How to.

1. To be pierced in a hygienic environment by a clean, conscientious, sober piercer wearing a fresh pair of disposable medical examination gloves.

2. To be pierced with a brand new, completely sterilized single-use needle that is immediately disposed of in a medical Sharps container after use on one piercing.

3. To be touched only with freshly sterilized and appropriate implements, properly used and disposed of, or re-sterilized (where applicable) in an autoclave before use on anyone else.

4. To know that piercing guns are NEVER appropriate and are often dangerous when used on anything — including earlobes.

5. To the peace of mind that comes from knowing that their piercer knows and practices the very highest standards of sterilization and hygiene.

6. To have a knowledgeable piercer evaluate and discuss appropriate piercings and jewelry for their anatomy and lifestyle.

7. Before making any decisions, one must be fully informed of all risks and possible complications involved in their piercing choice.

8. To seek and receive a second opinion from another piercer within the studio or another studio.

9. To have initial piercings fitted with jewelry of appropriate size, material, design, and construction to promote healing best. Gold-plated, gold-filled, or sterling silver jewelry is never suitable for any new or unhealed piercing.

10. To see pictures, be given a tour of the piercing studio, and have all questions thoroughly and politely answered before making or following through on any decision.

11. To be fully informed about proper aftercare, both verbally and in writing, and to have continuing access to the piercer for assistance throughout the healing process.

12. To be treated with respect, sensitivity, and knowledge regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, ethnicity, ability, health status, or piercing choice.

13. To change her/his/their mind, halt the procedure, and leave at any point if the situation seems uncomfortable or improper.

Bquires skill ands a hands-on profession learned through practical experience, often involving trial and error. Ideally, training includes a lengthy apprenticeship with a qualified mentor, but some piercers are self-taught. Ask your piercer about their experience, training, and how they stay current – like taking courses from the Association of Professional Piercers on anatomy, aftercare, and aseptic technique. A trustworthy piercer demonstrates knowledge and competency. They should provide a consultation to discuss jewelry selection, the procedure, potential risks, healing, and aftercare guidelines before you commit. It's okay to rere not impressed with their qualifications. While a licensed studio meets minimum requirements, it doesn't guarantee the piercer's training. Check with your local health department for established standards and inspections in your area. Even where laws are strict, there are often no specific requirements for the piercer's skills.

Normal, no. Common, yes!

Inappropriate aftercare is the leading cause of irritated piercings. Avoid alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, Betadine, Hibiclens, harsh soaps, and ointments, as these can delay healing.

Routine healing may include—Discoloration: reddish, brownish, or purplish; it can last for months on various piercings. Swelling: localized, significant for oral piercings, usually lasting several days post-piercing. Excretion: a small crust of fluid and dead cells; it should not be excessive or foul-smelling.

Disclaimer: These suggestions do not replace medical advice and aim to support discussions with healthcare providers regarding piercings, based on professional experience and research.

Body piercers learn in various ways, but the most effective is an apprenticeship with an experienced mentor. The following numbers are industry-standard minimums for apprentices to pierce the public independently, based on APP Member input:- Apprentices must be at least 18 years old.- A total of 1200 hours with a mentor, documented and co-signed.- This includes observing the mentor, maintaining paperwork, and assisting with client consultations.- At least 100 hours of procedure observation, covering various techniques.- A minimum of 50 piercings performed under supervision; no unassisted piercings allowed. Apprentices must complete these classes before working in a piercing facility:

-OSHA-approved Bloodborne Pathogens Training; renewed annually.

-CPR; renewed biannually.

-First Aid; renewed biannually.

-APP Exposure Control Plans.

-APP Infection Control Plans.

-APP Personal Protective Equipment Standard.

-Any region-specific training as required by law.

Amory Body Arts currently has two apprentices and is not seeking more.

Piercing guns offer a quick way to create holes but have major drawbacks concerning sterility, tissue damage, and jewelry design. These guns can easily become contaminated, as they often aren't sanitized properly. Bloodborne pathogens can linger, posing a health threat for multiple clients in a day. The Hepatitis virus can survive on surfaces, making reusable guns problematic, especially when one gun is used for numerous piercings. Malfunctions with piercing guns can occur; operators report that earring adapters sometimes fail to release jewelry, requiring pliers for removal. These pliers often come into contact with contaminated jewelry and may not be sterilized between uses.

Additionally, many studs aren't made of FDA or ASTM-certified materials for long-term implantation, risking allergic reactions due to harmful alloys. Only implant-grade steel and titanium are advised for piercings. Complications from gun piercings often remain unreported, especially among minors who may lack parental consent. This leads to untreated infections and scarring. The perceived ease of obtaining a gun piercing creates a false sense of security, deterring consumers from recognizing associated risks.

Despite these risks, many establishments operate without proper supervision, though recent legislation restricts gun use on ear cartilage in some areas. With increased awareness, we hope consumers will reject gun piercing to protect public health.

Choosing jewelry for a new piercing is quite different from shopping for a ring to wear on your finger. Because body jewelry is worn inside a wound and is in contact with your internal tissues, only certain products are suitable. The look of the jewelry placed in your fresh piercing must be secondary to aspects that affect safety and compatibility with your body. The size, style, material, and quality of the initial piece of jewelry all affect your ability to heal. Remember that the piercing location is fixed, but the jewelry can be changed after you have successfully healed. Because the body jewelry industry is saturated with substandard products, piercers and clients may forget that cost alone should never be the key factor in your purchase. Consider the following when selecting body jewelry for a new piercing:

It must be of appropriate length or diameter for your unique anatomy and the placement of the piercing. Too tight Jewelry does not allow for air and blood circulation or the expulsion of normal secretions from the piercing. Ill-fitting jewelry increases the likelihood of swelling, embedding, and other complications if too minor or excessive trauma if too large.

