The Preamble:
At A Glance Author last_hour Contact last_hour@bme.anon IAM last_hour When It just happened Artist i wish i could remember his name... Studio Braindrops Location Haight/Ashbury in SF, CA I hadn't had any holes punched in me for almost eight years. During that time, I thought about getting quite a few different piercings done. As it worked out, there were reasons that I wound up not going through with each and every one. Everything from not being comfortable with the local shops to having too many things going on to deal with aftercare. Looking back on it, those were all good choices. However, after making the decision six months ago to get tattooed, I started reading BME again and it rekindled my interest in a few of the piercings that I'd never gotten around to. This time, the reasons not to were gone for most of the piercings I'd thought about. One of the first on the list were simple, but large diameter lobe piercings.
I've never really liked the look of rings when I thought about getting my ears pierced. CBRs are great and all, but I didn't like the idea of them in my ears. Thankfully, since the last time I was in a piercing studio, someone had the sense to start making flesh tunnels and eyelets in smaller gauges. That plus the fact that I'm no longer wearing a motorcycle helmet every day while commuting (well, that and looking at the jewelry available these days) sealed the deal, It was finally time to get a set of lobe piercings.
Having made the decision, I called around to a few studios and visited a few others to see how large an initial piercing could be done. Sadly, I wasn't able to find a studio willing to go larger than 6ga. I don't know where people are getting their lobes pierced at 4/2ga, dermal punched or scalped, as none of the well known places in the NorCal Bay Area I called would do it. Oh well. Just means a few more stretches to get to where I want to be. Incidentally, the end goal is somewhere between 00ga to 1/2".
The Piercing:
I love getting two different answers when I ask the same question. Turns out, Braindrops in SF (the shop on Haight) was more than happy to pierce (at 8ga) and taper my ears to 4ga. It took me abut 30 seconds to pick out a pair of red faced 4ga pyrex plugs. We briefly discussed how large I was thinking about going, and then it was back into the piercing room. Having been to the dentist just two days before, I have to say that I think the Braindrops piercing room was quite possibly a) cleaner and b) set up much better so that the piercer could go about his/her business almost without having to think about Universal Precautions.
We spent maybe 15 minutes or so getting my ears marked up right, and used a set of 18g CBRs to just eyeball the layout. Turns out, my ears are a bit more uneven than I though. I know my sunglasses don't sit level, but I didn't know it was that bad. However, with a little bit of work we were able to get the marks about as level as humanly possible. The rest of the procedure went about like this.
Relax.
Breathe.
Deep breath in, pierce left lobe on exhale.
Deep breath in, taper left lobe on exhale.
Jewelry in.
Repeat on the right side.
After spending so long staring right at the piercer while he marked my ears, and since there really wasn't anything for me to see, I just laid on the table with my eyes closed the whole time. I tend to relax and breathe better that way anyway
I'm only guessing here, but from start to finish, it took easily less than a minute per ear. Pain wise, it was a pretty minor deal. I think my trip to the dentist earlier in the week had a couple of moments that were actually a touch worse. The piercing was the usual sharp sensation, and then the taper (which was new for me) was more of a blunt, uncomfortable sort of pressure. It wasn't even enough to elicit an involuntary flinch.
Afterward:
Hopped up off the table, took a quick look and gave the piercer a thumbs up. Tipped ($10), Paid ($88 and change), got the brief rundown on aftercare and took off. My ears were kinda tingly/tender/burny for the rest of the evening, but woke up the next morning and barely even knew the plugs were there.
That was Friday afternoon. Its Sunday evening now. There have been a few spots of blood (remarkably little for such a large hole, actually) upon waking up in the morning since I tend to sleep on my side, but thats it. I've banged them a few times, but nothing major. Aftercare as been just three sea salt soaks a day plus a zinc supplement and there isn't the slightest sign of infection, and no swelling. A couple more weeks of the same, and I'll be set. Then comes the wait before starting to stretch. I'll admit that I'm already oggling jewelry...
Finally, I'd go so far as to recommend Braindrops to anyone in the SF Bay Area. There are at least half a dozen if not more shops within blocks of my house, and at least 20 within a 1/2 hour drive. To top it off, there are half a dozen shops within a stones throw of Braindrops on Haight. That said, it was worth the drive, and the walk. The environment in the shop was great, the piercer (whose name I forget) was extremely attentive, helpful and professional. The 'cooler than thou' vibe present in so many piercing and tattoo studios was conspicuously absent. I would definitely go back.