Ear Piercing

[Milims]

It's my daughters 13th birthday on Monday and we agreed years ago that she could have her ears pierced for it - it's when I had mine done so I can't really make her wait any longer. I want her to go to a specialist piercing place and not just any old shop where the assistant will do it. So I've booked her an appoinment with a "proper" place. The problem is they do it with a needle and then put the earring in rather than a quick jab with a gun. Although we've talked about it I'm a bit concerned that it might give her a big fright. What do you think?

[invisiblepiper]

Might be tempted to find a good place which uses a gun - our chemist does it - which is quite reassuring.
You are good - my daughter had my arm twidted by the time she was six! -I had to wait till I was 21!

[Milims]

Might be tempted to find a good place which uses a gun - our chemist does it - which is quite reassuring.
You are good - my daughter had my arm twidted by the time she was six! -I had to wait till I was 21!

Ah well there is a story to that - my mother said that I could have mine done when she had hers done thinking that she'd never do it! But she lost one too many expensive clip on earrings and stomped off in a temper and had her ears pierced - just before my 13th birthday! DD has wanted hers done since she was 4 but I told her that Granny would have a hissy fit and so she'd just have to wait until she was the same age as I'd been to avoid trouble!
I did think about having them done with a gun, but TBH I'm concerned about the cleanliness issue as well as the professionalism. I guess working for environmental health has made me a bit fussy! I'd rather it was done in a carefully regulated, fully licenced place with highly trained professional people. It's going to cost £40 as opposed to less than a tenner, so there has to be some difference in the process

[Annpan]

My Dad had a rule that you can do whatever you like to your body.... when you are 16, and you pay for it yourself. (My dad died when I was 4 but the rest of the family had had to stick to it, so it was used for me too)

I wanted my ears pierced when I was 7, wanted my nose pierced when I was 13, wanted my eyebrow pierced when I was 14.... I grew out of it all and never got any piercings or tattoos.

Having discussed it with OH (and baring in mind LO is only 2.5) we have decided to use the same rule. I think it is quite strict in this day and age, but it makes sense to me.


I know what you are saying about the needle being a bit more scary, but putting holes in your body shouldn't be taken too lightly anyway, especially on the hygiene front.

[Urban Ayisha]

She wont see the long needle and if anything it is a bit less scary as the 'guns' make quite a loud clipping noise next to your ear whereas the needles make no sound at all. Really, the needle method is likely to hurt less and heal better so aside from getting them done in a 'proper' place it is the best way to do it too! The 'gun' agitates the skin by pulling it back on itself when it retracts, or something like that ive been told!

i think the coming of age ritual of getting your ears pierced is quite an english thing. my latin american mother got my ears pierced when i was 18 months, and i think in the mediterranean and some asian countries its common place to get it done even earlier! I'm going to subject my wee bairn to it when she's 12 months!

[jim]

Wait until the beginning of the summer holiday please! It takes six weeks or so to heal and teachers are under health and safety regulations to ensure rings and studs are out before allowing children to do PE or Drama. Lots of children are not able to take out the sleepers until the piercing has healed. Since teachers are under obligation to provide children with PE activities and can fail an OFSTED if there are children not participating it can cause difficulties between teachers, parents and, most importantly, children!

On the subject of rights of passage; among the Lakota, pierced ears show that someone has received secret knowledge and amongst Gypsies many children have pierced ears to keep their eyes sharp. (Sympathetic magic.) Sailors and fishermen often had an ear pierced so that if they drowned and their body washed ashore the gold ear-ring would pay for their funeral.

(Pointless trivia but fascinating to people of a certain turn of mind!)

Love and Peace
Jim

[JulieSherris]

Hmmmm, well I guess this might be an 'upbringing' thing here...

My ears were pierced when I was just 3.. I had to sit on the man's chair in the jewellery shop in the ellie & castle & say 'Rolling Stones' before he got it done.. I never cried & once I was older, I couldn't remember any pain, only the funny man who did the job with his needle!
I then went thru the punk thing & pierced my own ears 4 more times with a cork & needle - again, no infection, oh, lots of pain tho!