It must be of an appropriate gauge (thickness). The body may treat jewelry that is too thin in gauge like a splinter, resulting in migration or rejection.

It must be of a style suited to your build and the location of the piercing. Rings are best for some areas, straight or curved bars for others and specialty jewelry—such as a nostril screw or labret stud—for specific placements.

Stainless Steel is made of a variety of alloys. Many of them are used for body jewelry, but only a few specific grades are proven biocompatible: steel that is ASTM F-138 compliant or ISO 5832-1 compliant; ISO 10993-(6,10, or 11) compliant; or (EEC [European] Nickel Directive compliant.

Titanium is a lightweight metal ideal for people concerned about nickel sensitivity. This material can be anodized to create jewelry of different colors without affecting safety. Look for implant-certified titanium (Ti6Al4V ELI) that is ASTM F-136 compliant, ASTM F1295, ISO 5832-3 compliant, or commercially pure titanium that is ASTM F-67 compliant.

Niobium has been widely used by piercers with good results for many years. It is similar to titanium but does not have an implant-grade designation. Like titanium, niobium can be anodized to produce different colors. (And, unlike titanium, it can be anodized black.) Anodized niobium and titanium may fade due to body chemistry or when worn in friction-prone areas, but this is not harmful.

Gold (yellow, white, or rose) is appropriate for initial piercings only if it is 14k or higher, nickel and cadmium-free, and alloyed for biocompatibility. Gold higher than 18k is much too soft for body jewelry because it can easily be scratched or nicked. Gold-plated, gold-filled, or gold overlay/vermeil jewelry is not acceptable for fresh piercings. All of these involve coating a base metal with a layer of gold. The gold surface (very thin—measured in millionths of an inch) can wear or chip off.

Platinum is a heavy, precious metal that is highly inert and excellent for wear in body piercings. However, body jewelry made in this material is rare and very expensive due to the high cost of the material and the greater difficulty in manufacturing jewelry from it.

Glass, fused quartz glass, lead-free borosilicate, and lead-free soda-lime glass are inert and considered safe for initial piercings. They can also be sterilized in an autoclave!

Of the numerous materials available, few have been proven appropriate for wear in fresh body piercings. Some metal alloys (mixtures) have been approved based on medical usage (often as medical implants) and have specific designations that represent a precise standard for the alloy and its quality as determined by the American (now International) Society for Testing and Materials Standard (ASTM) and the International Standards Organization (ISO). Other materials, such as gold and obsidian (natural glass), have a long history of use in piercings dating back hundreds—and sometimes thousands—of years! The material worn in a healing piercing:

-It should withstand the heat and pressure of autoclave sterilization.

-It should be inert and compatible with the body, so it doesn’t cause irritation, allergy, or infection.

Downsizing refers to switching jewelry in a piercing to a shorter post once the initial swelling has subsided.

Because of how piercings heal, most require initial jewelry with a noticeable extra room to allow the tissue to swell in the early phases of healing. This is crucial to avoid jewelry embedding in the skin.

However, once the initial stages have passed, this initial swelling will have gone away. This will reveal the initial extra room and results in the initial jewelry now being too long. Too long Jewelry can snag easily and move around excessively, leading to irritation and renewed swelling. At this stage, it’s essential to return to your piercer to have shorter jewelry installed to reduce these issues. The piercing is not healed enough to safely change your jewelry by yourself at this point in healing.

If this window for downsizing is missed for piercings such as the helix, the excessive length may lead to migration or a change of angle of piercing, especially if the piercing gets slept on. This damage is irreversible and can get bad enough to result in the piercing failing.

Internally threaded jewelry is part of the APP standard for initial piercing jewelry: the piece of the jewelry that passes through your skin is smooth, and the threads are on the removable end(s), such as balls, gems, or spikes. Internally threaded jewelry avoids any possibility of scraping your tissue with sharp threads, which is especially important with fresh piercings.

Threadless, sometimes known as “press-fit” jewelry, is an acceptable alternative that uses a pin coupling on the ornamental end, and there are no screw threads at all.

The length and design of gun studs are inappropriate for healing piercings.

Ear piercing studs are too short for some earlobes and most cartilage. Initially, the pressure of the gun’s mechanism is sufficient to force the pieces to lock over the tissue. However, once they are locked on, the compressed tissue cannot return to its normal state, is constricted, and is further irritated. At the least, the diminished air and blood circulation in the compressed tissue can lead to prolonged healing, minor complications, and scarring. More disturbingly, the pressure of such tight jewelry can result in additional swelling and impaction.

Both piercers and medical personnel have seen stud gun jewelry wholly embedded in ear lobes and cartilage (as well as navels, nostrils, and lips), even when pierced “properly” with a gun. This may require the jewelry to be cut out surgically, particularly in cases where one or both sides of the gun stud have entirely disappeared beneath the skin's surface. Such consequences are minimal when jewelry is custom fit to the client, allows sufficient room for swelling, and is installed with a needle piercing technique, creating less trauma and swelling.

Jewelry that fits too closely also increases the risk of infection because it does not allow for thorough cleaning. During routine healing, body fluids containing cellular discharge and other products of the healing process are excreted from the piercing. But with inappropriate jewelry, they can become trapped around the hole. The fluid coagulates, becoming sticky and trapping bacteria against the skin. Unless thoroughly and frequently removed, this becomes an invitation to secondary infection. The design of most gun studs' “butterfly” clasp can exacerbate this problem. Again, these consequences can be avoided with implant-grade jewelry designed for easy cleaning and long-term wear.