I knew today was the day. I had been waiting for ages and I had the day off school, so I went with two friends to Elizabeth Street. We walked down the stairs, fucking steep stairs they are, and into the basement/studio. I could hear the tattoo needle, I could smell disinfectant, and it was going to happen.
At A Glance Author madeleine Contact princess_ponka@hotmail.com When It just happened Artist Phoebe Studio Peril Underground Location Melbourne We wandered around a bit looking at flash, and clothes and shit, then I gathered up the courage to ask for help. The tattooist, I don't know his name, called Phoebe the piercer, over to talk to me. I said I wanted my Madison done and she said yeah okay.
We went into the little piercing room and she talked to me about what she was going to do, and the equipment and sterilisation, and what she was going to use for the piercing. I decided on P.T.F.E, it cost a bit more but it did look a lot gentler than the surgical steel.
She started setting up and I watched her, I reckon she changed her gloves like 50 times. I sat down and she showed me the pen. While she took her measurements, I stood up, my legs were fucking shaking. I wasn't scared; I was so excited I could hardly speak.
When she put the clamps on it hurt a bit, but it was better than I expected. I had to be re-clamped a couple of times because she wasn't happy with the position. We had previously decided that it would be just underneath where my collar bones met, right in the middle, horizontal of course. I chose 16mm across, and pretty little silver ball things for the ends. I think once it heals I will put little dice or snooker balls or something, and I can trim the length of the bar if I want.
I was asked to breathe, and Phoebe tried to talk about other stuff like bands and music and how she got into piercing. When I breathed out, she stuck the needle in. It felt like she hesitated on the exit bit, because there was a bit of pulling. I thought it felt a bit tight but the catheter was still in, and she mentioned something about self threading but I was too filled with adrenaline to hear her. It felt so amazing. Better than sex.
Next were the ball things. The one on my left side, where she stuck it first, went on just fine, it was all good, but the other ball just would not go on. I couldn't see any blood but Nit (friend) said there was a bit, just from the right side. Phoebe finally got the little bastard on and it all looked pretty and nice.
After all that, I stood up and we all looked at it. It was perfect. She took photos and asked me if I would come and do a photo shoot for her with some other people that had surface stuff done. She was having a corset done in the next week, so I said I'd think about coming along.
She explained about aftercare and gave me a sheet. She thought Saline (1 cup warm water, 1 teaspoon rock salt) would be the best, or even that piercing aftercare solution, or medicated soap like Sapoderm, and I had to clean it 3 times a day.
It has been two days and I have been washing it 4 times a day, because it is still bleeding and weeping a bit. I tried the aftercare solution from the chemist and it gave me a fucking rash (sensitive skin) so I'll stick to the saline. It looks a little bit crooked, higher up on the right side, but it could just be swelling. I have to go back and see her in 3 weeks or after it has healed. It is so itchy, but I will not scratch!
I definitely will go back and have more surface piercing done, I am so in love! All up it cost $120 AUD but it was worth it. I would definitely recommend Phoebe to everyone, her technique is remarkable and she made me feel so comfortable and relaxed, even though she was essentially, stabling me in the neck. I am hoping it will heal soon because I can't stop touching it! It's so fun to play with. I haven't told my parents yet, and I don't intend to. I have been wearing tops that cover it up, and necklaces are good too. It isn't so good when it gets caught on things, but I have had worse pain. It looks bad when it starts bleeding too. Most of my friends think its yucky looking, but a few of them asked if they could touch it. Someone even asked me if they could lick it, just a few hours after it had been done. I think it is beautiful.