Piercings
Lets do a deep dive... but shorter and summed up so you don't get bored!
Deep Dive:
Everything you need to know about PIERCINGS!
Age Limits and Consent:
8+
Lobe piercings start at 8 years old. I understand they desperately want their ears pierced, but please be patient. And please don't go somewhere else if they use a gun!
14
Piercings such as ear cartilage, navel and nose piercings (both nostril and septum) are 14 years and older. These piercings are more intense than lobes and proper aftercare will need to be followed.
16
The Surrounding mouth/oral area and lips, as well as eyebrows and nipples are 16+.
18
Any dermal piercing (surface bars, dermal anchors and skin divers are 18+, along with tongue, cheek and genital piercings.
Please not that anyone under 18 years old will need a parent present to fill out a consent form.
Piercing Chart:
You won't believe how many piercings there are!
​
​
Here's a chart of the most common ear piercings --->
however, there's so many more; verticals, transverses, stacked, mixed placement names, too many to list!
​
I often ask for a picture of the piercing you would like, as it's NOT common to have revised all the different names...
If in person, you are unsure or have changed your mind, just point! Ill put a dot on the area and you can confirm if we have the correct placement before continuing with getting your new piercing.
Children's Piercing:
After your child's first appointment, I offer certificates for them to keep to remember how brave they were!
During the appointment,
sweets will be available along with stress toys and teddies to help take their mind off the piercing.
These will also be available for the adults too, don't worry!
If there is anything you believe would be best to let me know before your child's appointment, don't hesitate to message!
Piercing Process:
NO GUNS! ~ Needles only
All piercings, including lobe piercings for children, are done with a needle.
I do NOT offer gun piercings.
Please do your research before getting pierced, or getting your child pierced with a gun.
I am here to message if you are struggling to find information on this!
Here's a quick step by step:
1~ Quick anatomy check!
2~ Discussing Jewellery
3~ Cleaning the area
4~ Dotting the placement of where the piercing will sit
5~ Checking the mirror and make sure we are both happy
6~ Piercing: A clamp may be put on depending on the tissue and area
7~ Deep breath in and out, and the piercing is done!
8~ A plastic tube will be left in the area (demonstrated above). Jewellery is put inside and pulled through for a smooth transition
9~ Once the jewellery is in, the tube comes off and the gem/ball front goes on (the longest and fiddliest part!)​
10~ Check the mirror again, snack on sweets, and you're all done :)
11~ Aftercare will be verbally given, and a physical copy will be offered too
Healing Times:
I won't ever be able to tell you how long your piercing will take to heal, but let's try anyways!
Please note these healing times are an approximation only based upon the average healing times experienced by most clients. The rate at which your piercing may heal is affected by a variety of factors – it is nothing to be concerned about if your piercing heals much faster or slower than this guide.
​Most piercings are initially healed in the first 2-3 weeks but will need longer to fully heal.
These are the average minimum healing times:
6 - 8 weeks: Lobes, Septum, Eyebrows and Tongue​
2 - 3 months: Lip piercings
3 - 4 months: Mouth areas
4 - 6 months: Male Nipple
9 - 12 months: Ear cartilage, Nostril, Navel, Female Nipple, Surface/Dermals and Christina's
​
Aftercare:
When getting a piercing done you must be aware that there may be some minor swelling or scarring to the area.
Although not common, some piercings have the potential to reject or grow out. This is only a caution and only affects a very small amount of people.
This is a rough guide as there are multiple factors that can cause a problematic piercing. This can include your diet, lifestyle, immune system and any irritation to the piercing during the healing period.
Problematic piercings can often be caused by:
- Aggravation (due to clothing on the area)
- ANY contact with unwashed hands or bodily fluids
- Constant applied pressure (often when sleeping)
(1/4 teaspoon of sea salt to 1/2 pint of hot water.
(Boil water and let cool to hot)
Salt Water Rinse
Use a cotton bud and dip it into the salt water. Go round the piercing and jewellery both sides for 2 minutes to ensure it has been cleaned.Repeat once or twice a day if you can and pat dry afterwards.You should NOT take the jewellery out to clean your healing piercing. You should also avoid touching or spinning the jewellery while it is in the healing process.
Alternatively, I sell an isotonic sterile saline solution at the studio. This is a fine mist of premade solution to clean you piercings. As it is sterile, it is cleaner to use with every use, and with it being already made, the ratio is done for you!
