My best friend and I have been obsessed with body modification for quite some time now, I'd say over a year now. We're avid BME readers/site dwellers. We're both sixteen and aren't allowed to get piercings without our parent's permission, thus making it difficult to obtain the desired piercings. My friend lusted after a labret while I wanted a lip ring on the left side of my lip to balance the eyebrow ring I have in my right eyebrow. I got my mother to agree to the piercing and my best friend's dad said she could get hers done if I get mine done (strangely enough).
At A Glance Author JackieBlue Contact thebluewaterbearer@hotmail.com When It just happened Artist TJ Studio Body Designs Location Bay Shore, New York
So this past Saturday I went to the Hicksville, NY Body Designs (there are four Body Designs studios on Long Island) location to pick up a form for the piercing I was to get on Monday. See, I could not get the piercing that day because my mom's signature had to be notarized and there isn't one on site of the studio. Luckily my neighbor is a notary. On Monday night after volunteer painting at our workplace all day long, we walked to my friend's house to wait for my mom. I bought a bag of cookies because chocolate cookies rock! This may not seem relevant but it is because now I can't eat my damn cookies without gargling afterwards.
Anyway, my best friend, her father, my mother, my older sister, and myself piled into my mom's car and headed out east to the Bay Shore location of Body Designs Piercings & Tattoos. There was some people getting work done in there but it wasn't overly crowded and the studio was clean and nice looking. There was a picture taped to the glass counter and it said "piercing no-no of the year" with a picture of someone's...I'm not sure what body part it was but there was a bent sewing needle stuck in there and it just looked painful. Ouch.
We let the piercer know what we wanted done, and he handed both my friend and me a bottle of antiseptic listerine, the nasty yellow-clear kind, and sent us to the bathroom to swish it around a bit. The listerine was really gross tasting and it stung our mouths quite a bit. Next was the piercing! My friend went first and I went in with her. Our piercer took out the necessary tools, including a clean new needle from a package, some sterilized clamps, a sharpie marker and the jewelry. I'm not going to write anymore about her experience because she might want to submit it, so, yeah.
After my friend was done with her piercing she went to sit down for a bit. It was my turn, and I wasn't too nervous. Once again the piercer took out the necessary tools, which would be a clean new needle from a package, some sterilized clamps, a sharpie marker and the jewelry. The ring had to be a little bit big so it would heal better or something. He put the needle in some gooey stuff that looked like Vaseline. He marked my lip on the outside and inside and carefully clamped it. He said to close my eyes and count back from ten. Ten, nine, eight and the needle was in my lip. It hurt very little, only for a second or so, or I think the Vaseline-looking stuff numbed my lip. The piercer guy was funny, too. It was hard to not laugh or smile, at least. The ring went in and the ball was screwed in and I looked at it in the mirror. It was done, finally. My mother didn't even want to look at me!
My lip piercing was fifty dollars and I gave him a ten-dollar tip because I'm oh-so nice. My friend's lovely labret was sixty-two dollars. I love my lip piercing, it still hurts a little to laugh but its okay. I can't wait until it heals and I can get a more fitting ring, maybe a pretty colored one or something. The most inconvenient thing about my new lip ring in having to rinse with mouthwash after consuming anything other than water. Another inconvenience is laughing, because it's kind of annoying. Another pet peeve of mine is when people laugh at me and say it looks stupid or weird, or touch the piercing (since I only got it yesterday I'd prefer no one touch it!) With my past piercings (navel and eyebrow) people would touch them without even asking, which is not something I'm cool with because the bacteria on other's hands and mine could cause infection.
I'm so glad I finally did it. It's not too painful and I had an ex-boyfriend with a lip piercing, so I know kissing and stuff is still quite definitely possible with the lip ring. It's even a little more fun I think. Only not right after you get it pierced because it's still sore and all. If you're thinking about getting this piercing I suggest you do, because it's not that painful and it's intriguing as hell, if you ask me. My suggestion however is to go to a nice place that you think is trustworthy. There's always that possibility of unclean needles if you go somewhere skeevy. It's not worth what could happen!
Happy piercing all!