Thursday October 30th, 2008 @ 7:36 PM
I’ve been considering suturing on an armband, but I’ve never done any piercings before and I can’t find anything like this on BME or other sites, so I’d like some advice. The plan is to shave the area which the armband will cover (although that might not be necessary if I’m only leaving it in a few weeks?), and basically sew the armband to my skin on both edges. I’d tie the sutures loosely to reduce pulling.
Is this a terrible idea? What hazards should I be looking out for?
I guess the idea is only terrible depending on the desired end result.
Suturing a design around your arm to leave in for a few weeks and then remove will leave you with a pretty festering-looking wound as if you got a sliver and left it in your skin.
If the sutures didn’t reject in that short period of time (which is likely) you could still be left with very uneven scarring (which tends to be permanent)
I personally don’t think it’s a brilliant idea to leave something like that in for a long period of time. However, I think it could look nice for a very temporary stay for a few photos and then removed in the same day.
+7 / 11 votes 
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Posted by Lexci Million | Permalink | Comments
Sunday October 26th, 2008 @ 4:48 PM
I was wondering if using a pressure cooker set for an hour on the maximum temperature setting is suitable to sterilize jewellery that only myself will wear?
I usually boil my metal pieces of jewellery but I was told by a friend (who recently started working at a not so good piercing place just to get his foot in the door) that boiling was not the best option and can still leave a lot of bacteria on the jewellery.
Also what is a good way to clean acryllic jewellery? I’ve just been running them under tap hot water then leaving them in a shallow bath of 25% Hydrogen Peroxide overnight.
Keep in mind that the best answers to these questions may vary depending on some specifics on your end. If you are planning to sterilize new jewelry to use for a piercing procedure, you can likely go to a professional piercing studio and pay to have them process/sterilize it on your behalf. I don’t condone re-sterilizing used body jewelry that has been in another person’s body for your personal use.
I’m not sure about your location, but in Canada a pressure cooker does not meet Canadian Health Standards for sterilization for professional use in studios. Regulations will vary from place to place, so check with your regional municipality to find out your local standards.
As for private personal use, I don’t see why sterilization can’t be achieved with this equipment. If you go this route, be sure that the pressure cooker reaches a temperature of 132 degrees celsius for a full 30 minutes.
In regards to cleaning (not sterilizing) your acrylic jewelry; an ultrasonic cleaning machine will do a great job. Many different types of detergents and cleaning agents can be used in an ultrasonic cleaning machine. Professional piercing studios will likely have these on hand as well.
+4 / 14 votes
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Posted by Russ Foxx | Permalink | 5 Comments
Sunday October 26th, 2008 @ 4:33 PM
Filed under: Ear
i’m planning on getting my outter conch pierced at a 00ga. i went to theclosest shop that i trust and he said he could pierce it at a 4ga and taper it to a 00ga. thats a huge stretch i know and it would hurt alot but in terms of safety is it alright to do that? i’m not sure if he is going to pierce it with a needle or a biopsy punch since that makes a diffrence and now that i think about it i’m not sure if he meant taper it immediatly or stretch it over time.
Piercing or punching at 4g and immediately tapering to 10mm is not a practical idea in my opinion. Doing this will be likely to hurt a lot; not to mention having that kind of pressure on a fresh wound will carry the likelihood of excess scarring and prolonged healing times.
If you want to go big right off the hop, have an experienced piercer punch at maybe 8mm (respectively, your anatomy allowing) and immediately taper up to 9mm or 10mm jewelry. A little bit of pressure (1mm or 2mm) will minimize bleeding and shouldn’t instigate any excess scarring. Bigger tapering jumps will likely become more problematic and painful.
Stretching cartilage piercings to large sizes can be completely fine, but it should be undergone slowly with caution and care. Stretching too quickly can cause the same problems mentioned above, even if the piercing has some age.
+12 / 14 votes
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Posted by Russ Foxx | Permalink | 5 Comments
Thursday October 23rd, 2008 @ 9:43 AM
Filed under: Ear
I had my ear pierced about a month ago, and I am developing keloids around almost every piercing. The keloid on the bottom is looking really bad. I originally was using castille soap and saline solution to clean it, but lately i’ve been using just saline soaks bout 2-6 times a day. They barely hurt. The rings look like they are tight against the ear, but they’re not very tight. I am switching them to barbells today because the ear is starting to swell slightly (not from blood, but from these keloids) and the rings are starting to get too tight. Any ideas? My piercer has said that he is not sure what is going on, because besides these keloids, everything else is fine.
Other pics:
http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=qn00g9&s=4
http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=4hqy45&s=4
http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=2vs0shh&s=4
Judging by those pictures I’d say that the jewellery is too small. The major problem I see here, though, is far too many not-that-easy-to-heal piercings in one sitting. As you are having issues I’d be inclined to say you’d be better off retiring three and concentrating on healing the remainder. The bloodiness of the bottom one has me concerned a little. Do you suffer from any kind of nickel allergy? Getting your piercer to switch out the jewellery is a definate must. Either for barbells or oversized rings. Ditch the soap and stick with seasalt soaks and stay off that side.
