Well, I'd do the usual introduction ("I have been into piercings for..") but I won't.
At A Glance Author Cancer Contact snookychook@msn.com IAM cancer When A week ago Artist His Wife (first) - then Tim (fixing it up) Studio Hairhouse Warehouse Location Adelaide, South Australia This piercing was a 15th birthday present which I begged my mother for. I had my lip pierced on the other side for a couple of months, but really wanted to complete my snakebites plan. Anyway, on to the stabbing.
After a sleepless night of "Oh my god, birthday tomorrow," (because I still do that) mum, my friend and I traveled down to Hairhouse Warehouse where my piercer works.
We walked in and- uh oh. My piercer wasn't in that day. Instead, his much more inexperienced wife was. As I didn't know she was that inexperienced at the time and didn't want to wait another day (stupid.) I just went along with it.
Now here's the part I keep thinking about.
I asked her to make it as in-line as she could, because I am really annoying and picky like that. So she marked it just on my lip line. (Basically on the red part of my lip - not even close to being where my other one is) I didn't want to be a pain, but I just had to ask her to re-mark it. She did, and it was basically in the center. I asked her to mark it one more time, and she got it where I thought- was perfect.
So on to the piercing. She changed gloves, and then uh grabbed a dirty rail and went back to opening clean things. I should have said something, but I know her husband so you know awkward.
She clamped up my lip and grabbed the needle. As she pierced it, she somehow did it diagonal and very slowly - so the piercing actually HURT. As in, my eyes were tearing up. The threading of the jewelry was worse. She went to put the ball on and DROPPED it. I mean every piercer does this, but this just added to the other things. She asked me to look in the mirror.
Oh my god it was hideous.
She somehow managed to miss the dot and the fact that it was DIAGONAL and rubbing horridly against my teeth. I wanted to cry. My birthday present wasn't what I wanted it to be at all. She assured me it was because of the swelling that it was sitting diagonal. What swelling? My body doesn't swell with piercings until at least 3-4 days after. She told me to come back immediately if I didn't like it later on. I didn't like it at that MINUTE. But I paid and left anyway.
So, I left the shop and hid my lip my entire birthday. I hated it so much. It was hideous, crooked and just a pain to talk with as it rubbed badly and latched onto my teeth. And what's worse, I now realize she mixed the bars up. I asked her to put a bar in my old piercing, and she somehow managed to put the swelling bar in my old lip piercing, and a short one in my newer one. Oh wasn't that fun.
So I cried and whined to my mum, who said she'd take me to see Tim my regular piercer the day after. We got there, and he and his wife (I seriously can't remember her name... I think they called her Shane probably short for something?) were standing there talking to each other. I looked at mum in a "Oh god she's there too" way. But by the time I went to turn around, Tim already saw me and waved. Ugh. So we walked up there, and Shane(?) asked me immediately "is it okay? Do you like it? Blaaaah." All I could say was "I think it was pierced diagonal. Could you do it again, Tim?" I felt horrible for making her feel bad (if I did make her feel bad) but it just wasn't what I wanted. He took out the bar and told me to come back in an hour (while he autoclaved the bar and such). A long, long hour later, he re-pierced my lip just above the old hole. He recommended waiting a few days before getting it re-done, but I just couldn't wait any longer. It hurt a little more than it should have, but I was happy.
Please, trust your piercer and when something goes on that you don't like, speak up. Don't just sulk all day like me because you got a botched job and you were too shy to ask for a refund. At least Tim did it for free. I still have the same bars in (the wrong sizes) as I really don't like changing jewelry myself. I am getting shorter ones soon, as these bars are just annoying me.