My first real piercing (i.e. gunned earlobes not included) was when I was 17. I was just finishing grade 12 of high school with one year left (Ontario had OAC/Grade 13) and I'd just gotten my black belt in Tae Kwon Do (took 3 and a half years to complete) and I wanted SOME form of jewelry before my grade 12 prom.
At A Glance Author lilfunky1 Contact lilfunky1@bme.anon IAM lilfunky1 When Five years ago Artist Gre-Gory (no longer at listed studio) Studio Abstract Arts Location Toronto, Ontario Canada After getting my earlobes gunned in grade 8, I learned that the needle is the way to go. A friend from Tae Kwon Do that I was training with gave me a website to look at "freaky weird shit that is just gross" called stile.com. From there I found most of the videos, while slightly disturbing in some sense, very interesting. I believe it was a video about someone removing a joint from their finger, that was linked to bmezine.freeq.com, but I followed it, and found the answers to all my questions.
Piercing guns are bad, I've now figured this out. I wanted to get my left helix pierced in normal "let`s be slightly cool" fashion. I had a friend, Mei, also want to get a similar piercing, so we picked a date and started off down Queen Street West.
We were looking for New Tribe, a shop that one of Mei`s friends recommended, but unknown to us that most piercing shops were on the second level and therefore did not have big signs on the ground floor, totally missed it and kept walking. We went into Abstract Arts, asked the tattoo artist about the price of "a piercing up here" (while touching our helix`s), got our quote, and kept walking. A few doors down was another shop (can't remember the name) and they quoted something higher. Next was Stainless Studios, and they had an even higher price. (Now though, Stainless is totally my studio of choice, but what can I say? I was young and stupid!) So after the long agonizing trip in the hot summer sun, we decided to go back to the first shop as it had the lowest price.
A slightly intimidating looking, but friendly as hell piercer introduced himself as "Greg" (but written Gre-gory) and looked at our ears. We both said we wanted the left upper part of the ear pierced, and Mei made me go first because she was scared (figures, she was supposed to be a nurse!) So I sit down, he marks a dot off with some sort of ink and toothpick (I gather that it was gentian violet) and I said something to the effect of "Sure, why not?" and sat back down.
I remember Greg explaining that the needle, the jewelry and any tools he used all came out of autoclave bags with indicator tape on it (looked like masking tape with parallel black lines running diagonally) and figured it was safe. I had somewhat short hair, that couldn't be tied back, and no one had any clips. So he pierced through my helix, which I remember hurting, but not that much, and Greg saying that he got hair caught in the piercing, so he had to do it again. Only problem was, I don't remember a new needle being used, but he sort of backtracked, and did it again in either the same, or a very close spot because it felt the same. Then the jewelry went in, it was closed, and it was Mei`s turn.
She basically had the same thing, but since she had clips in her hair, she didn't have to worry about it getting stuck like mine did, but she made a very definitive face when the needle went through, telling me that it really hurt her. She gets up and we're both standing at the counter/jewelry case listening to instructions on how to take care of our new respective piercings. I then remember seeing black spots everywhere, as Greg`s voice became more and more muted, and interrupted him by saying "I don't feel too good." He then I guess for the first time noticed that I was very pale, and helped me over to the waiting area, where the breeze from the open door was supposed to make me feel better. After sitting I suppose I calmed down, or got over my near-blackout so we paid our money and left.
We were instructed to get an antibacterial soap. So at the Eaton center we bought a 6 pack of Dial antibacterial soap bars, then on the subway ride home, split it so we each had 3 bars. I got home, and tried to clean as instructed, get a lot of foamy soap on your fingers, rub around the area, then turn the jewelry through to get the soap through. The first time I did that, the first FEW times were absolute hell. I didn't even know if the ring was turning or not since I didn't know how CBR`s worked. I figured I would grip the ball and move the ball back and forth, and if it didn't work, well too bad it hurt too much. Mei called me that night, and we both relived just how much it hurt to try to clean, and to do this 3-4 times a day?? Insane!
Sleeping that night was slightly painful, but nothing too unbearable. My mother saw the ring and didn't freak out, but was "disappointed" She complained that the ring was too thick and manly (it was a 14g CBR) and accused me of announcing to the world I was gay because I had only one ear pierced (even though it was NOT my right ear, not that ear piercings say who`s gay and who`s not gay!)
I had prom to go to in a few days too. I went to get my hair done, and dear lord, there needs to be a hairdressing school class where hairdressers are taught to be GENTLE around CBR`s and other jewelry in and around the ear area. Especially when they're new piercings! I think mine was about 4-5 days old (I was pierced on a Saturday, and the prom was the next Thursday) therefore anytime they caught on it, it HURT! Then they were spraying all sorts of hairspray all over my hair for this shindig, and obviously getting it ALL over my piercing. That was not a fun night.
About 6 months later, I went in for another piercing (that`s another story with another set of problems for a later date) and went back to Greg at Abstract. While I was there, I questioned why I had this lump on the back (scar tissue? keloid? To this day I'm not really sure) and he blamed it on the fact that I dyed my hair blue, which was a good enough explanation. A lot of irritants in bleach, and the hair dye as well. I was told to make a paste with epson salts and water, and put it on the lump twice a day and it should go away, it didn't really, but it helped with my new piercing!
Many moons after that, (if not exactly, then really close) a year later basically, I wanted to get matching rings on my left side. My second piercing was a 12 gauge CBR under the 14 gauge one I already had, and it looked really funny. So I went back to Abstract, back to Greg, who pulled on my piercing to make sure it didn't hurt (to make sure it was healed I suppose) then got a taper, and a 12 gauge ring out, plus this other taper-kind-of device. He wanted to see if he actually needed the taper, shoved this device into my ear, deemed it unnecessary, then basically just put the new ring through. I got charged for stretching, and new jewelry, when in all honesty it was just new jewelry, and a jewelry exchange, but I did keep the 14g ring.
Really hot summer, and hip-hop dance classes irritate helix piercings done with CBR`s and with large balls to close them with. I ended up getting band aids for every class to hold my rings in place because it literally hurt to dance and have them bounce around the way they do. Finally around Christmas of my first year of university, I went to Passage, and bought two 12g purple niobium CBR`s with small hematite beads (one for my left helix and one for my right).
This was probably the best decision I could have ever made, my first left helix went through the battering ram. Same gauge needle and jewelry (I prefer larger gauge needle to smaller gauge jewelry for cartilage piercings), then stretching it instead of re-piercing it, finally realizing that my nickel allergy is severe in the summer months, leaving me to finally buy a better quality metal. This has been a long journey, but finally I can say this helix piercing is HEALED!