This whole obsession started a while ago. Not long after getting my navel pierced I decided I wanted to have more to go with it, it looked all lonely (and too common...) Also, a need to have needles and piercings began. I'd always thought blood was beautiful. So I would "accidently" cut myself, just to see the blood, and I'd feel whole until the cuts were healed.
At A Glance Author Steph Contact Steph@bme.anon When A week ago Artist David Studio Absoloutions Location Christchurch, New Zealand Pieces of metal I get to see whenever I look in the mirror that remind me of something beautiful (trust). I don't trust people so easily, having a trust with a complete stranger that is about to push a needle through you feels amazing. I've also never felt right, my piercings help to balance me out and to give me happiness inside myself.
One year later I'd decided to get two inverse navels done, each slightly to the side. While looking around on BME (I luv ya! Thanks for everything you are.) I found a picture of a standard and a horizontal navel. It was sooo cute, it was done with a straight barbell, so the bar was showing through the skin a little, but it looked perfect to me.
So I read up on it, found out that it would probably reject, being a surface piercing, then I found out about surface bars, the idea of a staple put me off a little, not sure why. I gave up on the idea.
In my city there are hardly any reliable piercing studios. 3 at most. Only one of them would do surface bars. I was happy to be pierced there, the guys there are really great.
6 months later.... I got a monroe piercing. It's healing great. It's healing gave me the confidence to just go and get a horizontal navel, despite risks of surface piercings. A month later, my birthday, started reading about surface piercings again. Everything was sweet, the day after my birthday I was ready to go get pierced. I had convinced my mother to get her nose pierced at the same time, something she'd been wanting for a long time, so I said I'd pay for her. I didn't even realise, but it was Sunday. Absoloutions wouldn't be open untill Tuesday, I had the sudden urge to go to another studio and get the two diagonal piercings instead, I was so upset, I was all hyped and ready.
I waited until Tuesday. Absoloutions is great, they're so friendly and happy. I asked about the piercing, filled out the forms and went into the back room. He marked just below my navel, took a while, but it was perfect. Mum had backed out of her nose piercing.
The actual piercing took a while, it was done freehand, and nobody I talk to understands what I mean (some try to tell me that piercings done without clamps are destined to be really painful and bleed a lot, Suuure, oookay then..)
I was asked to take a deep breath, the needle went through, I didn't feel that bit at all, I was just about to sit up and watch the jewellery being put in, but he asked me to take another breath, he pushed the needle a bit further. I felt it that time. Then again, the third time I was hoping like hell that it was all the way through. I sat up and looked, no blood at all, and even with a needle in there it was cute. The jewellery was put in, and a patch was put over it, because it's supposed to bleed a lot over the first few hours. It never bled a single drop.
The piercing was never red, didn't hurt and looked very happy with it's new home. Up until yesterday morning, one week after. There were a few crusties around the left entrance, and it was a bit red. No big deal, it's doing great.
It's a beautiful piercing, and I've only had one bad comment, one girl repeatedly told me how incredibly disgusting I am. (Don't ya love that?)
The healing has restricted clothes I can wear slightly, and probably will when it's healed anyway. Clothes that sit above my hips (Which I hate anyway)
I clean it with sea salt soaks twice a day. They're great. I just have a cup of hot water and salt disolved, I hold the cup upsidedown over my navel, the suction holds it on.
I have never seen another horizontal navel in real life.
Piercings are an art to me, I cannot draw, I cannot sing, I cannot play an instrument memorably well. My art is something that will come with me anywhere I go, if I'm happy or if I'm sad, my piercings will stay the same and tell the world about me, without words.