And you know what? It was awesome.
So, we live in a small town. We don't have a mall. We don't have any jewelry stores of any sort that do piercings with the exception of WalMart. Now, I'm not saying you can't get your ears pierced at WalMart successfully. I'm just saying, you only have to witness, as an innocent bystander, one piercing gone wrong to decide NEVER to get anything pierced at WalMart, ever. (Think little girl... uneven piercing, done once, then taken out, and done again. With blood. Lots and lots of blood.)
Guys, I realize that things like that don't happen very often. But after a little bit of research, I felt much better about the open needle piercing that is typically done in piercing and tattoo parlors. Needles are single use, the piercing technician is wearing gloves, and they completely sterilize every single thing that comes in contact with what ever it is they're piercing. Piercing guns are used over and over again, and are at the mercy of whoever it is that is supposed to clean them properly. Are there people that do it the right way? Of course. But what's your guarantee that the person you come across behind the jewelry counter (that may or may not have any training when it comes to fast and even piercing) is doing things as they should?
As soon as I decided what I wanted to do, I called our local tattoo parlor and talked to the guy who would be piercing Lucy's ears. My first question was pretty up front. "Is this the kind of establishment I can be comfortable visiting with my 9 year old daughter?" He went to great lengths to reassure me, even agreeing to open up the shop on her actual birthday, a Saturday when they were typically closed, so the piercing could be done.
When we arrived, he was solicitous of Lucy, encouraging, and very, very kind. After marking her ears and letting me okay the position of where the piercing would go, he walked Lucy through the process and told her how it was going to feel. In a matter of minutes, the entire process was over. Lucy said it hurt a little, but not so much that she wasn't willing to sit perfectly still for the second ear to be done.
Here's what I know... piercing is a part of this guy's job. It's what he does every single day. He knows how to do it well, with precision and accuracy and as little pain as possible. While the idea of seeing the needle coming at you may seem a little scarier than a piercing gun at a big box jewelry store, general opinion is that piercing guns hurt more.
So. I highly recommend. Lucy's ears look awesome. The end.
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| Remember this picture? This is Lucy learning she is going to get her ears pierced. |
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| Just before going in... still very, very excited! |
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| Lucy's best friend Bethany came along for moral support. She even held Lucy's hand during the piercing, cause my arms were full of baby, and also needles make me squeamish. |
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| This is Brock... the guy that did the piercing. He thought it was hilarious that I brought Lucy all the way back inside after we'd already left to get a picture. But seriously, how I could I not document such an event? |
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| The crime scene. |
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| And finally, the finished product. |
