During my sixteenth birthday, I asked my mother if I could get a cartilage piercing. However, according to her, other people would think I was a rebel if they saw me with such a piercing, so the answer was an indisputable No. My mom made no sense. Two years later, I was off to college and had turned eighteen. I decided, since I was eighteen and did not need parental permission, I'd just get one without telling my mother beforehand. I don't quite recommend this though...
At A Glance Author anonymous Contact anonymous@bme.anon When A month ago Artist Jason Studio Bulldogs Location San Jose, CA THE STUDIO
I went to Jason who worked at Bulldogs located in San Jose, CA. They have a deal, 3 piercings for $100, going on right now; it will save you lots of money if you want multiple piercings and the three piercings can be shared with your friends. When I first met him, I learned that he had almost every possible pierced body part pierced one time or another, which showed me that he had experience and knew what he was doing. For those considering a cartilage piercings, avoid piercing guns because the sterility of piercing guns is questionable and the pressure applied to the cartilage does no good. Mall piercers mostly receive two weeks training, while a professional body piercer goes through two or three years of training. So the extra ten bucks is worth it if you want your piercing to heal as fast and painless as possible.
THE PROCESS
Jason recommended a 14-gauge captive bead ring for me. He put on new gloves. He cleaned my left ear. He asked me whether I wanted my piercing to come out from the side or the back of my ear; I chose to have it come out from the side. He marked my ear and checked that the placement was good with me. He had me lay on my right side. As I held onto the side of the table (I recommend holding onto something; it will help you deal with the pain and not move as much), he pierced my cartilage with a new, sterile needle. I did not hear the crunch, probably because I was more fixated on the pain I would experience. As he slid the needle out, the jewelry following the needle slid into the hole. He then closed the ring with the bead. During the piercing process, I was feeling a very sharp intense feeling in my ear. Afterwards, it bled a little and stung for awhile.
MAINTENANCE
All you will need is saline solution for contacts (without thimerosal), sea salts, and Dial hand soap pump. Always wash your hands before touching your piercing. Don't play with it for this will agitate your ear. Avoid over-cleaning; this will dry out your ear and also agitate your ear.
For the first three days, I soaked a cotton swab with saline solution and cleaned off the crusties; I did that two or three times a day. Also, in the morning I would dissolve ¼ teaspoon of sea salt into 1 cup of warm water and dunk my ear into the cup for ten minutes. This helps the healing process and alleviates the pain. Afterwards, I rinsed my ear with the saline solution. At night, during my shower, I'd let the fresh running water wash away any remaining shampoo and dissolve the crusties from the piercing. Then, I'd lather the Dial hand soap onto and around my piercing and wash the soap away. I'd repeat the lathering of soap onto my piercing, but then I'd rotate the ring twice to let the soap clean the inside. One minute later, I'd rinse my piercing again and rotate it ten times to ensure that the soap is completely gone. Let this be the last thing you do in the shower.
After the three days, I'd cleaned my piercing with the cotton swab and saline solution only when necessary, meaning when it was crusty. Three weeks after the piercing, I stopped dunking my ear into sea salt water due to laziness. I was told after a month after the piercing, I am to clean my piercing with soap once every three days. The total healing process isn't done until a year later.
The slight pain I experienced was definitely worth it. My ear has been healing very well. It's been a month and I barely feel it anymore. You will definitely want to research beforehand, so you will know what you're getting yourself into. Also, check out a couple of local piercing studios. Don't settle for one just because they offer a cheaper price; make sure it's a clean place.
To anyone around the Bay Area, I definitely recommend Jason from Bulldogs. For the first couple of days, I was not quite sure what to do or how to react to my piercing. So, I just gave him a call or had him check it out in person. He explained that I didn't need to worry, that swelling and throbbing is expected, and repeated what I needed to do.