My 2 eldest girls were taken to a chemist in the town when they were 16 months & 2 months old respectively for tiny sleepers & they too now have several piercings in their ears & lip rings too....
My youngest was a teeny tiny 2 weeks old and yep, she too has a lip ring & they've all dabbled with their eyebrows, & noses too. Oh, they've all got their belly buttons done too! And the eldest 2 have their nipples done (ouch!)

Small plain studs should be ok at school, as should small sleepers - but I'd definitely go for the gun method - one click & it's done & dusted.... Nikki (my youngest) actually goes to Claires Accessories - they're clean & use hypoallergenic jewellery & she gets the girls to do them at the same time - 2 girls, an ear each... 1, 2, 3.. click! both done at the same time & over & done with in minutes Then I stand & laugh while her face goes red & the pain impact sinks in for the next few minutes..... serves her right!

Hope all goes well with yours & she likes them!!

[snapdragon]

Start of the holidays is a good plan, saves problems at school

I had mine done at 33!! (in a jewellers in Spandau) when for the first time I saw some earrings that I really wanted to wear

[Masco&Bongo]

Personally, I would go to a reputable piercing place and have them done with a needle.

I wouldn't ever have anything pierced using a gun. My ears were done with needles both times, as was my belly.

A lot of 'serious' piercers wouldn't ever use a gun to do ears.

JMO, but, if your daughter might get scared if the piercer uses a needle, then she shouldn't be having her ears done. There is a needle in the gun anyway!

[Milims]

As it happens she didn't go thru with it! So she's decided to wait until the beginning of the summer hols and try again. I've just boght her a pair of white gold heart shaped studs so that she has something to look forward to when the time comes. She's kind of kicking herself but to be honest I'm glad she had the courage to say no when she wasn't comfortable

[MrsD'ville mkII]

I had mine done with a needle when I was 8. The guy sprayed them with anaesthetic first and I never had any problems. DD is 6 and I wouldn't agree to it just yet, but 8 strikes me as old enough to participate in the decision and have a hand in looking after them. To this day a whiff of surgical spirit takes me right back! DH is less keen though, so if he can be bothered to dig his heels in she'll be heading for high school before she gets it done. All this from the man who used to wear a safety pin through his ear!

[2+bump]

I got my ears repierced with a gun recently and they have changed so much, there is no noise at all, the first time it was really loud. I also got my lip pierced with a needle and oh the pain though I was pregnant and didn't know yet so that might have made it worse.

Personally I wont be allowing my kids to get ears pierced until they are 13 when I got mine done first, I really hate seeing tiny babies with earrings in. I can see the point in cultures where it is the norm but would never personally do it

[theabsinthefairy]

My daughter got her's done last year age 12 (at the start of the summer holidays as someone else has advised - really good idea).

We went to an accessories shop here in France (which is a quite prolific chain in the UK), and watched them do it on someone else first just to see their standards - and I have to say I was very impressed.

Everything was kept locked in a chest of drawers until used, everything was wiped down with sterile wipes before being used including the counter, the assistant wore fresh latex gloves for every person, and every child was given a little bottle of cleaning and antispetic lotion and very clear instructions on how to clean their new piercings, how to turn them, and what to look out for.

In addition the children were disuaded from choosing the big flashy stone set earring for the first set, and encouraged to get the cheaper round gold studs.

The whole process was unhurried and calm and the gun was surprisingly quiet in comparison to my memory of it.

[shell]

I like pierced ears,my older girls had it done at 4 ,the 2 young ones were 12 months and wore their studs till they were going to school,they havnt wore earings continiously since starting school 2 years ago but every now and then i check to see if the holes have closed and so far they havn`t,they rarely wear earrings just on special occasions for a few hours,i like the idea that i can buy earrings for the older girls when birthdays etc come round,i find buying for boys more difficult,but each to their own

[Thomzo]

My mother was very sensible. She said that I couldn't have my ears pierced until I stopped biting my nails. I never bit them again from that moment on.

I have always had mine done with a gun (I had two pairs in the lobes and three at the top of one ear) The last two were done at Claire's Accessories. I have never had any problems or infections other than when I first developed an allergy to nickel jewellery or now when I wear it by mistake. I think the biggest problem is not with the actual piercing but the subsequent hygiene. Keeping them clean until they have properly healed is the most important part of the process.

Zoe