At A Glance Author lou Contact leelo0@blue-ball.com IAM lou Artist Paul Studio 360 Blues & Tattoos Location Arlington, TX After getting my madison pierced, I became obsessed with the idea of surface piercings.
I was having a bad night. Things just basically built up inside and I needed to let off a lot of steam. James and I went up to the tattoo/piercing studio we visit frequently and met our friend Julie. Julie had just gotten a necklace project done and had four surface bars left over. It was a slow night, and our piercer, Paul, said that he was bored. We tossed around several ideas to aleviate the boredom. He wanted to just practice doing more surface piercings, and James and I happened to be there and were willing to be his pin cushions.
After James got his wrist pierced, I had to think of something to get done. Some ideas were thrown in the air. I finally decided to get two cleavage piercings in the shape of a 'V'.
I sat down in the blue dentist chair and filled out the necessary paperwork. Paul cold sterilized the surface bars. (They were already autoclaved). He then measured, marked, remeasured, and remarked my cleavage to make sure that the placement was straight.
Then there was about an hour wait because some guy came in wanting to get his and his daughter's tongues pierced. Paul figured that it would take less time for him to pierce their tongues than to get my surface piercings done and I agreed. The guy started to fill out the paperwork and looked for the I.D.s. He couldn't find his daughter's I.D. so he went out to his car to look for it. We figured it would just be a few minutes, but he didn't come back in for about an hour.
Anyway, after the wait, I got back in the chair and Paul took a couple more looks to make sure everything was straight. Then he layed me back and took the needle out of its packaging. That was when the nervousness set in. No matter how many piercings or tattoos I have, I still get nervous when I see the needle being taken out of the packaging. He then leaned over me and asked if I was ready, which I was. I took in a deep breath and felt the needle go through. I let out the deep breath and flinched a little when the needle exited. Relief finally swept over my body. The follow through with the jewelry was needless to say painless.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Paul took the second needle out of the packaging. Another feeling of nervousness swept through. Even though I knew what to expect, my hands were still sweating. I sat on my hands to keep from fidgeting too much. Paul leaned over me again and I took in another deep breath. The needle went through and again, I let out the deep breath and flinched upon its exit. The follow through of the jewelry was yet again, painless.
I layed there for a few seconds to gather myself and then sat up and looked in the mirror. I fell in love with them! They looked fabulous! I was asked how it felt. I replied back with "pretty much just a pinch and then some pressure". It was a lot less painless than my madison getting pierced. Paul then had to show off the piercings. I told him that I should start charging and we both grinned. The adrenaline was pumping hard through my veins. I could run a marathon and not be out of breath.
It's been almost a week and they seem to be doing very well. The right side is a little tender, but nothing out of the ordinary. I've been cleaning with ProVon antimicrobial soap in the shower and the occassional sea salt soak. I just need to be careful of what i wear and how I sleep. I have been wearing mostly button up shirts or really loose t-shirts so the bars don't get caught on the shirt, and when I sleep, I have to make sure I sleep on my back. Its proven to be a task in taking care of, but I don't mind. It just gives me more experience and I'm able to share my story with others.
The reactions I've received when people see them alone makes the all worth the pain. Surface piercings, by far, are my favorite. I plan on getting more surface work done.
In the end, the pain and process of healing is totally worth it. The feeling for the needle going under my skin gives me a huge adrenaline rush and encourages me to explore other types of modification. Paul is going to do some cutting for me on my ankle soon. I'm excited about that. I hope that this gives a little bit of helpful information on these types of piercings.