What Do You Need to Do When You Decide to Get Ear Piercing?

How to Choose a Studio for Getting Ear Pierced?

Getting pierced for the first time may not be the most consequential of events, but it does require some research and proper selection so you won’t regret anything.

Not everyone who says they can perform piercings safely can do it 100%. There are many amateurs out there without proper training and tools. Some people learn on their own, and while some eventually become highly skilled, not all of them are at the moment.

The process of selection begins by doing some basic research. Check out tattoo and piercing studios in your town or city. Advertisements are often found in brochures or directories. You can also begin scanning listings and websites (local ones) that advertise the services that you need.

After getting a list of possible studios, move on to references from people that you trust. Ask around – we’re sure that at least one of your family or friends have had a piercing. If they have had a good experience, they will refer you to where they went to get safe piercings.

Take note that often, tattoo studios also double as piercing studios. Highly skilled tattoo artists who deal with needles every day often have deft hands that can control pressure to such exact degrees that it is amazing what they can do.

We’re after these skilled hands, so if you cannot recommend a good artist that performs piercings, try to get a recommendation or reference for a good tattoo artist or studio and then ask them if they are performing piercings.

Don’t be afraid to approach these studios. Of course, the artists themselves are likely going to appear as they are in their preferred aesthetic – lovely tattoos and more than two piercings at a time.

The next step is an actual physical visit. There is no need to pressure yourself to immediately get a piercing when you visit the first studio nearby. What you should be doing is:

• Check out the facilities and see if they have good equipment and if it is clean and well-maintained.
• Talk to the artist and ask him/her about his/her experience with piercing. It will also be a good idea to ask if he/she has a portfolio of past work, so you will have an idea as to what projects he/she has done before.
• Ask about his/her certifications and what measures are done to ensure that the equipment is sterile and hygienic. This is important because you wouldn’t want to catch any transmissible disease with needles or any other implement they will be using on you. Remember, this is your skin, and it has to be handled well.
• Ask if the studio asks customers to sign any health-related waivers. If they do, read the policies of the studio carefully, for obvious reasons.

When you have explored the facilities of at least two studios, you can gauge which studio will offer you the best experience.

Read reviews online too, and try to listen to fellow enthusiasts who have had experience with these studios before. Of course, the experiences are going to vary from person to person, but you should be able to get a good feel of studios by simply reading reviews.

How to Choose Ear Jewelry?

Types of earrings

Helix Earring – Attached to the cartilage flap of the upper ear (outer rim). Best place for people who have full lobes already.

Industrial Earring – Traverses the outer lobe near the hairline and the outer lobe below the helix area. Barbells are best for industrial piercings.

Rook Earring – Pierced through the cartilage above the conch area – the tiny nib of cartilage above the ear canal’s opening.

Daith Earring – Actual piercings vary, but all of them involve the midpoint of the conch area. Two or more daith piercings may be done depending on the preferences of the person.

Tragus Earring – Attached to the hard cartilage nearest to the face and beside the ear canal. Both rings and studs can be attached here.

Anti-Tragus Earring – This is the point that is the polar opposite of the tragus point.

Snug Earring – The snug earring attaches to the short nub of cartilage beside the vertical lobe region’s midpoint. Small earrings are used for snugs.

Conch Earring – The conch area can be adorned with large earrings or studs, depending on the goal. Many people use studs to add a bit of glitz to this part of the ear. The inner conch piercing is much more difficult for artists because of the location of the target area.

In terms of form factor, hoop earrings, minimal or stud earrings, and barbells are used in different parts of the ear.

Materials

The most common materials for earrings are stainless steel, sterling silver, gold (all kinds of gold, GEP), and a mix of alloys.

How Much is an Ear Piercing?

In the United States, studios don’t have a standard matrix for piercing. However, there are market averages that are reflective of common pricing practices. Simpler procedures like double ear lobe piercings and triple ear lobe piercings can cost $10 to $60.

Auricle piercing procedures maybe $15 t $20. Piercing on the upper region of the ear can cost you $20 up to $50. Orbital piercings, on the other hand, can be priced at $30 to $40. Just keep in mind that as the piercing becomes riskier and more difficult to carry out, the studios’ pricing is higher.

The Ear Piercing Process

The basic process for ear piercing is very simple. The artist uses an earring gun loaded with a sterile post made either with plated gold or sterling silver. Two flat columns then pinch the lobe, and the trigger is pulled. The earring gun’s spring-lead mechanism sends the post of the earring into the skin to meet the earring back on the other side. The two are perfectly aligned, and the piercing is made in a second.

In professional studios, artists normally use a hollow needle (16-gauge and higher) to gently remove skin and create the appropriate space for the jewelry. The bigger the gap in the skin, the faster the wound will heal, so they don’t like using earring guns.