We do not advocate the use of guns for any piercings.
You can still find them in high street stores and jewellers- some parents seem to think that they are a better option for their children as:
1. They can sometimes opt to get both ears done at the same time
2. They think that a needle will be more painful.
Here are the facts about both methods:
Jewellery
Gun jewellery is often cheap, or unsuitable for fresh piercings. It is usually a combination of steel and nickel, to which a lot of people have sensitivities. It can cause red, itchy scaly patches which can easily become inflamed or infected.
You will also find when you try to remove the butterfly backs you really have to pull them, which is not good for a healing piercing.
The jewellery is a 1 size fits all stud. Lobes are different thicknesses and the gun often clips them on tight, leaving no room for swelling. In this instance, the ear will swallow either the front or the back of the jewellery. This will require a trip to A&E and often surgical removal. This can be accompanied by a nasty infection.
People often ask if we use gold or silver jewellery. This is unsuitable for initial piercings (14ct+ gold is OK but we do not use it).
We use implant grade titanium, which is a pure hypoallergenic and non reactive metal. It is used to make prosthetic joints and is safe to be implanted into the body. It is far better quality than gold, solver or surgical steel. Our jewellery has been manufactured in the UK so it can be traced right back to where it was milled if required.
Trauma
The gun causes a blunt force trauma by firing a stud straight through the ear. This can cause throbbing, bruising and pain for some time after. Guns were only ever intended for soft lobe piercings. Untrained staff in high street stores are still using them to pierce cartilage, which can shatter to leave the client with a cauliflower ear; and also noses for which the jewellery is completely unsuitable which can cause the skin to collapse and the piercing to sink into the nose, never mind trying to remove them for an uncomfortable client!
Hygiene
We only use single use needles called cannulas for piercing and all other tools and equipment which come into contact with clients are thoroughly sterilised and then run through an autoclave.
A gun is usually just put back in its drawer or case, sometimes getting a wipe in between. It cannot be effectively sterilised as it is made of plastic and cannot be autoclaved.
There is a risk of blood borne pathogens contaminating the equipment, which could lead to serious illness including Hepatitis B, as well as risking infection.
Training and Aftercare
Piercers who use a gun have usually undertaken a basic course which lasts around half a day. They may get to pierce one person’s ear. You will find that ifyou xperience a problem after their piercing, these establishments are not equipped to deal with it and you will nd up phoning someone such as ourselves for support or advice.
The aftercare advice given is sub standard and can actually hinder the healing process. This is made worse by the sale of “solutions which can half your healing time”, which is physically impossible - the body takes 6 weeks for a full depth epidermal healing and much longer for a cartilage piercing. It is simply a rip off sales gimmick.
Getting Both Ears Pierced at Once
Whilst you can see the logic of this argument, in reality it can cause more problems than it solves.
Firstly, the piercers will have to trigger the gun at exactly the same time. If this is not the case, the bang can make the child jump and their instinct is to move their head. Even if this is only slight, it can result in one earring being too high and one too low. We have seen them more or less hanging out of the bottom of the lobe before now.
Price
In your well known high street stores, a set of lobe piercings costs from £50-£120. It costs the retailer a fraction of this price to do the treatment. The addition of gold (unsuitable) jewellery and aftercare solution which makes untruthful claims can bump up the cost to the consumer considerably.
Our treatments are below £50- our jewellery is more expensive to buy, plus the equipment, sterlilisation costs, PPEand clinical waste bump up the costs at our end but we like to keep our treatments as reasonably priced as we can. We offer simple cost effective aftercare products and also advise how you can make your own products at home if you prefer this option.
Summary
Whilst it is ultimately your choice in the method you choose to get your piercings done, we hope that this information can help you to make an informed decision.
In short- we use custom fit, implant grade titanium jewellery which is non reactive and hypoallergenic.
Our process is much gentler on the ear and will avoid the sore, throbbing sensation afterwards- the person being pierced will just feel a slight stingy warm sensation for a couple of minutes after piercing. A numbing product is used to heel our clients comfortable.
There is less scope for bruising and there is no risk of shattering the cartilage.
Aside that, the person being pierced will be in a safe, hygienic and private environment with staff qualified and experienced to supprt you during and after your procedure; rather than being sat in a shop window with people watching when you may already be feeling worried and nervous.
We have two clinics- both are by prior appointment only so that you have complete pivacy during your treatment. We undertake all aspects of body piercing above the waist and stick a wide variety of beautiful jewellery to swap into your healed piercings.
We are situated in Whittle le Woods, Chorley in Lancashire and Swillington, Leeds in West Yorkshire.
Our Piercing Academy is run from our Whittle le Woods location.
For information on our ear and body piercing training courses, visit our sister company Estetica Piercing Academy at www.esteticapiercingacademy.com
Fo more information on piercing or our other treatments, visit us at www.esteticapermanentcosmetics.co.uk