I have been wanting to get my septum done for quite some time now, but a combination of being pressured by my parents not to get work done as well as the fear of the unknown has led me to stay unmodified, until recently.
At A Glance Author taylor Contact taylor@bme.anon When It just happened Artist John Studio New Breed Tattoo & Piercing Location Bloomington, Indiana, USA I had been discussing tattoos and piercings with a friend and he mentioned that he was going to be going to get his horror sleeve worked on[he got his Nosferatu shadow done this same day] and suggested that I should go. This is no problem, as I have been when many friends have gotten work done and it is not a big deal, but this simple run to the parlor with David turned into a completely new experience. After talking for a few weeks and getting ideas for his sleeve together we decided to make an appointment for him. He went in alone while I went to work, but then whenever I got done and showed up at his place he had a huge grin on his melon. He proceeded to remind me about the fact that he and the keyboard player in our band had neglected to get me anything for Christmas or my birthday, which they were going to combine and get me one gift. After we talked about that a bit he said he would pay for me to get my septum done on the same day as he was getting his tattoo worked on. I agreed and we set our sites on his Monday appointment.
Showing up to New Breed was an adventure, as I had only been awake for about 30 minutes before we went to the shop, but once we got settled in and waited for his artist to show I kind of warmed up to the idea of a needle being in my nose. I've been to this shop numerous times with friends getting pierced or getting tattoos worked on, so I know the environment and have never had anyone come to me talking of a bad experience from them. So, with that I started to talk to the piercer, John, about the prospect of getting it done, filled out my paper work and then we started looking at jewelry. As we were looking I couldn't help but think about all of my friends who have their septum pierced. Back to all of those stories, I don't think I ever remembered hearing about anyone piercing at a 14G, most of them were 16Gs and stretched. John suggested a 14G to begin with, but then held up a 12G beside my face, right where my septum would sit and said "OH YEAH!" With that, we decided to do my first ever piercing with a 12G needle. We went back, he sanitized and gave me a choice between a fatter hoop or with more circular curve to it or a ring with more of a horseshoe design, I chose the horseshoe and then climbed onto the table. He joked and messed around a little bit with me while he marked me and it looked great to me. So, with that, I laid back and let the show begin.
I was staring straight up with some good San Francisco Bay area hip hop on the speakers and John got right to it, placing the receiving tube up to the left of my septum and the needle against the right. He asked me to breathe in and when he told me to breathe out pushed it through a bit of the ways. This step was repeated twice more until the needle was all the way through. He told me it was a slow piercing and I kind of figured the gauge had something to do with it being tougher to get in. Once he got the needle through he began to follow with the ring, but about halfway through he lost the hole on the left side and couldn't push it through. He made a comment about not being able to get it through cleanly and I got nervous, as I have heard horror stories about it hurting to work the ring through. Soon he was working over me and leaning up to see what was going on, but finally joked that he was going to just pull it out and repierce me. This was not my idea of fun on a Monday morning, so I just grinned, gritted my teeth, and told him to push it through. Finally he got it in the hole and pushed out the other side, threading the ball on and finishing the piercing part. He then cleaned me up a bit and let me have a look.
I am absolutely in love with my new piercing. It is my first and only piercing and having it done with John was a great experience. The guys at New Breed are always professional and great with customers. We sat around and chatted about music and movies for a bit while David got his tattoo done, he paid, and then we were on our way. I've already gotten a lot of compliments and some weird looks from friends and classmates who didn't think I was that type. It's cool though, I can just flip it up if it gets to be too bad, but as of right now I am loving the work that John did. I have already had it flipped up for a work meeting, seeing the band mother, and actually working a full four hours around the kids; so far no one has noticed unless I allowed them to notice. I have been cleaning it twice daily and really trying to avoid fingering and playing with it too much. In a week or so I will begin my sea salt soaking and hopefully this will heal quickly and easily.