11 year old wants ear piercing

Me too Wheel that photo you posted with all the sites - I'm looking at my ear with one lobe and a small daith hoop (other one has 4 ) and thinking "Ooooh there's room for a new piece ....."

I have 10 piercings, nine of which are in my ears, including three helixes.

Second lobe for a 11-year-old, fine. But any cartilage piercings (which is what a helix piercing is) really need to wait until she’s at least 13 or 14, preferably older.

A cartilage piercing of any kind is a bigger deal than a lobe piercing. They take much longer to heal (it can be many, many months), require more diligent aftercare, and MUST be done with a needle by a proper piercer. Even lobes are much better done with a needle, but it’s doubly important for a cartilage piercing - with a gun, there’s far more risk of the cartilage shattering or infection setting in, which could see your child end up with an unfixable cauliflower ear.

If your daughter’s school doesn’t allow multiple ear piercings, and she has to keep taking a helix piercing out, it will never heal properly and will just keep getting infected - even if she had it done at the start of the holidays, it wouldn’t be anywhere near healed by the time term starts again.

I really want my conch done.

You’re v lucky then!! I have 12 cartilage piercings and helix’s were the worst ones to heal every single time. Conch was best because I could sleep on that ear after 6 months 😅

Dd had 1sts at 11, 2nds at 13

Then more from 16 onwards
She's 18 now & got 20 including nipples, belly button, nose and 16 various ear ones. Some are fine but she's had a few healing issues, all were done at a pro studio with a needle

I would say ok to 2nd lobes at start of summer, but then nothing else until 14/16 which the piercing studio will total back you up on

I’d say yes to the second lobe ones and then helix at 13.

Helix piercings are notoriously difficult to heal and are prone to getting infected and knocked easily. Mine was a nightmare for a good year.

I let my DD get a second lobe piercing at 11 (end of yr 6 treat), she had the first one at 8. I don't think there's much difference between having one or two lobe piercings.
I have said nothing else until she's older though, she would love a bellybutton piercing and more higher up her ear, I think 16 is more appropriate for them but I might let her have the ears done at 14.

My (22 year old) daughter has a helix. It takes a lot longer to heal than a lobe and she may struggle with school depending on their uniform/PE policy as even if you get it done at the start of the holidays it won’t be healed in time.

@Kira4 this may help you.

Helix’s can be a bastard to heal. I have several and a forward helix which has been an absolute pain to heal. Do they even allow them at school?

I’d let her have the second lobe piercing but not the helix. I got a second lobe piercing the summer between primary and high school.

I wouldn't offer a compromise piercing. Because she will still want the higher up one so you're kicking the can down the road and offering her something she doesn't want.

Just checked, it’s 13 for second lobes (don’t tell my daughter!) and 14 for cartilage. They require parental consent and ID for both parties.

I'm very pierced and any piercing further up the ear is a nightmare to heal and keep clean. I have also lost a piercing which was part of a scaffold. I've got a tiny bit of ear missing, albeit covered by other piercings.

No piercer should be working on 11 year olds and school will make her take it out whatever she does. They close over really quick too. If she's that set on it, horror stories won't work so I'd let her try but it'll last 5 minutes. Her 'friends' will probably laugh nervously at her once they egg her on.

I’m pretty relaxed about piercings. Mostly because my mum was so strict and wouldn’t allow me to get my ears done until I was 16. So I got my nipples done at 14, belly button done twice (top and bottom) at 15. Then at 16 I got my ears done 3 times, tragus, lip, nose, helix, eye brow and tongue.

I don’t think piercers these days will do underage kids so I’d probably let her have the bottom done again and helix whenever the professionals allow it

I’ve no idea but I wasn’t going to argue! I had mine done young and with a gun (used to be £5 a pair in my local hairdressers). I assume it’s to do with being responsible enough to look after them and I assume they know most schools don’t allow more than one piercing.

I don't think there's any danger with a 2nd lobe but it depends on your ear structure how fleshy they are .
I always had really tiny lobes ( as in my ear met my face with no lobe fleshy bit)
I had a 2nd piercing done on one ear at 18 ( with a gun ) as I didn't have enough fleshy ear on the other .

Best thing is to take her to a proper piercing /tattoo salon and let them suggest what will work .
Though be prepared - most use titanium, it is ££ . I spent £85 on 1 gold hoop for my daith to replace my original.
And this isn;t a Maria Tash price salon either !

Yes to echo others my helix took the best part of a year to stop hurting and sleeping on it was a nightmare- I have many piercings and that was deffo the worst!

DD had first lobes at 10, second at 12 I think, then thirds at 16, daith at 16, helix 17, eyebrow 19 ... and she's ruminating on the next.

She reckons the helix was actually the worst of the lot, and a real pain to sleep with. She had the thirds/helix/daith/brow done at a local, well rated tattoo parlour, whose aftercare is great, and they won't do helix until 14 (and lobes until 13).

My rules for my dds were: 1st lobe piercing at 11, 2nd at 13, helix at 16, anything else over 18. I think that's quite normal round here. Of course you run the risk that they will get their mates will do it for them (just recently found out that my 18yo has been hiding a small tattoo from me for three years) but I still think it's good for them to have to wait for certain rites of passage.

11 is OK IMO.

You can get fake jewellry cuffs that you need to pinch to fit them over the edge of the ear ( I used to glue a diamante stud to my nose with false nail glue when I was 16 , also did this on my ears )

My DD wasn't put off piercings , she had a tragus ( but changed it too quickly ) which she to let heal .
When she was 16 she got her belly button done ( she made me go with her even though she could've gone herself ) and recently we got our traguses done .

Any cartilige piecring takes longer to heal , and is vunerable to damage or knocks . I have trained myself to sleep on one side .

Painwise , everyone is different ,and depends on the skill of your piercer .My daith was the least uncomfortable. It is fiddly to fit the jewellery .

As a fairly pierced person myself I haven’t been able to say no to my daughter. Our local piercing studio however won’t pierce second lobes under 14, which has taken the pressure off as she knows it’s not me saying no, but the studio. I had my helix done at 12 and it was bloody horrendous to heal.