I had heard plenty about Adrenaline since its opening on Granville Street a few months ago. Several of my classmates had gotten industrials there, and said they had great experiences. However, a close friend of mine who knows his fair share about piercing and body modification said very simply 'They're new, they don't always know what they're doing, and unless you know exactly what YOU want, and can call them on their mistakes, you shouldn't go there'. I decided to check them out for myself, to be fair before forming an opinion.
At A Glance Author Danger Contact [email protected] When A week ago Artist unknown Studio Adrenaline Location Vancouver, BC I had wanted to stretch my septum from a 12 to 10 gauge for a while, and decided that last friday was the day to go. With a few friends in tow, we headed to the shop at around 8:00. It was fairly busy inside, and as I looked around, I grew skeptical. Why would any reputable PIERCING shop sell clothing as well? It didn't make sense to me, but I went ahead and told the hovering salesperson that I'd like a 10g captive bead ring, and if they wouldn't mind stretching it for me as well, it would be much appreciated. She (the salesperson) was friendly, and showed me to the back where the piercing rooms were located, telling a piercer standing nearby what I'd like done. He nodded, and opened a door to one of the rooms, indicating we should enter.
I didn't take much time to look around, which is usual for me. When I'm about to be pierced/stretched/whatever, I get giddy and stop paying attention to detail. This, unfortunately, was my downfall. I did notice that the piercer put on gloves. He didn't do anything else, other than grab a ring in an autoclave package from a drawer, open it, and find a taper. I don't know if the taper was in a sterilized package or not, due to my inattentiveness. I was told to lie down, and did so.
What I DIDN'T notice (and ultimately should have) was that the piercer didn't lube up his taper. I'm a firm believer in lubing tapers for obvious reasons. He shoved the taper pretty roughly through my nose, and I felt a burning sensation unlike any other stretching sensation I've previously experienced. Tears started streaming involuntarily down my face, and I had to sit and clear my head for a few seconds, because as well as feeling a burning in my nose, I also felt some unusually intense pain. Twenty seconds later, when I looked up, the piercer was already standing with the door open, waiting for us to leave. My friends were looking at me in amazement, and I asked timidly for a kleenex. I recieved half a paper towel to wipe my face and eyes with, and we left.
I was out of Adrenaline by 8:15, and until i fell asleep at 12:30 that night, my nose hurt even to the lightest possible touch. I mean that literally. I stood in front of the mirror with my finger in front of my nose, and as SOON as my finger touched my nose, I felt some extreme pain. My eyes started tearing up as soon as I tried to flip the ring back in my nose (he left it open for this purpose), and once it was up, I kept it up for the rest of the night to avoid the pain of bringing it back down.
The next day, the pain was considerably less, but it felt like it was newly pierced. I realized exactly why this was by the third day. The piercing started lymphing and felt exactly like it had been repierced. I took the ring out for a minute or two, and after a close examination, concluded that when my septum was being stretched, the piercer had actually just torn a bigger hole with the dry taper. Hooray for incompetence. I didn't enjoy healing my septum out the first time, and am not enjoying the second. For my last stretch, and other partial stretches, all done on my own, I had far more success than I am having with this botched job. I can't wait for this to heal so I can poke my nose without flinching again. I miss playing with the ring, and yanking on it.
I am confident that I am never going back to Adrenaline for piercing or other modification work. If I am in need of cheap jewellery, I might stop by, but I was thoroughly unimpressed by the skill level of the piercer I encountered, as well as being disgusted by the lack of sensitivity and customer service displayed. Hopefully the quality of services will improve over time, but at this point, it is definitely lacking compared to my usual studio. I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone.