I've been hearing a lot of people trying to justify DIY piercing to others, and then they complain when the procedure gets fouled up and the modification doesn't last. People, you are not a professional. Professionals are trained to know what to do, and you aren't. End of story. However, I myself dabble in DIY piercing every once in a while. But if you check out the experience's I've written about them, in the end I really should have went to a professional, hands down.
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So in this editorial, I will set about to help people learn how to go to a professional, and elaborate on why their excuses are just that- excuses. Don't get me wrong, there are sometimes when you CAN do it yourself, and I will follow up on those reasons at the end, also.
Reason number 1- I can't afford to go to a studio. Their prices are so high. They're getting rich off of me. They won't use my dollar store jewelry. Insert your own reason here.
Let's face it, everyone has their vices. Fast food, beer, clubbing, smoking, drugs...these are only a few of the million things that people spend money on all the time. Why don't you forgo one pack of cigarettes a week and make the ones you have last a little longer? Miss one night out, eat a home-cooked meal instead of fast food just once a week? If you can't do that, hell, go cheaper. Buy the cheapest cigarettes you can, buy from the dollar menu, or go to the club on dollar night or something. Promise yourself that if you can do that, you will get yourself a brand spanking new piercing at the end of the month.
I tested this theory. I eat fast food often, I smoke, and I drink beer. Instead of buying a twelve pack or six pack and ending up with most of it going to waste, I bought a deuce and drank that. I ate at my mom's house twice, resulting in less money spent on food. I ordered from the dollar menu a couple of times instead of getting a meal. With cigarettes, instead of having two in one sitting, I only had one. I bought Winston's instead of Camels, because I had coupons for Winston's. Total saved at the end of the month- $65. That's enough to get a piercing, leave a tip, get gas to get there, and have extra left over for aftercare supplies. So now your excuse isn't that you don't have the money, it's just that you don't have the self-control necessary to SAVE the money. Which means, you probably won't have the money to spend on anti-biotics and doctor bills when that home-done piercing goes wrong, either.
Reason number 2- There aren't any good studios around where I live.
Check out a piercer's portfolio. They should have freshly done AND healed pictures in it. Just because a piercer is new, doesn't mean they are bad. I've seen shops that have just opened up do better than a well established shop on some piercings. Check out word of mouth. If you see someone with a nicely done piercing, don't be afraid to ask where they got it done at. Check on BME, there are tons of experiences and you might be able to find one about a studio in your area. Lastly, don't rule out traveling. If there is a studio a little bit away that has excellent reviews, wait until you get a day off and make a trip of it! (Make sure to call ahead of time and get an appointment, so you don't go out of your way for nothing.)
Reason number 3- My mom and dad won't let me. I'm too young. The studio requires ID.
Not to be rude, and I'll probably get tons of mail from this- but if your parents don't want to you get said mod, and doing it would be illegal...chances are, you're not mature enough to do it to yourself either. You'll just end up having to take it out best case scenario, or it'll get infected and you'll end up in the hospital. Those high hospital bills? NOT going to go a long way towards convincing your parents you're mature and responsible.
My mom let me get my first tattoo at age 16. It was legal at 16 with a parent present. In order to get it I had to get straight A's and be on the honor roll for an entire year. I had to do all my chores in good time, and keep my room clean. I also had to put a percentage of my allowance in the bank each week, so that I would be able to pay for it myself. And you know what? I wanted this tattoo badly enough...I did it. I turned 16, managed to hold up my end of the deal and I got a tattoo. It's not easy earning your parents respect. But I'll tell you what, it's easier earning it the first time than losing it and trying to earn it back.
Reason number 4- I'm too fat. I'm too skinny. I don't like my body. I don't want someone else seeing my body. I don't trust strangers. I don't want to take my clothes off. (for genital work).
Look, I am 300lbs. At 5'3, that makes me quite a hefty girl. I used these same excuses too. I don't even take my clothes off in front of my boyfriend, let alone a strange male piercer. After waiting so long, I decided that I wasn't going to let my insecurities stop me from getting a vertical hood piercing. I called around, and talked to a piercer from a shop a little out of town. We talked for over an hour and he convinced me that he's seen all body types and all sizes...that piercing is his JOB, he doesn't do it for kicks or to get turned on. Why didn't I think of that before??? I went, I got my piercing, and I absolutely love it. It makes me feel so much more womanly, so much prettier. My self-esteem has risen tremendously. Don't think that because you don't fit societies cookie-cutter mold you're going to be looked down upon. If you find a good piercer whom you trust, this is a non-issue.
Reason number 5- Me and my partner want to experience the modification together. This experience means something personal to me, and I want to experience it for myself as a private ritual.
Now we're talking. Provided that you and your partner are consensual adults, there is nothing wrong with wanting to experience something like this to take your relationship to the next level. As for the private ritual, again...there is nothing wrong with that. It's akin to cutting, sometimes you just need the release that comes with the experience. As long as you realize that you're not a piercer, and the piercing likely will have some problems along the way, go for it.
Read the DIY faq, the Risks section, and learn everything you can about the piercing and how to do it. Understand that it might not have the best chances of success, but that the experience is what you're after. Make sure to take all precautions- clean the area, autoclave everything (most studios will do this for a nominal fee), and buy new needles. Enjoy!
I hope you've enjoyed this article, and you've learned something along the way. If after reading this, you decide to follow my advice and find a professional piercer, GREAT! If, however, you still decide to do it yourself, I'm all for you, and I hope your new modification the best of luck.
Love, Mandi