always smiling.
‘It’s only in the last seven months or so that we’ve noticed a change. If we were out shopping in Tesco, she’d pull up her hoodie straight away.
‘We learned from the school that she’d started sitting at the back of the classroom so the other kids weren’t looking at the back of her head.
‘She has tried synthetic wigs in the past, but she’s found them really uncomfortable, or they’ve slipped down and looked odd. She could never wear them longer than five minutes at a time.
Grace has tried synthetic wigs in the past (pictured), but she’s found them really uncomfortable and could never wear them longer than five minutes at a time
‘It was obvious that as she headed into her teens, she was becoming more self-conscious.
‘I knew it was getting her down as she told me she just wished she could be like everyone else – but we were at a loss as to how we could help her.’
Bond’s & Co contacted Toni after reading about Grace’s plight in March this year. They specialise in hair loss treatments and called in experts from Liverpool-based CR Lab to help.
Bond’s boss Jane Bond explained: ‘I read about Grace in MailOnline and had to help.
As Grace headed into her teens, her mother said she was becoming more self-conscious. ‘I knew it was getting her down as she told me she just wished she could be like everyone else,’ Toni explained
Bond’s & Co contacted Toni after reading about Grace’s plight in March this year. They specialise in hair loss treatments and called in experts from Liverpool-based CR Lab to help
‘We arranged for Grace to come in for a consultation but her scarring was too extensive for the treatments I usually use.
‘I’d been looking at CR Lab’s method for a while. I organised some training with them and was planning to fundraise to pay for Grace’s hairpiece – but CR Lab offered to fund it for her.’
CR Lab make 3D-printed prosthetic scalps, implanted with real human hair. Grace had a fibreglass cast of her scalp made at the end of lockdown.
Her custom hairpiece was manufactured in Italy and fitted on November 28.
Last weekend Grace ticked off the present at the top of her Christmas wish list as she had a £5,000 custom hairpiece fitted
CR Lab make 3D-printed prosthetic scalps, implanted with real human hair. Grace had a fibreglass cast of her scalp made at the end of lockdown. Her custom hairpiece was manufactured in Italy and fitted on November 28
Toni, also mum to 17-month-old Adison, said: ‘She was so excited, she couldn’t sleep the night before.
‘On the day, the change in her was just incredible. Her confidence blossomed right in front of our eyes.
‘Grace’s hair piece fits perfectly over her existing hair. It’s glued in place and she can wash it, go swimming and style it just like any other little girl.
‘More than anything she wanted to have a French plait. I think on the first day we went through about five different hairstyles – curly, straight, plaited. Everything you can think of!’
Grace will have her hairpiece – which should last around two years – removed monthly so her scalp can be cleaned.
CR Lab has launched a GoFundMe to treat other child burn victims to free hairpieces. To donate, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/cnc-little-angels
Grace’s mother Toni Grundy-Jones was reduced to tears by her daughter’s incredible transformation, pictured. She will have her hairpiece – which should last around two years – removed monthly so her scalp can be cleaned