This is a perfect example of what many states are doing to regulate body piercing.  They are regulating (certifying) the piercing establishment, not the individual.  Here is what the law states – According to the new law, tattoo and body piercing facilities must fulfill health and safety requirements, such as sterilization and sanitation techniques, to receive certification.

As you can see they are not certifying the “piercing knowledge or skill” of any individual piercer, just the sterilization techniques practiced in the piercing shop.  This is basically universal in most states – THEY DO NOT CERTIFY THE INDIVIDUAL’S BODY PIERCING KNOWLEDGE OR SKILL OF BODY PIERCING.  This is why learning the art, skill and techniques of body piercing are so important.

Train yourself to avoid using the word PAIN with your body piercing clients.  Substitute the word DISCOMFORT instead of using the word pain.

Your conversation could go something like this.  Sure you could experience some discomfort.  Most people experience pressure.  That’s about all the sensation you will have.

Or you could say, if you experience any discomfort at all, it will be just a little pressure.  Although it is difficult to eliminate the word FEEL from your vocabulary, I try to substitute the word EXPERIENCE for FEEL  as often as I can.  Experience something is a lot more exciting than feel something.  Experiencing “a thing” has a fun connotation, while “a feeling”  had a dual meaning.  Could be good, but generally means bad feelings.

It is never a good idea to use the word OOPS during a piercing.  That tells your client something is wrong.  Not a good thing in the piercing room.  Train yourself not to react to what is going on with the piercing.  Your conversation during the piercing, if any, should be comforting and reassuring to your client.

I personally think you should NOT always be asking your client “How are you doing?”  It is a good idea to never ask your client “How do you feeling” either.  If you ask that question, you are asking your client to evaluate themselves and give you a thoughtful response.  You don’t want that.  You want your body piercing client to be thinking – that wasn’t so bad.

You suggest that attitude in your client by saying: “You did great!”  Looking at any observers in the room and saying: “He/She did very well!”  Make all of the positive statements you can think of.

If you are confident in your body piercing skills in the piercing room, it will be very easy for you to be thinking of your client’s comfort during the entire piercing process.  This is when your client experiences true confidence in you and no certificate hanging on your wall can replace real piercing room skills.  Check out the  body piercing training videos.

Everything you say and do must be comforting to the piercing client.  That means there are certain works you never use.  This takes some training and discipline on your part but you will thank yourself if you delete these words from you body piercing lexicon.

Those words are:

HURT

PAIN

OOPS

BLEEDING

RECOMMEND

When people walk into a piercing studio, they are very susceptible to suggestion, both from you and those accompanying them.  Consequently, the words you use are very important.

Your piercing client will ask:  Does it hurt?  Your answer is:  You will feel pressure, that’s about all.  If they persist:  You just say:  it is a pressure piercing, that’s about all you will feel.  It’s just like pinching yourself quickly and letting go.

If you do the piercing right, that is all they will feel.  Basically, all they are experiencing is the feel of the “drag of the needle” going through their tissue.  This is where the feeling of “pressure” comes from.  Train yourself to avoid these words at all costs.

The best body piercing success tip I can give you is to learn “how to talk” at the front counter and in the piercing room.  In body piercing, words have important meanings and those meanings can make you business or break your business.

In the body piercing business what you say and how you say it is just as important as the particular piercing skills you possess.

The words you use project security, safety, confidence, experience and skill to every one of your clients.  Your selection of words will either create fear in your clients  or comfort them making the piercing experience a happy one.

Your piercing client is frightened and apprehensive from the moment they walk into your door, if not then, at least by the time they make the walk back into your piercing room.

Everything you say and do should be comforting to your piercing client.  Good body piercing training will help you make a satisfying experience for your clients.

Wearing body jewelry is much different than wearing a ring on your finger or wearing a bracelet or necklace.

Body jewelry is a foreign object placed into the body.  The body must adjust and co-exist with the body jewelry.  The body does not have any responsibility when you slip a finger ring, bracelet or necklace on.  The body acts only as a structure that is adorned with jewelry hanging from it.  The body does not react to this type of jewelry, unless, for instance a ring is too tight on your finger.  You simply remove the tight ring and the problem is solved.

When body jewelry does not fit correctly, the body starts reacting and communicating with you immediately.  It communicates by becoming red, swollen, and festered – producing liquid discharge.  If the jewelry is not corrected it can migrate out of the body leaving a scar behind.

When selecting appropriate jewelry for a body piercing, always select gauge, diameter, or length  that will easily co-exist in the body.

In addition, high-traffic areas of the body such as navels need special consideration when selecting jewelry.  High-traffic areas get a lot of movement from the jewelry and thicker jewelry is necessary to reduce irritation.  Play areas such as nipples and genitals also require thicker jewelry to avoid severe discomfort from play.

Discuss with your client the concept of how their body must adjust to and co-exist with the jewelry you insert into their piercing.  If they understand that the body is conforming to the jewelry, they will understand that the jewelry you select is very important, and must be of a certain size and gauge.

Therefore, don’t let other piercers intimidate you.  Just because they put big, unattractive jewelry in their clients.  Don’t let that persuade you to do the same.  They are not doing their clients a good job by putting big gaudy jewelry in their piercings.

Asking probing questions will help you discover how you can help your clients.  Ask the questions in a non-judgmental manner.  Don’t act superior . . . your client will quit responding to your efforts to help them.

