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Writer's pictureMicaela Stephens

On the Level: that ain't no Surface Piercing!

This is a testament to why a piercer with only a couple years experience who has taken the time to learn how to properly do implants tries to do them after watching YouTube......

Piercers generally don't learn these advance techniques until years into their craft......

This young woman started contacting us and sending several pics regarding a piercing she received locally.......apparently the first picture, shown below, is taken right after getting what she was hoping to be a horizontal surface piercing.....


As you can see it is a 16 CBB bar, not a surface staple bar, which is the current industry standard.

CBB, or curved barbells are used in a variety of initial piercings, eyebrown, rook, daith, etc. The use of CBBs were used in. the beginning days of surface piercings but quickly showed that they had a tendency to push out and reject over a period of a time, leaving compromised tissue throughout the migration period. Curved barbells necessitate a ledge type surface to anchor correctly.

It is an incredibly shallow piercing, it is, for all intensive purposes, a "money grab". This piercer neither had the experience, tools/jewelry, to do this piercing correctly.

This was taken within the first two days of the piercing. As you can see it is not measured correctly, it is shallow and even though there no swelling it has surface bruising. It is already pushing out.

For reference here is what the correct jewelry is for a surface piercing.....



There are measurements and understanding of the human anatomy that is required to do implant piercing. It is obvious there was no care taken to pay attention to measurements, correct jewelry or technique. Specialized training is needed. This piercer did not recieve the correct training to do this piercing, which generally isn't given until several years of beig with your mentor or going out of your way to learn it and not watch constant YouTube videos as a substitute. I have been in this industry for 30 + years and it took me many years and specialized implant training to learn the techniques I know.

ANYWAYS....

After about 4-5 days of the above status the young lady knew this wasn't right, she contacted hte piercer at this local shop and the piercer had her come in and then she performed this monstrousity to her:

SOOOOOOOOOO, within a week this piercer used the same incorrect jewelry and went behind, possibly cross-pathing a recent piercing pathway deeper into swollen tissue?!!!!!!

Do you see the swelling and bruising?

The pain, she said made her side of her face throb with pain for days.

Horrific.

I was contacted on April 12, 2024 originally. My other piercer removed the piercing a day, or so, earlier....and told her to contact me because she really wanted a surface piercing still.....the right way.....

The young lady has made 2 reports to the state and they never contacted her back apparently.........


This is her blurb to the state ........ The state recently put up a complaint sheet. I have had several clients tell me they have mde complaints with no contact back ever from the state. IDK....













She also learned that at the time she was pierced the piercer wasn't licensed....not licensed for almost a year and a half at that point....

I would post proof but I am not going to show any names.


Here is her surface bar I did, with the correct jewelry, all healed up now :) No filters and at least a month into the piercing. It is important to research your piercer, make sure they have the correct experience, tools and jewelry for the piercing. I have spent alot of my life, not to mention money, dedicated to learning about my craft, it is about safety and patience. Take the time to learn about who you will allow to make permanent changes to your body.




Let's get something straight...I don't feel bad for calling out bad technique that is harming people. She charged her both times for these piercings....she made money out of mutilation. This is the first time I have posted about this piercer and shop in the hopes they would disappear out of my life, even though the random fake reviews are annoying. I'm not sure who made that insane call to me, but if anyone would like to know the full truth they know where I am.

And, honestly, if the state of Arkansas would actually enforce their own rules and requirements, not to mention stop hiring new crews every other month, I wouldn't feel the need to do these blogs. There is a SERIOUS lack of real training and industry standard training for piercers in this state. I mean, this Arkansas School of Permanent Cosmetics is teaching piercing half online and with styrofoam cups! It's a crapshow and I guess I got tired of complainaing about the dudes molesting girl's nipples and other shops having autoclaves in their piercing rooms........and I have just resorted to this.

I don't go troll online....I usually am told pretty quickly of people's reactions to my blogs, I expect there will be whining. Just know, I LOVE helping the poor kiddos that get screwed up by all the newbie piercers that give me a chance to turn their frowns upside down when they get the proper care from us gals at Stigma :)


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