I had been searching the BME website for a couple of months trying to get a decent idea of what a good surface piercing entailed. After studying up on the pros and cons I decided to go for it and have my cleavage pierced.
At A Glance Author babyjo Contact babyjo@bme.anon When Five years ago Artist some tweaked out piercing wannabe Studio didn't have a name yet Location denver I searched my local piercing shops and was disappointed to find that many trained piercers would not do surface piercings. They just couldn't guarantee the quality and could not guarantee the end result. Five years ago it seemed that surface piercings were unpracticed and very rarely performed in Denver.
After some perseverance and, for me, a great big risk, I found a brand new shop down the street from where I lived that eagerly wanted to fulfill my request, a little too eagerly in looking back. I set an appointment on a Wednesday, later in the evening, so I could make it in easily after work. I was told to wear a button down shirt or something easily accessing my cleavage area. I excitedly arrived at the shop fifteen minutes early so I could give myself enough time to prepare, get comfortable with my piercer and my new surroundings. While waiting for my piercer to finish with another customer, I flipped through the portfolios and looked through the flash art sitting on the small table in the waiting area, trying to get an idea of what kind of experience my piercer had. I was curious to see if he had done any other surface piercings and what they looked like. I noticed that there were not any pictures of previous surface piercings, and the majority of his pictures were only of standard tongue and ear piercings. I didn't think too much of it knowing that the other shops I had spoken to had refused my request due to the fact that surface piercings were rare and pretty much unheard of. I figured he was new at surface piercings, but was trained and knew what he was doing. That is what he told me when we spoke over the phone a week or so earlier.
My piercer greeted me with a hurried smile and invited me in to sit in the chair. From the get go the vibe told me he wasn't quite sure what he was doing, however, I wanted the piercing so badly that I went along with it anyway. He used two clamps on my chest that kept slipping. They slipped so often that the capillaries in my chest burst and caused severe bruising. Once he was able to get the clamps to stay he then began to slowly pierce my sensitive skin with a straight 12g barbell. The only sensation I felt was the needle tearing through my chest. The pain was not great during the piercing because my adrenaline took over. Excitement rushed through my whole entire body. Once he screwed the ball on the top of the jewelry he quickly took a picture, advised me to cleanse my fresh wound with sea salt and Bactine, and sent me on my way. He set no follow-up appointment and I found out soon after the phone number on his business card had been disconnected.
Over the next few days I could tell that the piercing was not healing properly. It was severely bruised, very red, and had an unusual discharge. The jewelry was sitting very sallow underneath the skin surface. I attempted to contact my original piercer and was told that he was let go and no longer worked at the shop. Worried about the condition of my skin, I went to another piercing shop that I trusted and was advised that I would have to remove the jewelry and let it heal. The piercing was extremely infected and the jewelry was being rejected and was rapidly forcing itself out of my body. I ended up removing the piercing without the opportunity of showing the results to the inexperienced piercer or voicing discern with his misleading service.
I still have two small scars from the entrance and exit point that are discolored and quite obvious in a low cut top.
I still have yet to attempt another surface piercing. I can guarantee if there is another attempt, the shop and artist I use will be well researched and come very well recommended. I will also listen to my gut and not go ahead with something I don't feel comfortable with.
My advice to anyone planning on a piercing, tattoo, or other body modification, please, please, please research the shop and the artist before jumping into something that could cause additional pain, unwanted scarring, and disappointment. Also, I strongly recommend that you trust your instinct. If something doesn't feel comfortable or the vibe isn't right, by all means reschedule, find another shop or wait a little longer