One of the first things I did when I moved to Missoula was find out about the local studios. I wanted to get several piercings over the course of the next few years, and I did not want to make any split-second decisions that would cost me later. I went online, I went in the phone book, I listened to the college station, I talked to other people with piercings. Finally, I knew I had found the studio and the piercer for me.
At A Glance Author Kat Contact ktgerl@hotmail.com When A week ago Artist Tomi Studio Altered Skin Location Missoula, Montana, USA I had heard about Altered Skin from all of the above. One of their piercers, Brenda, was certified under Fakir Musafar, and all of them are professionals who really know their stuff.
I first talked to Tomi on the phone the Sunday before I got my piercing done. She made fun of me (a little) for calling it an "anti-eyebrow" piercing. She said it was just called an upper-cheek surface piercing, and that when I said anti-eyebrow she thought I might have meant horizontal eyebrow.
Anyway, when I described what I meant, it turned out that she had done it before. She wanted a picture of it for her portfolio, so she said she would give me a discount if I decided to get it done. I told her I'd be in.
A few days later my roommate Jessie and I headed down to Altered Skin. The place was immaculate. I also noticed that there were doors on all the rooms (definitely a good sign) and the furniture wasn't ratty. Jessie was thinking of getting her nose pierced, so she was looking at jewelry and thumbing through the portfolios while I talked to Tomi.
Apparently, in Montana at least, upper cheek surface piercings are fairly uncommon. Most of the people in the studio had never even seen one in "person" before. Because they are so rare, Tomi was careful to make certain the placement would be safe and not hit any nerves. She grabbed my right cheek in a few places, squeezing and twisting to see how much elasticity I had in my skin. She also talked to a couple other piercers, and they grabbed my cheek, too. The whole ordeal reminded me of a family reunion, all these aunts and uncles I haven't seen in ten years pinching my cheek. I only wish that my aunts and uncles were covered in tattoos and listened to good music...
Anyway, after all the pinchiness I ended up with a good placement, a pinkish cheek, and almost no time before my next class. I didn't want to rush the piercing, and I didn't want to try and pay attention with all that adrenalin in my system, so we decided to come back later that day.
I sat daydreaming about my shiny new facial piercing until about 5:00 that night, when we finally headed over to Altered Skin. Jessie had decided to get her nose done, so she brought her younger sister along for support.
Tomi and I went over the placement for a few more minutes and she explained the procedure to me. She told me she wanted to do it freehand, and I had no problem with this, as I've heard it's better for the skin. She showed me the cork she would be using, and we decided to have two different lengths of curved barbells ready, just in case. She had explained earlier that since there is a bone in the upper cheek, it's better to use curved barbells instead of surface bars, since the rougher edges of the surface bar could rub against the bone.
When Tomi and I were both happy with the placement, she had me lie back in the chair. I had her leave the door open so that Jessie and her sister could watch from the lobby. Jessie does NOT like blood, so having her in the room would definitely be a bad idea.
Tomi told me to close my eyes while she pierced, and that she would tell me when I could open them. She said to take three deep breaths. I asked her if she would pierce on the third, but she just winked and said "That's my little secret." I grinned and put my head back.
This was where it got interesting. I didn't really think it was strange at the time, but after my eyes were closed, I could still "see" what Tomi was doing. I don't know if it was because she had already explained the procedure to me or if it was flashback to watching other people get pierced or reading about it on BME or some sort of out of body experience, but I could see Tomi change her gloves, get the needle and cork ready, and smile at Jessie and her sister in the lobby.
I knew when she was about to put the needle in, (she did it on the second breath, not the third) so I didn't make any noise. There was no real pain, just this awareness of something different in my body, something that hadn't been there a few seconds earlier.
I heard Tomi call out "Anyone who doesn't like blood should probably leave," followed by the sound of Jessie's sister laughing and telling me "Jessie just made a beeline for the door!" I tried not to laugh, not wanting to disturb the jewelry insertion. I pictured Jessie covering her mouth, running like a flu victim to a toilet. "Maybe I should have gone last," I thought.
I felt Tomi swabbing at my cheek for a minute, then she gave me the go-ahead to open my eyes. I looked in the mirror, and I was giddy. It was beautiful. Tomi told me she had overshot the mark by a little bit, but I didn't mind; it looked perfect.
Tomi said just piercing me had given her a rush, and she needed to have a cigarette before she started on Jessie. When they were both ready, Jessie's sister and I went in the room with her. Throughout the whole nose-piercing process, I kept on turning around to look in the mirror. My perfect 16 gauge steel barbell looked back at me. I knew I had made the right choice.
Tomi sat both of us down and went over aftercare again; salt soaks and q-tips. She gave us a couple of aftercare sheets, told us to read them, and highlighted her phone number. I thanked her and paid up front.
The next day, there was almost no swelling and no bruising whatsoever. I was amazed; I had expected a red, puffy cheek for at least a week! I iced it anyway, and called Tomi after a couple of days to ask if I could start moving the barbell to clean it. She had me stop in the shop (she said she wanted to "baby" this piercing along) so she could check it out and "show me off."
I came in, and she was as happy with it as I was. She took me around to a couple people and introduced me and her work to them. She even took me into a room where a guy was getting tattooed. (I was VERY careful not to touch anything and stay near the door.)
It's been a week now, and the piercing still looks great. There is no redness or swelling, although it is still a little soar when I move the barbell to clean it. I encourage any of you in the Missoula area to head on down to Altered Skin for your next piercing; my fake aunts and uncles will take good care of you. They took some pictures for Tomi's portfolio; they'll be up on the website soon, alteredskin.com, if any of you are interested.