When I was 16, just after I passed my GCSEs, my Mam (who is usually firmly against all body modification) allowed me to get my labret pierced. So, on results day, my best friend Hazel and I went to a small nail parlour in Darlington, called Intrigue, which also did body piercing. Hazel and I were both nervous, as neither of us had any other piercings apart from our lobes, but we both got our right labrets pierced without any pain or hassle. thought Kirtsy, the piercer there, did a good job. She gave me a bottle of solution and told me to clean my piercing twice a day with the solution on a cotton bud.We gleefully showed off our lip piercings to all of our friends, although my friend Maz (who has several modifications, including 13 piercings and about 15 tattoos) criticized us for going to Intrigue, she told us about their bad reputation and also said that Hazel's labret was pierced wrong. Soon enough, nearly all of our friends were telling us off for going to Intrigue. Although I had no problems (apart from ridiculous swelling that lasted three weeks), Hazel's lip didn't heal properly for several weeks.
At A Glance Author Sniper When Three months ago Artist Kirsty Walker Studio Intrigue Location Darlington, England My Mam said after that, I was allowed no piercings. Needless to say, I now have 6 piercings in my lobes, and I have pierced my septum and nose my self as well (although, I admit, was stupid, and I've taken them out now). On my 17th birthday, my Mam said I was now allowed any piercings that I wanted. I decided I would get snakebites. I was in town with my friend Ross the next day, who had had snakebites for years, and told him I was going to get my snakebites. He told me off and said I wasn't allowed to go to Intrigue. But Attitudes and Lord of the Rings were not open at the time, which are the only two other piercing places in Darlington. I ignored Ross (foolish mistake #1).
I went off to Intrigue on my own and told Kirsty, the only woman that works there, that I would like snakebites. She asked what I meant by snakebites, I said, the other side of my *lip* pierced (foolish mistake #2). When she asked me all of this, she was doing a manicure on a middle-aged lady who found the piercing that I wanted extremely unusual. She put down her nail file, washed her hands and put her gloves on, and then took me into the backroom. The backroom, which I had experience before, was perfectly clean and sterile. All her needles were in un-opened packets, she had surgeon gloves on. All-in-all, it seemed healthy and clean. She sat me down on the bed and put a dot under my lip. I asked her to make sure it was exactly even with my current lip piercing. She told me not to worry, and it would be even. I had a look at the dot under my lip; it was exactly even and was the right space apart from my other labret piercing. I said it was fine (foolish mistake #3) and she proceeded to pierce me. Just as she was preparing her needles, she asked 'where did you get your other lip piercing done?', I said 'I got it done here about 9 months ago'. Kirsty seemed shocked, she said 'I did it?', I nodded and she replied with 'well I can't remember your face'. I told her that I still have the card in my purse she gave me after she pierced it it. She just said to that, 'I'm going to pierce it now'. She jabbed my lip with the needle, and all I knew is that it hurt a lot more than my previous labret piercing. I could immediately feel my lip swelling up, before she had even taken the needle out. I winced a tiny bit and I could taste blood in my mouth. Not something I could remember about last time. When she put the ring through my lip (It was a 1.2mm x 10mm ring, but she described it as 'average sized' when I asked her the size of the ring) I moaned slightly from the stinging, and she laughed. She said 'it is normal for it to hurt'. And it was done. My lip looked like a blimp! She said, 'It is normal for it to swell up straight away, you'll experience some moderate swelling for a day or two'. I looked in the mirror and saw that she had not pierced it on the dot she had marked! She had, in fact, pierced it above the dot and on the line of my lip tissue. I yelped, 'this isn't even!' and she told me that it was even, and the swelling was distorting it. I believed her (foolish mistake #4) although I wasn't entirely convinced.
When I left the room and went into the main lobby, I handed over a £20 note and she told me about the aftercare. She gave me a *different* bottle of solution and said that if it gets infected, but some Savlon cream on it. I wasn't completely satisfied, but I have absolutely no balls at all, and I moodily left the place, whilst Kirsty went back to filing that middle-aged lady's nails. I met up with my boyfriend about 5 minutes later. James said my lip piercing looked disgusting, and wouldn't kiss me. It's ok, I didn't want him to, my lip was stinging like mad and I couldn't talk properly. Although I had no problems with kissing when I got my first lip piercing.
For the next three days, I had problems with my lip. It was extremely crusty, oozing with puss constantly and the swelling meant I couldn't even get a fork in my mouth. It even hurt to talk for christ's sake! I convinced myself it was just because I'm the type of person that reacts to everything. So I bought some Savlon cream and kept applying it to my lip. James kept on trying to persuade me to take out the ring, but I just ignored him. After 5 days of having the ring in my lip, I was getting fed up. All my friends at college said the piercing was wrong, and wonky. A few people said it would migrate and pop out of my lip if I left it. I went to speak to an acquaintance, who is qualified to do all soughts of piercings, he just doesn't have a licence. He gave me a lot of alcohol wipes for it, and advised me to take it out and said it would probably migrate within a month. He also said it was stupid she told me to put Savlon cream on it, and you should never ever put a cream on a healing or infected piercing. I then went to a different piercing shop and asked for advice. The lady there wasn't very helpful. She just said that it would migrate and if I left it, I would be left with a 'permanent disfigurement'. I left that piercing place, and took the ring out in the middle of the street with the help of my friend Pete, who has labret piercings. He said I should go back and complain to Intrigue. So Pete and Sarah took me back there, and I explained to Kirsty what was wrong with the piercing, what I had been told by two other professional piercers. Instead of offering me my money back, or a re-piercing, she appeared to get slightly confrontational and offended. She explained that it was not her responsibility, she did a performed 'lip' piercing, not a 'labret' piercing, because I asked for that, and they are completely different things... apparently. I thought to myself, jeez if I had asked for it completely even with my other piercing, she would have used her head. What shocked me the most, is that she said I could not prove that she did the piercing. I was enraged, so I left the shop. I had lost £20, I had a mis-shaped lip and I was extremely pissed-off.
Pete said that she should have given me a form to sign before she pierced me, to say that she did the piercing and that she would not be held responsible for anything that went wrong. I didn't get one of them forms, and neither did Hazel the previous time we got pierced there.
Now, three months later, the disfigurement is still apparent in my lips. I used to have beautiful lips, but now they are un-even and the left side is puffier from the swollen scar tissue. I know a lot of people with piercings. I know a lot of people who have had to take them out after bad experiences at Intrigue. This experience hasn't put me off piercings. It's just put me off Intrigue. I'm going to get my septum and snakebites pierced next week at the Metal Guru in Stockton, which I've heard is a fantastic place. I've not heard a bad thing about the place, and I know plenty of people with piercings from there. I can't wait!
I think now, I wish I had listened to my friends. And my advice is, always look-up a place's reputation before you get pierced there. AND LISTEN TO YOUR FRIENDS!! If they have had bad experiences at a place which is known for crap piercings, listen to them!