How Do I Pick a Piercer?

Never pick a piercer by: a close location to where you live, cheap prices, the nice add he put in the paper, or just because he’s a good friend of your sister…
There are loads of great piercers around the globe, as well as a greater number of amateur piercers. The two main criteria you should consider as far as you’re concerned are: professionalism and sterility.

Get recommendations
If you’re not an experienced “pierced”, you’ll have a hard time evaluating the piercer in front of you all by yourselves. So the best way would be, simply learning from the experience of others. Do not randomly walk into the first studio you run into. You’re not getting a can-o-coke. You’re going to perform a procedure on your body that is simple enough, medically, but a procedure that must be performed well, and an amateur piercer might jeopardize your health. So, the best way for you is simply asking friends that are proud owners of piercings, and get a specific recommendation of their piercer. Don’t settle for the name of the studio, because in many studios there are a number of piercers, each one with his level of professionalism and sterility. Find the specific piercer you were sent to, and only go to him.

Check the level of sterility
Luckily for us, a piercer that isn’t working in sterile conditions is a rare sight in the 21st century. Today, more than ever, maintaining a sterility level of 100% is a cheap and easy task. Taking out third world countries, you’ll almost never find a piercer using a used needle or working with no gloves.
None the less, don’t be ashamed to ask the piercer to show you how he works. Don’t be contented by a piece of paper hanging on the wall reading: “Health Department License”. Anyone can get (or fake) one, you’d want to see with your own eyes!
A professional piercer would keep an “autoclave” machine in the studio. An “autoclave” is a machine that looks like an oven, generates hot temperatures (about 130C degrees), and steam. In such a machine, we sterilize the none-dispensable tools, to make sure there are no living organisms on them.
The needles should be dispensable needles, and the jewelry must be new and sterilized
The needle and the forceps (the vise used for griping the pierced organ), and other tools, must come from sterile, hermetically sealed casings. On the casing, there is an indicator saying it’s been sterilized.
The piercer must work with dispensable gloves, and mustn’t touch any object not covered in nylon or a special paper during the piercing process.

Check the level of professionalism
Many piercers proudly hang photographs of their works on the studio walls.
If your piercer doesn’t have such photographs on the wall – ask for a portfolio (I don’t believe anyone would stoop so low as to show you someone else’s works…).
Look through the album and find a piercing identical to the one you want to do, and check their level of professionalism. If you’re looking for a rare piercing, and you can’t find it in the album – check out the piercings that do show in the album and test them. A professional piercer would be able to perfectly perform even piercings that he’s never done before. If for some reason he’ll think a certain piercing is “beyond him” – rest assured he’ll tell you on time, and won’t turn you into gene-pigs.
Further more, you can trust a professional piercer to recommend the right piercing for you, considering the shape, size, material, and most importantly, its quality (for further details read the article: “What Types of Jewelry Are There?”)

Talk with the piercer
It’s very important to have a good communication with the piercer. You’d want a nice, patient piercer, and not a nervous and impatient one. You’re just gonna have much more fun getting pierced by him, especially if you’re a bit nervous or a bit scared…

Do not forget:
You’re not buying a T-shirt, in which case if you find out after buying it that it’s of low quality – you can throw it to the garbage and get a new one. This is your body we’re talking about here. If the damage an unprofessional piercer caused is only esthetical and the puncture turned out a bit imprecise or crooked – you got off easy.
You can immediately remove the piercing, wait a short period of time and get pierced again, this time by a professional piercer. But if you carefully read the article “Is it Dangerous?” – you’ll understand that in a lot of cases the risk your taking by choosing the wrong piercer might be a lot more severe…
Even if it means waiting a bit longer before getting pierced, saving a bit more money, or traveling a bit further – it pays in the end. Check well and do not compromise!!