All piercings, especially Navel
Soaking and Catching
For quick healing, ensure to keep your piercings dry. Showering is fine, but try to avoid direct soap and not keep it in water soaking for too long! Don't worry if products get into the pierced area, just ensure you clean it off with water and pat dry with clean kitchen roll. Avoid the sea, swimming pools and jacuzzies. Try to not catch your piercing and if you think you may do, cover it up with a plaster but avoid sticking it to the jewellery.Â
Dermals
Covering
After getting a dermal, we recommend keeping a plaster over it for the first week to ensure it has time to begin healing into your skin. If your dermal appears to be pushing into your skin, discontinue with the plasters immediately. Ensure there are no scabs under the gem as they can push it up or angle it. Cocktail sticks are good for gently removing these!Â
These our only suggestions and if you have any adverse reactions or questions about your piercing, don’t hesitate to message me!
Hot Compress: Problematic Piercings
Use the 'Salt Water Rinse' above: Soak cotton pad with solution and place for 5 minutes (until cools down). This helps open the pores of the skin. Pour the remainder into a clean container big enough to cover area (mug, eggcup). Soak the piercing for 10 minutes, making sure the water is warm at all times. This draws any impurities or trapped fluid out of the piercing. Rinse thoroughly with CLEAN water. Can be repeated a few times a week or preferably twice a day for problematic piercings.
Lumps and Bumps: Knowing the Difference
You have probably heard of a keloid, probably thought you knew someone with, or had one yourself due to a piercing. Although 'keloid' is thrown around a lot, most of the 'keloids' are actually just hypertrophic scarring, which is something completely different and much easier to treat.
KELOID: A keloid is a thick raised scar which often appears once there has been some form of injury to the skin. They are overgrown tissue that is often described as firm, rubbery and shiny. Keloids have no puss or liquid inside and can be painful and itchy.They tend to range from pink to the person skin colour, or from red to a dark brown. These bumps can exceed the size of the injured area and will need to be removed, as they grow but can't be shrunk without removal.
HYPERTROPHIC SCARRING: These are more commonly know as 'piercing bumps' or 'irritation bumps' These are raw, fluid filled bumps caused by irritation which is often from catching, knocking, or applied pressure (being slept on) to the area after a piercing. To help with these, you can keep them cleaning using a saline solution (which I sell at the studio) and for navel piercings you can also use an iodine patch to drain out moisture from the bump.​
There are two types of scars: Pustule and Granuloma.
A Pustule is a blister/pimple that contains puss, great to fix with an iodine patch.
Granuloma scars tend to occur 6 weeks after a piercing and are just trapped fluid. This can be treated by soaking or hot compressing the area.
Sizing Down Your Jewellery
~ When getting pierced, we will put in a longer bar than needed to account for any swelling that may occur.
~ Once the area has swollen, the bar will fit nicely without any pain. If you think you may need an even longer bar, let me know!
~ After 3 - 6 weeks the swelling should have gone down and you can now pop back into the studio to size down your jewellery.
~ Once the jewellery has been changed, it should sit snug. Areas like cheeks may need multiple sizing downs throughout the healing process.
~ You should be able to keep that jewellery in for the remainder of the healing process. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to send a message!
Sizing down means getting rid of the excess length of jewellery. This will prevent your jewellery from getting angled and irritating the area, which will negatively effect the healing stages. Your jewellery can become angled from everyday movement, especially sleeping where many tend to lay on their piercings, me included :/
After putting in the smaller bar, the excess length is removed and will fit snug, leaving less room for the jewellery to angle. To book for a sizing down appointment, simply message after a few weeks after your piercing for a check up.
Booked in and never made a Sizing Down appointment?
No problem! Just send me a message by social media or email to book in. -->
Ordering Jewellery + Ear Curations:
Jewellery can be ordered in so don't feel limited... Although I do stock quite a lot as it is!
These can be used for initial piercing too, so you can have something fancy straight away :)
Just send me a screenshot of a piece you've seen and I'll try my best to hunt it down for you.
Ear designs will require some inspirational images, just so I can get an idea of jewellery style, placement styling and jewellery sizing. These images can be from anywhere, Pinterest and my Instagram too. These can be sent across to me or shown in person! I will also need to see your ears too, just to get an idea of spacing and what you currently have - picture sent or in person.
I will ask a range of questions to get an overall idea of the look you desire, as well as your price range (I will do my absolute best to keep the price down of course!)
​
Once all the information is gathered, I will plan out a design with you and then get you to pop in to take a look at the final design. We can then start booking appointments to get some piercings! There may be multiple sessions needed depending on the plan (3 cartilage piercings at any time healing).
Sometimes we won't be able to use a certain jewellery piece depending on its' design or material. Once they are healed, we can swap them out. ​​​