+8 / 12 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 13 Comments
Tuesday October 21st, 2008 @ 10:20 AM
Filed under: Nipple
My question is two fold, and I have not been able to find any information about anyone having a problem similar to mine. I got my nipples pierced almost six months ago, and I wear 12 gauge straight barbells in them. They are still healing, and I haven’t had any problems with them, my issue is this: I preform as a drag king, and to do so I have to bind my breasts with medical tape. I’ve found that even with a thin foam pad over my nipples the tape still pulls on the jewelry, and thus the piercings, in painfully ways and causes them to remain sore for a couple of days afterwards. I cannot put thicker pads on because it would negate the binding. Do you have any recommendations for jewelry that would not get pulled on as much? I know that straight barbells are best for healing (and I like the looks of them best) but would putting in CBRs or something help to keep them from getting pulled on? Because they are still healing I don’t want to take the jewelry out to preform and I don’t want to experiment with other pieces of jewelry without someone else thinking I should. My second question is this: can taping my breasts delay the healing of my nipples? Thank you.
Your second question is easier to answer so I’ll start with that one. In a word - yes. Taping your breasts will lengthen the healing time.
As for your first query. I deeply doubt changing the jewellery will make a difference. This is one of those cases whereby lifestyle conspires against healing. Unfortunately, you have chosen a piercing that has a lengthy healing time (12-18 months). All I can suggest is experiment with different methods of binding to try and find the most comfortable with regards to the piercing and if it looks like your piercing is becoming irritated, it may be a case of having to decide between the piercing and the performance.
+12 / 20 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 4 Comments
Tuesday October 21st, 2008 @ 10:10 AM
I have two fairly large scars from my mastectomy. I am wondering for a placement of scarification if it would be okay/safe to cut-out those scars (they aren’t constant and wobbly in width)? If not is it safe to cut near or around the scars to try to incorporate them into the image?
Thank you.
I would advise against cutting them out - all you will do is replace one scar with another. You didn’t state how old your scars are? This is an important factor. Scar tissue takes an average of around two years - sometimes longer - to fully mature. If your aim is for the scars to be less noticeable, first take into account what I have mentioned about maturity. Maybe have a chat with your specialist as there are medical treatments available to reduce the prominence of scars. If you are wanting a scarification piece and were wondering if they can be incorporated into the design, then that is totally doable. Like with everything - research your artist. It’s definately worth travelling.
+9 / 9 votes 
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 1 Comment
Friday October 17th, 2008 @ 11:17 PM
my mom is passionate about me not getting my ear(s) gauged she says oh its fine if you wanna get it pierced but youre not gauging it fuck that when youre 18 you can do whatever but not while youre in my home….what can i do?
Respect your parent’s wishes?
Be thankful that they’re trying to meet you half-way?
Get emancipated, move out, pay rent and bills and make your own decisions?
+82 / 110 votes
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Posted by Shawn Porter | Permalink | 69 Comments
Friday October 17th, 2008 @ 8:20 AM
Filed under: Ear
So ive recently started stretching. i stretched from a 14g to a 6g in about two months and i have a blow out. i havent worn any jewellery in my ears for about a month and im still about a 10g. any suggestions on how to get rid of my blow out.
anything would be helpful.
Why is it so many people seek a cure rather than going down the tried and tested and wholly reliable prevention route? Blowouts are totally preventable. There is a wealth of information, not just on bmezine but across the ‘web on how to stretch safely.
Keep your jewellery out, massage your lobes daily with something like vitamin E oil or Holey Butt’r and when they have returned to normal -ish then start again. This time keep each size in for a minimum of two months before stretching again and don’t skip sizes. You have damaged your lobes so there’s every chance that you won’t be able to look forward to nice, large gauge lobes in the future.
+29 / 33 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | Comments
Friday October 17th, 2008 @ 8:15 AM
Filed under: Nose
Hi there, I’m at the tail end of my antibiotics course, i.e. I’m not sick anymore just finishing the tablets off. Would it be a good idea to take advantage of this extra ‘protection’ and get my septum pierced? Thanks!
There’s no extra protection per se as presumably the antibiotics were prescribed to treat an existing infection. I would be inclined to give your body a bit of time to recover before giving it another challenge, like dealing with a fresh wound.
+14 / 18 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 3 Comments
Wednesday October 15th, 2008 @ 10:42 AM
I’m not sure if asking this question on BME is warranted, but as I see it, it would be a major mod. I’m looking to stop the melanin production of my body but I don’t know who to ask or where to go to inquire about it. If anyone could point me in the right direction?
To hazard a guess, I’s say endocrinology is the area you should be researching. I deeply doubt this is something that could be done without the use of specialists and a laboratory, if at all.
+9 / 9 votes
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Posted by Tiff Badhairdo | Permalink | 15 Comments