REMEMBER: Always listen after you ask the question.  By not responding immediately after your client has responded, will make them feel like they should keep talking — this is when you often get the “real” answer.  In other words, an awkward silence makes your client feel they should keep talking and you very often get an honest admission.  Just look at them nodding your head in an approving manner and say, “What else”?

If you do things to encourage them to keep talking, they will talk themselves out of their accusing tone.  Human nature is for them to walk into your studio and insinuate you caused their problem.  The more THEY TALK the easier it is for you to solve their problem.

REMEMBER: Never use terms like diagnose or recommend.  Always SUGGEST!

As body piercers, why do we insist on supplying jewelry for each piercing, instead of allowing people to bring their own jewelry off the street to be pierced with?

If I have pierced someone before and they bring in the jewelry that I pierced them with, and they want to use that jewelry, I generally will allow that. As long as the jewelry is not scratched or altered.

If I use their jewelry I used previously to pierce them with . . .  I charge them $5 to re-sterilize the jewelry in a Statum (Flash Sterilizer) before the piercing, and then charge the regular piercing fee less jewelry.

This is the only case where I will allow people to bring in jewelry for their piercing.

WHY NOT ALLOW PEOPLE TO BRING JEWELRY IN TO BE PIERCED WITH OFF THE STREET?

1. It is seldom appropriate for the piercing (length, gauge, metal composition, etc).

2. It is generally used by someone else and is scratched and not sterile.

3. A “GOOD” piercer uses special tools, needles, and various shortcuts to make a piercing smooth and comfortable. Therefore the tools and jewelry must be compatible to complete a successful and comfortable piercing. This is the reason many people have a good piercing experience with a piercer that uses compatible tools and jewelry, while other people have a bad experience with a piercer that struggles with a piercing because he uses incompatible tools, needles and jewelry. The Piercee pays the price ultimately by experiencing a very uncomfortable piercing and one that may not last.

4. Economics – generally it takes the entire piercing fee to pay for the operation of your piercing business, therefore, the profit and income for the piercer is found in the margin between the costs and retail charge for the jewelry.

5. Many people believe the piercer is responsible for the jewelry they insert into a piercing . . . in that case it is highly irresponsible to allow people to bring in jewelry for you to pierce them from the outside. The Piercer may end up paying a very high price in the end if the jewelry was substandard.

Since I pierce in Arizona, the first question many people have is can I go swimming after the piercing.  Best answer is NO!  However, you must deal with reality.  Cancer patients swear they will smoke until their last breath, so we deal with that type of mentality in body piercing too . . . people will do what they will do.

Your personal family swimming pool that is protected with proper chemicals is the least objectionable body of water for your fresh piercing.  If people want some protection they can use a non water-permeable wound protection such as Tegaderm or Clean Seals available at  drugstores.  These are clear waterproof bandages you can put over your piercing to provide some degree of protection from the water.

Cleaning after being in the pool with your piercing can be helpful, but realistically is is not likely to be effective in preventing potential infection.  Dirty water of rivers and lakes is not recommended for a healing piercing.  Try to avoid bodies of water with children . . . they have a hard time leaving the pool for bathroom breaks.

How to keep your body piercing out of trouble!

There is something about adorning oneself that can become addictive. From jewelry to shoes and even tattoos.  It has to do with adding that little extra touch that either gives you individuality, shows personality or frankly, just looks great! On a physiological level the addictive nature all stems from the same thing. When you shop, or get a piercing or tattoo, natural endorphins or feel good chemicals are released into your body, and because it makes us happy—we keep going back for more.

Welcome To Your Next Obsession is our company motto at Body Creations.  That why training is so important to give your clients the best experience you can give.  If you do they will come back on a regular basis and bring their friends.

In the quest for the perfect beach body and to fit into that teeny, weeny bikini you may have come across EA Sports Active. This is a game that can be played with the Nintendo Wii and can even incorporate the Wii balance board from Wii Fit.

The most potentially harmful flaw for people using EA Sports Active and Nintendo Wii is to those people with Body Piercings.

Many women, especially when in the comfort and privacy of their own home, exercise with just a sports bra on. If you happen to have a navel piercing, I would advise against this. EA Active Sports involves a lot of holding the Wii remote in one hand and the nunchuk in the other. You are then expected to punch, kick and dance like you’re in a 60’s nightclub, all the while with the cord connecting the remote and nunchuk flailing wildly about your abdomen.

So far there are no reports of any navel piercings being ripped out due to EA Sports Active use, but would you really like to be the first? Make sure to keep navel piercings covered or remove them entirely during EA Sports Active use.

The second, and probably more likely to be a cause for alarm for both pierced men and women, is that the cord also poses a danger to facial piercings.

Exercises such as shoulder presses, dance and basketball require you to lift the remote and nunchuk up over the head, and in the case of the latter two, requires a very quick motion to do it. I, personally, nearly had my lip ring ripped out during a basketball shooting exercise, which is what prompted me to write this and inform others of this little known danger.

Lip ring problems can easily be solved by using a captive bead ring, which will have no opening or cap for the cord to get stuck on.

Septum piercings can also cause a big risk, but can be solved with a septum retainer flipped up into the nostrils.

Eyebrow piercings, anti-eyebrow piercings and other facial surface piercings may be kept safer if a bandage is placed over them during exercise.