I've always had an obsession with jewelry, so naturally, having piercings and such has interested me. I had my ears double pierced and my tragus pierced, but it wasn't enough. I thought about an eyebrow piercing or something of the sort, but well, it's just too common and overdone, especially around my campus. I wasn't into doing anything else on the front of my face, especially knowing that i'd just have to take it out soon for internships and such for my major.
At A Glance Author Aquilablue9 Contact Aquilablue9@bme.anon When Six months ago Studio On The Edge Location Bowling Green, Ohio Then I remembered seeing the oddest piercing when I was in London, England. I was in Camden, which is a very rough, alternative section of London. I'm talking people snorting crack on the banks by the river, and bags of weed being sold on the tables in this open market area. There was this girl who had pierced the side of her face, just beside her tragus. Over there, they refer to it as a "steel sideburn". That was the piercing of choice... I had to have it.
I went to On The Edge, an excellent piercing studio in Bowling Green, Ohio. It was a last minute decision to actually go through with it on a Friday night, before heading out to some parties off campus. I walked into the studio, explained to them what exactly it was that i wanted, and they told me that they had never done it before, but if I'm alright with it, they'd love to add it to their portfolio. Trusting them, I agreed, and off we went to one of the rooms where they prep'd me for the piercing. Two of my friends came with me, and the employees came back to watch since they'd never seen it done before.
The procedure was actually very simple. They made the marks and made sure i liked the placement, then clamped the area of skin, and told me on 3, they were going to put the needle through. Since they've done all of my other piercings, I was well aware that they go through a little before 3, so I exhaled really hard after 2. The needle slid through with ease, and then they followed it with a slightly bent 14 gauge 1" bar, not knowing how much it would swell. I barely even had a drop of blood. Content with the piercing, I tipped the piercer, and headed out. I was really surprised that it didn't hurt that bad, until I walked outside and the cold air hit it, then it stung a little. Once we got back to the dorms, I changed, went over to a friends room, where everyone admired the piercing and said how nuts I was. I love hearing that. We pregamed a little, then headed out to some parties, where many people commented on how unusual of a piercing it was. Perfect.
The first night was rough, because i usually sleep on the right side, which is the side my piercing is on. After 3-4 days though, it was fine sleeping on it, and I had no problems.
At first I wasn't overly thrilled with it, because the bar was way too long for the piercing. After a few days went by, and there wasn't any swelling, I headed back to On The Edge, where they bent a surface bar for me to put in. It looked absolutely perfect now, and I couldn't be happier.
It's still amusing, when I go to parties, especially those not on BGSU's campus, people are always like "Oh my gosh, is that through your face??? how bad did that hurt!!!" I enjoy it when people get excited over it, and I'm glad that it's not a common piercing that no one bothers acknowledging. Also, if my hair is down and pulled forward a bit, its easy to hide the piercing without anyone seeing it (job interviews). From the front, it is barely even noticable.
I haven't had any problems with the piercing at all, and no signs of rejection. For the first month following the piercing, I filled a shot glass with the sea salt mixture, put it on the piercing for five minutes or so, and made sure to clean the outside of it with SoftSoap. Now I just make sure that it says clean, and rinse it with sea salt about once a week. Never had any sign of infection on it, even after being ripped a little bit when it got stuck on part of a crocheted blanket.
If you're going to get this piercing, I definetely recommend putting a piercing staple in. Also, if you're looking for ends, a great place to check is Hot Topic, where they have "build your own" piercings, and they have a ton of ends. Currently, I have these small stainless steel stars. Super cute.