At A Glance Author Bondage-Kit Contact maygin_nothing@hotmail.com IAM Bondage-Kit When A week ago Artist BJ Studio Soul Survivors Location Winnipeg For the longest time now I've had three conch piercings, two rings and one barbell. Ever since I got the third one done I've meant to get another. Not for symmetrical reasons, but rather just my love of the piercing. Everything about the piercing just seems to strike me with this magnificence; the rings look big and clunky and hug your ear, it tends to hide away in the curve, and looks just beautiful, even the amount of pain in the procedure itself is perfect. Most of all I'm drawn to conch piercings because the first one I had done hurt like hell and I silently swore I'd never get another... of course that didn't last long.
I've made the appointment for my fourth conch more than once. Each time I always decided on another piercing that was more 'exciting' than something in my ears. Finally something clicked and I made the one that would stick. It was for Friday, last Friday to be exact, 3pm at Soul Survivors. I had no idea how I would get there, be it a friend, the bus, or my mother, but you could be sure that I would be there to get my piercing.
I used the old downsizing excuse on my mom, telling her that I had to get a different bar for my tongue and my lip ring changed to a labret. It wasn't a total lie, I just seemed to leave out the matter of a new piercing. Easy as pie, she bought it (thanks to the lip rings, which she hates with a passion), and I didn't have to worry about the bus schedule or my friends falling through on me.
Thursday being payday, I figured it best to put away my money for the next day so I wouldn't accidentally spend it. Since I usually get a bit of a discount I put away $20 for the conch, $40 for the labret stud, and another $20 for the septum retainer I had picked up earlier that week. Best to have the cash separate and pretend it never existed in the first place, that way it doesn't phase me on how much I spend on my mods.
Friday morning I had to pay a few bills so we left fairly early. Up until about 2pm I wasn't sure if my appointment was for 3 or 2:30, but I went with my gut and waited it out until about quarter to. When we actually reached Osbourne I wasn't too worried about the appointment and we actually got a close parking spot so it wasn't that bad.
When I walked into Soul Survivors the counter girl, Amanda, handed me the forms to fill out. I didn't even bother sitting down to will them out, just held them in the clip board and sort of paced back and forth. I then quickly handed over my identification (I swear they probably have it memorized by now), and was told that my piercer, BJ, would be ready for me in no time.
I turned down the comfy wicker furniture in the waiting room once more and flipped through the tattoo flash rack instead. I didn't even get through the first section when BJ popped his head out of the room and asked if I was all ready to come in. I commented on how quickly he had set up as I hurried into the room. BJ lowered the chair and I sat down eagerly. There was the usual small talk, how was Christmas, and how was business for the day...the usual. I asked if it would be okay for him to change my lip, he said it wouldn't be a problem and fixed me up with a stud in no time.
Once ready for my conch, BJ inquired as to which ear I was getting pierced, I said right as I only have a single conch in that one. I pulled my hair back and let BJ take a look and decide where the placement would be best. He told me that he was going to position it above the existing one using a slightly larger ring so it would hang at the same angel and still hug my ear. I didn't protest, and never do, after all he's the piercer, not me and hasn't disappointed me yet. I felt him play around with the ring a bit and then I felt the clamps.
Deep breath as usual, he said. There was no counting to three or any real warning before the needle other than those words. I think that maybe he's noticed that I don't really follow the 'one, two, breath' method anyway. Right before the initial pinprick I swear I felt the clamps tighten just a bit more, but maybe it was my imagination. That's when I take my breath, when I feel the needle rest against my skin just before the puncture. I felt the needle enter, sharp, but not pinpoint-able. As it passed though the cartilage I tightened the muscles in my upper body, mainly my neck and shoulders. I imagined myself sort of mentally pulling or pushing the needle through my ear as I felt the thickness of the cartilage and the slight weight of the needle itself. All this happened in a few quick seconds of course, but I tend to break it down into moments.
Anyway, the weight of the needle felt lighter than the previous time and the new piercing burned slightly as I waited for BJ to thread through the jewelry. I'm unsure if he put in a taper before the ring, but I remember him telling me all that was left was the insertion of the jewelry. That was quickly followed by "Okay you're done. I'm just going to clean you up." Needless to say I didn't feel a thing except that oddly comforting warmth of a fresh hole in my ear.
BJ cleaned up my ear and commented on the new fourth conch, mentioned that he could fit a few more in each ear and that was that. Normally, he would have gone over the aftercare with me, but since I already have the piercing another three times he just suggested the basic- sea salt soaks. To be honest I don't touch sea salt soaks, never really have. If any of my piercings start to feel sore or seep or anything that I'm unsure of I wash it in the shower with my trusty Soft Soap until it feels normal again. Basically, I just leave my piercing alone until it's healed. I'm not saying that you shouldn't listen to your piercer, I just have quite a bit of experience with piercings and know how my own body reacts to them.
My mother hasn't noticed my new addition yet, but when your daughter has 30+ piercings there's a point where you just stop noticing. Even my boss doesn't notice new facial piercings anymore.
I haven't done any particular aftercare on my conch as of yet and I've had it for a week and a few days now. The only thing that I've been overly careful about is not putting pressure directly onto it, which basically means I don't sleep on that side or else I cup my hand around my ear while I sleep, and avoiding getting hit in the head with random items (you'd be surprised...).
All in all, I absolutely love my newest addition and am planning on taking up BJ's offer of getting more conch piercings.
If you're in the Winnipeg area I recommend Soul Survivors, their staff is extremely friendly and BJ is a really creative piercer, in the least!
Take care and happy piercing,
Bondage-Kit