Hi, my name is Francesco, and I am a 31 year old male. I have wanted a navel piercing for the longest time, at least 6 months or so. I have always thought they look sexy on girls and they are quite rare on men, so I thought it would be a unique and original piercing for me to get. I seriously thought about it for the past 3 weeks, and called the shop (Absolute Tattoo) twice to talk about it and get pricing. A navel piercing costs $55, including the jewelry. I thought that sounded like a good price, and some friends who have lots of tattoos and piercings said it was fair.
At A Glance Author Francesco Sanfilippo Contact francesco@neurodesign.com When It just happened Artist Nick Fish Studio Absolute Tattoo Location San Diego, CA, USA Well, four days ago I decided it was time. I went to the shop right after work and said I wanted a navel piercing. The piercer, Nick Fish, is also a very good tattoo artist and he was busy finishing a tattoo when I arrived, so I had to wait for 20 minutes or so. When he was done, he went in to the piercing room and prepared it. He then came out and asked if I had chosen jewelry from their selection. I had a choice of the standard 14 gauge silver ring or barbell, or a curved barbell with blue balls, or a curved barbell with black and white swirled balls. I chose the black/white one because it looked very unique and I had never seen a guy with that type of navel piercing before.
We went into the room and I told Nick I was nervous and it was my first piercing. He said "it's my first one too!" and laughed. Hahaha. At least he had a good sense of humor. He was a really nice guy and was very casual about the whole thing, comforting me and saying how the navel piercing is very fast and almost painless. I felt better as I took off my shirt and he rubbed iodine on my navel. He then marked two dots where the piercing would be and asked me to check it in the mirror. It looked straight to me, so I said "let's do it!" He asked me to lay down, and he then said I would feel a small pinch as he clamped my skin. It didn't hurt at all, just felt like a pinch. He then said take a few deep breaths, and he started talking about something. I was gripping the side of the bed because I knew it was going to happen any second. On my third breath, I felt a sharp sensation and in about 5 seconds it was over. The needle was in me. He said he would now run the ba rbell through and put the cap on. That was the only part that felt strange was when he pulled the needle through and inserted the barbell. In about 30 seconds it was done and he asked me to stand up. I expected to see blood, but I did not shed even a drop! It was only as painful as getting a shot at the doctor's office...I was so nervous about nothing!
The piercing looked great and I thanked him for a clean, pleasant, and relatively painless experience. I put my shirt back on and we went out to the counter. I paid and he gave me a nice informational sheet on how to care for my piercing.
I have had it for 4 days now. Nick warned me that it may scab and get crusty, but so far, my skin around the piercing has been very clean and normal, and has not crusted or bled or even been sore at all. It's amazing how easy this was. I have been cleaning it twice a day with antibacterial soap, once in the morning when I shower, and once when I get home from work. Nick said I could come back in a few weeks to change the jewelry if I wanted to choose something else. I have gotten LOTS of compliments from everyone who has seen my piercing so far, so I may just stick with my jewelry. Girls say its sexy, and guys say its cool...so I'm very happy with it!
I would definitely go back to see Nick if I wanted another one. Because of my job, I cannot get any facial piercings, otherwise I would get an eyebrow and lip piercing.
Nick is also a great tattoo artist and I plan on returning to see him in a month or so to get a bio mech tattoo of a bio port on my back. I also want a Chinese dragon on my shoulder. We'll see what else I get from there.
Write me if you have any questions! You can see a picture of my piercing on my website at www.neurodesign.com