At the beginning of January 2006, I was a true piercing virgin. I had 2 holes in each earlobe. Pretty hard core stuff. On January 1st I was still too drunk to write a list of resolutions but on January 2nd I resolved to get something new and different pierced. As with most resolutions, I put off this particular promise until I was browsing BME and found a picture of nape piercings. It was lust at first sight. I didn't know anyone else with something so gorgeous. Most piercings are a dime a dozen but this was so unique! It was just what I had been searching for: subtle and different. I WANTED it.
At A Glance Author Sea Contact Sea@bme.anon When A month ago Artist Myka Studio Black and Blue Tattoos Location Nanaimo, B.C. I did some research on BME and by asking various piercers in Victoria. One piercer literally "guaranteed" that his surface piercings never, ever rejected. I smelled the delicate odour of bull crap. Another piercer told me that he didn't want to pierce it because "all surface piercings end up as gooey, pus-filled messes that need to be removed". It seemed terribly wrong to generalize like that and so I decided against this shop as well. After showing a picture to some friends, one of my best girlfriends told me about a shop in Nanaimo, B.C where her good friend worked. She told me a little about him, and I asked him his opinion on my nape. He told me that surface piercings do indeed have a bad record, but that as a nape was a low movement area it had a decent chance of survival with the proper size and shape of jewelry, and good placement. His answer seemed a happy medium between the two extreme answers that I had received at various piercing places in Victoria, B.C. I decided that his apparent knowledge, coupled with my friend's recommendation was enough for me.
On February 28, Jen and I walked into Black and Blue Tattoos and I met Myka. I filled out the necessary forms promising not to sue him and then the three of us proceeded into the room of my destiny. (By this point I was feeling less than confident about my decision and downright terrified that I was going to do this). Myka carefully marked the spot and asked my opinion on the placing. I was fully prepared to quibble but the placing seemed perfect so I agreed. As Myka prepared, I waited on pins and needles with Jen. Myka told me to lie face down and with one last thought of running away, I complied. The piercing was very quick and almost completely painless. As he was working, Myka entertained me with some stories of his shoes (which I, of course, was forced to look at by my position). He and another girl who works there were bantering cheerfully and the chatter helped me relax. Then it was all over. I paid, Myka gave me some VERY brief cleaning instructions, and Jen and I left. The piercing burned a little bit which felt strange, but there was no serious pain. It looked pretty gruesome because some blood had caked around it, but I was really giddy.
The first week I had my piercing I HATED it. Re-learning how to put on a shirt, and brush and dry my hair was a complete bitch. It seemed to get infected right away and it was incredibly painful and prevented me from moving my head. I had no idea how to do sea salt soaks because of the awkward location, and I live alone so I had no help. I tried some interesting contortionist moves and mostly ended up spilling many cups of hot, salty water all over myself. In a fit of rage I decided that I didn't care that I had just spent a load of money; I was going to say to hell with it. If it rejected right away, well, at least I wouldn't have to deal with it. Lo and behold the miracle of LITHA!! I continued being careful with my clothes and hair but I gave up on cleaning it. To my surprise, my nape cleared up right away. I rinse it in the shower and it's doing perfectly. Most people assume it is completely healed when they see it, which is actually a downside as they try to touch it. Uninformed people who try to hug you can also be kind of scary. Generally however I haven't made any serious adjustments to accommodate this piercing, and I get tons of compliments. Even my Mum likes it, though at first her reaction was that I looked like Frankenstein.
In short, this is an amazing piercing. I would definitely recommend it to any piercing virgins, as long as you can find a competent piercer. My nape is unique, gorgeous, virtually painless, easy to take care of, & it can be hidden or shown off however I choose. Plus, as a bonus, it makes you feel pretty hard core when people "ooh" and "ahh" over it.