Over many years of piercing, I have watched this art form become more popular and widely accepted. It is great to see people wanting to decorate their bodies, especially with the ever-widening selection of body jewellery available on the market.
It’s a chance to really customise your image and express your personal style.
Unfortunately, the rise in popularity has meant that everyone wants to sell you body jewellery, and in these difficult times it's understandably tempting to find the look you want at the cheapest possible price.
As a business owner, I am fully aware that piercing is a luxury and not a necessity. Most people don’t have endless amounts of disposable income to spend on piercing and jewellery. However, if you are considering a piercing or buying body jewellery this is something you really don’t want to cut costs on. Let me explain.
It may seem obvious, but a piercing is breaching your skin and travelling internally through an area of your body.
It is not like buying a cheap pair of shoes or clothing - which are external to your body - that you can kick off the moment any irritation occurs. Any piercing, by its very nature, is sited at least partly internally, and serious consideration of suitability and quality needs to be taken when purchasing body jewellery. That's why buying from a professional body-piercer is always going to be the safest option.
I know that we are living in the golden age of the internet, where you can shop from the comfort of your own home or scroll endless items whilst you're on the train. But, do you really want to click on piercing jewellery without being sure that the grade of metal is safe? That it is the right size and fit for your specific piercing? That the stones won't fall out next week?
Over the years, I have had to remove bad quality jewellery from a lot of people's piercings. Let's learn from their (often painful) mistakes! Here's the lowdown.
Studios should stock implant-grade materials that will be certified.
Yes, that's correct, all studios' jewellery stock should have documentation from the suppliers confirming the quality of metal. This is to show that the metals used to make the jewellery are compliant with industry standards and suitable for piercing.
When online shopping for cheap jewellery, you need to understand that not all metals will be high quality. If it’s cheap, the chances are it may not be safe. The jewellery could come from countries with less stringent rules and regulations regarding safety and fewer quality control measures in place to check the jewellery. Why take that chance? You could be purchasing plated metals, for example, and under that plating could be anything.
If your body reacts with the lower quality jewellery it can actually affect YOU and it could potentially harm your body and your health.
The fact is, there is a lot of jewellery out there that is substandard and even unsafe. And reputable piercers across the country are seeing increasing numbers of customers asking for help with issues after buying cheap jewellery.
Not all jewellery styles and types will work for everyone and every piercing.
A professional piercer will sit down with you and explain why certain types of jewellery or designs should be used or avoided in the piercing you have when considering your individual anatomy and piercing type. This personalised advice just can't be found online.
And if you are on a budget, a professional piercer will still be able to advise you and offer you a good selection of safe, good value for money options. We know times are tough and we just want you to be safe and enjoy your piercing looking great!
Piercing is an investment - why take all that time in finding a reputable studio and looking after your piercing while it heals to jeopardise it later with poor quality jewellery? It's your body, look after it. We're here to help.
Book a jewellery change appointment below, or pop in to the studio if you want to talk about options for your piercing.
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