Earrings for DD - gun or professional piercing, what's better and why?

[cloudjumper]

I have promised DD(8) that she can get her ears pierced in the summer, and I'm now looking where to go. When I had my ears pierced, using the gun (at a renowned and well-established jeweller) was the only option (it was a looong time ago), but I now hear from many people that they get their children's ears pierced at a piercing studio, and that the gun is apparently a big No-No.
Anyone got any advice to share on this? Pros and Cons?

Needle is definitely the way to go. Less blunt force trauma, less risk of infection and generally just better all round. No reputable piercer would use a gun.

I had my ears pierced again recently with a needle. Years ago ( 35 plus) i had it done with a gun. I was very nervous this time( scaredy cat)but was much better with a needle, not as painful as I remember and no healing/cleaning issues like I had with the gun. Not much other advice but I’ve had both and wouldn’t do the gun again.

Oh and whatever you do stay away from Claire's Accessories. They are a shit show and should not be allowed to pierce children's ears.

Agree with needle. I would recommend a tattoo shop that does piercings btw.

A gun basically forces a blunt object (the earring) through the skin

A needle slides through the skin, creating the hole

Guns are awful, I can't believe they're still used at all

Needle every time. But you might struggle to find a decent piercer who will pierce an 8 year old, many of them are 10+.

NO GUNS!

Needle piercing only.

Needle all the way mine has hers done at 8 (the tattooist needed her to consent to it as being her idea) and was fine compared to others who got infected by using guns hers was fine. It is actually fairly painless it is just the idea I think sounds worse but if you know what you are doing it is fine

I agree with going for a needle piercing. See if you have a branch of Blue Banana near you (mostly Midlands and West Country). They were excellent with my DD and provided a lot of free aftercare advice.

I had mine done with a gun about 40 years ago. More recently I wanted a second hole, the jeweller used a gun but it didn't pierce properly at the back and I didn't realise at the time, nor did the jeweller. Two days later the earring dropped out and I couldn't get it back in because the 'hole' had already healed up at the back.

Make sure you call around. My local needle/tattoo shop won’t do ear lobe piercings for under 14s. My dd had hers done with a needle at 14/15. The bloody things took ages to settle (just over a year!)

This, but I’d also include most jewellers/places that do it “on the side”

I took my daughter to a reputable jewellers. A week or some after they became infected (par for the course with a 9yr old) the earring was virtually lost in her ear due to the swelling.
I rang the jewellers for advice, they didn’t have a clue.

Spoke to some people who understand piercing and took her to a piercing parlour/tattoo place. They swapped out the too short earring for a longer one to allow for swelling. Told me how to make cleaning solution. It cost me £10!

what did I learn?

• when piercing you need to use a long stick earring as standard, little girls usually want sparkly and a ball stud isn’t that so jewellers don’t use them.
• you don’t need expensive solutions, salt water works much better.

piercing parlour all the way!

It's a very mumsnet thing that guns are bad but everyone I know had their dcs done that way and all were fine. We're only talking about a tiny hole, not major surgery.

I very briefly worked at a Claire's I was "trained" to pierce ears on a square of foam!!! Someone put a dot on it with a pen, I then pierced that dot with a gun....then I was good to go on the general public!
I was 17, and no I wouldn't recommend!
(Edited to include my age)

It's not really a "Mumsnet thing" though is it. Is common knowledge in the piercing world that guns are an infection risk, that they cause blunt force trauma and they're generally considered a poor option by anyone with any sense

I had my daughter’s ears pierced last year with a needle at a piercing shop. It was much more expensive than what’s offered on the high street but I’d say worthwhile. She’s the sort of kid who is slow to heal from cuts and scrapes so I was worried about having her ears pieced. However, it was such a smooth process she is now planning all her other piercings.

One thing to be mindful of is that they advise leaving a few weeks before swimming ( I think 4-6 but can’t remember) so if you have plans to be in a pool over the summer you need to check timings.

Guns discharge very quickly without good control which is how mine was done, albeit years ago. One of my ear lobe piercings is at a different angle to the other and so hoops look silly. Needle every time for a neat and consistent result.

Needle definitely. My very pain adverse child didn't even know the needle had gone in till the piercer showed the finished ear in the mirror!

Needle all the way - had my lobes done with a gun aged 8 at a beauty salon and it hurt like buggary. Had my 2nd lobe piercings done as an adult with a needle and it was quick and painless. Try to find a reputable tattoo and piercing place because they are usually very experienced in hygiene around needles. Always make sure the needle they are using is disposable, at the place I go to they show you it inside the packet before they even start. They should also be recommending you have a longer earring post to begin with to account for swelling.

I read all this needle vs gun stuff and got my DD’s done at an expensive jeweller, big tattooed piercer, used a needle, they seemed to know what they were doing. One ear gave her an awful lot of pain when pierced.
after the 6-8 weeks when she took them out the holes closed up immediately and she hasn’t worn earrings since. No idea what happened. She was 11 then, she’s 14 now and has agreed to have another go but I’m unsure when to get it done because she does a lot of sport but over the summer break we’ll be away and she’ll want to be in the pool etc.
I will still be going to a needle place though I guess.

Another adding to the chorus of needle only.

The guns cannot be fully sterilised, they inflict blunt trauma, much more likely to go wonky, leave more scar tissue .... the list is endless.

Add to that the fact that a professional piercers will be well trained on the skin and how to how to pierce properly and will notice things that may cause issues and offer advice tailored to the situation.

A shop worker, with a gun, has completed a very brief training course and been let loose.

My younger girls were done with the Inverness Piercing system. It is quite gentle and hygienic. My eldest was done at Claire’s and had terrible infections that needed antibiotics.

Needle for my DD10. Been fine. More hygienic and precise.

I followed the mn love of needle for dd1 - took ages to heal and I have had three piercings myself with the gun that healed perfectly many years before. With dd2&3 we went for guns and again, healed quickly. We went to a nice salon and it was all very hygienic. Much faster and less painful with the gun too. I wouldn’t go to Claire’s though.

Both my DC had needle piercings. One DD took ages to heal - around 12 months. The other was fine.

Mine were done with a gun aged 16 and were fine. A needle seems the done thing these days, but it is much more expensive.