This experience covers four different piercings, all of which were performed in the same session.
At A Glance Author Jamie Contact ilikejamie@hotmail.com IAM theoriginalpope When It just happened Artist Gizzi Studio Cold Steel Location Camden, London, UK My body modification 'project' started as a purely impulsive gesture, a "look at me, I'm an individual now" kind of venture. Since then it has grown in leaps and bounds (at least in my mind) and I decided that I'd had a long enough gap in my piercing schedule to warrant another appointment. I though long and hard about what I wanted done, and finally settled on two lip rings to balance the two I already had, and two nipple piercings, my first piercings below the neck.
As soon as I knew I could afford it I called my usual piercing studio and arranged a suitable time – all the members of Cold Steel have always been amazingly kind to me, and even when I managed to be late for my booking (due to the excuse that is supposed to be the public transport system of London) they still presented me with smiles and civility. I was overjoyed to find out that it would be Gizzi piercing me – she's done all but two of my piercings and is now the only person I will allow near me with a needle.
While I was filling out the usual form I discussed jewellery with the staff, and decided that my lip rings should match colour with the ones I already had. I chose silver coloured titanium barbells over rings for my nipples so that the chance of the fresh piercings catching on anything would be reduced. I finished off the form and settled down to wait while the room was being prepared.
A very short couple of minutes later I was sitting on the piercing chair chatting with Gizzi while she finished laying out all the supplies she would need. The chat paused for a while when she handed me mouthwash with the command that I wasn't to spit it out until she said so, and resumed a minute or so later. She asked me to remove my t-shirt, cleaned off the areas that were going to be pierced, and started to mark them up. The process took a good few minutes because of her insistence that they had to be perfect, and she rubbed off the marks several times before she was happy, and then asked me to check in the mirror to see if I was happy with them as well. I asked her to drop one of the marks ever so slightly, and after a quick adjustment we both agreed that the placements were as perfect as they could ever be.
After another few minutes of very nervous chatter on my behalf, it was time to start. Gizzi explained that she would start with my nipple piercings as they would be the most painful, and warned me that the second nipple piercing was going to hurt quite a lot. This of course added to my nervousness, but as the clamps went on for the first time on my left nipple I started feeling very calm and relaxed. She asked me to breathe in, and on the breath out she put the needle through. I imagine that I screamed a little bit, and it was easily the worst pain I'd ever experienced in a piercing session, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. She fitted the barbell through, which caused pain to run through my chest again, but it was very soon replaced with the buzz of post-piercing achievement and a very cool soothing sensation as a damp sterile wipe was placed over the newly pierced nipple. Then it was time for the right-hand side.
Again the clamps went on, and again the feeling of fear rose, but instead of being replaced by the calm and relaxation it was replaced with the inconvenient memory that this piercing was apparently going to hurt a lot more. Again the breathing in, again the breath out, but this time it was accompanied by a burning sensation as the needle went through. It seemed like it took at least ten seconds, though it was probably over in less than one, but I felt a very definite bursting sensation as the needle exited the other side of my nipple. I have no doubt that this time I squealed like a stuck pig and thrashed around on the piercing chair like a fish out of water, and Gizzi had to ask me to stop pulling away so she could place the barbell through. As she finished screwing the end on I started laughing, and within seconds I was in complete hysterics, laughing so hard I couldn't see straight. I was brought out of my pain-fuelled mirth by another cold wipe being pushed agains t my chest, and the burning sensation seemed to melt away.
We took a break for a couple of minutes so I could recover slightly, and then pushed on to complete the session. I felt fairly comfortable with what was about to come, because I'd sat through two lip piercings before, but the actual experience was a lot more intense. Gizzi placed the clamps on the mark nearest the centre of my lips, and told me to relax some more, as I think I was shaking at that point. She asked me to breathe in deeply, and as I released the breath the needle passed through my lip. The ring was on before any real pain made itself known, and I started to enjoy the experience a lot more.
However, the final piercing was almost as bad as the second. It was the fourth in ten minutes, and was less than a centimetre away from the piercing that had just gone through, so the area was already very sore. As the needle went through for the last time I saw stars, and I'm positive I was even more vocal than before. The ring was on in a matter of seconds though, and a huge wave of relief flooded through my body. Gizzi attached both the balls onto the rings, and very kindly let me lie still for a few more minutes as I tried to gather some energy to move.
While I was lying down she ran through the aftercare for each of the piercings, and I was given some "Tech 2000" and antiseptic aftercare solution for my lip rings and some Provon medicated soap with Chloroxylenol for cleaning my nipple piercings. I was told to use the antiseptic solution on the outside of my lip twice a day, use the mouthwash two or three times a day, avoid touching the rings with unwashed fingers and try not to play with them. For my nipple piercings I was told to wash them gently twice a day with the medicated soap, and avoid touching or play with them too much.
At the time of writing the piercings are only 12 hours old, and my lip is still partially swollen and my nipples ache a fair amount. There hasn't been any leakage from the piercings at all though, and they already look great – hopefully they'll heal nice and quickly.
As always, throughout the entire procedure Gizzi was extremely friendly and very careful to change her gloves whenever she touched any non-sterile surface. And as always I'm going to plug Cold Steel as much as I can. While Cold Steel isn't the only piercing studio in London with friendly, knowledgeable staff and clean atmosphere, I honestly cannot imagine a more pleasant or safe place to be pierced. If you're looking for a studio in London then give Cold Steel a try.
NOTE: The above aftercare instructions were a very brief summary of the aftercare instructions given to me. If you want more comprehensive aftercare instructions then try the links below (to the APP website) or visit your local piercing studio.
Oral aftercare: http://www.bodypiercinginfo.biz/oralAftercare.html
Body aftercare: http://www.bodypiercinginfo.biz/bodyAftercare.html
Be careful to research any studio and piercer carefully to make sure they are clean and know what they're doing.