I had a nostril piercing back about 5 years ago, when I was a freshman in high school. I loved the look of it and it healed perfectly. My high school the following year changed the rules regarding facial piercings, and therefore my nostril piercing was hidden with a retainer. One night, the retainer fell out, and I never had it repierced.
At A Glance Author Riley Contact Riley@bme.anon When It just happened Artist Brandon Studio Screamin' Mimi Tattoo Location Amarillo, TX I had been looking into getting another piercing about 3 months ago. I have 2g lobes and wanted something else. Now that I'm in the working and have a clerical job, facial piercings are out of the question. That's when I started to research septum piercing.
I liked them when I first started researching it, but I didn't want it to look like a "bull ring" and be distracting. Also, my grandmother had told me over and over that nose piercings were dangerous, and if they ever were infected it had a good chance of spreading to the brain. I figured that if I could handle my nostril, a septum wouldn't be that much different.
I went on BME quite a bit and looked at pictures of different septum piercings. I wasn't a big fan or the captive bead rings in a septum piercing, but I loved the look of spikes and tusks as jewelry. I knew if I had it done, I was definitely going to stretch the piercing and buy organic tribal pieces to wear.
After going back and forth about it, I finally decided to just get it done. I had just gotten paid and had some extra cash, so I headed down to the shop where I had all my previous piercings and tattoos done.
I asked the receptionist if they pierced septums with retainers. He went back and asked the piercer, and he said no - they fall out too easily. I asked about the possibility of a CBB being able to be "flipped-up" to hide it. He spoke with the piercer again, and said a CBB would probably be too big, and I should plan on it not flipping up. Disappointed, I headed home.
The next day I asked a friend at work about the shop he goes to. He told me about Screamin' Mimi's, and the piercer Brandon. I decided to go check it out, and in a couple of days I went.
I walked into the shop and immediately loved it. It has an eastern vibe to it, was really clean and professional, and the people were friendly. I asked about the septum retainers, and they said they didn't pierce with them either. He suggested a CBB, and the possibility of flipping it up. He called the piercer, Brandon, out and we started talking. He asked what gauge I wanted, and I said however big I can go while still being able to hide it if need be. He then asked to look at my nostrils, and afterwards said I should have no problem fitting a 12g 1/2" CBB in there.
I was really excited, finally about to get this thing done. I'm usually nervous before piercings, but I was really calm as I started to look at the artist's portfolio while he set up.
After a few minutes, we went back. He had me lay on my back, and then started to clean out my nose. We chatted a bit, and he checked for my "sweet spot." He said that the piercing should be fairly easy, I was a bit relieved. He got the clamps ready, and said it would probably be the most uncomfortable part. He put the clamps up in my nose then got the needle. I must admit, the clamps were nothing compared to what was next. I felt the needle brush up against my nose while he said "deep breath in... and out" and he pushed the needle through. I immediately closed my eyes as they began to water... it was way more painful than I had expected. I had tears running down while he put the jewelry in - and surprisingly I hardly felt that at all.
He spent another 5 minutes cleaning it up and checking everything to make sure it was alright. He checked the diameter of the CBB, and it was a little small to be able to flip up. He got a pair of ring openers, and made the CBB a bit bigger and double checked it. He told me the aftercare instructions, and I was on my way.
I was really impressed at how clean and sterile everything was. Brandon must have changed gloves 5 times during the whole process. He was very professional, and it was an awesome experience.
So far, it's been about 24 hours and I haven't had any problems. Hopefully it'll heal up as well as my nostril did.