To Pierce My Own Ears

[Lazypeopledrivemecrazy]

Hi there

Posting here for traffic, as I'd like to know if anyone has used one of the DIY ear piercing kits, available from Amazon and other places, and if so, how easy was it to do, and was it painful? Also, were the earrings provided of decent quality?

I'm not thinking of doing it this way to save money, although obviously that would be a bonus, but because most places want you to make an appointment, and due to an unpredictable health condition, all too often I am forced to cancel at the last minute, which is really annoying both for me, and the person that I've inconvenienced. So I figured if this is something I can easily do myself, it might be a way of getting around the problem.

I should perhaps say that I actually had my ears pierced at 16, and wore earrings most of the time, up until about 6 years ago, when again, due to health problems unrelated to my ears, I stopped wearing them. Then when I was finally able to try again, I found that the holes had healed up, and try as I might, I just can't get an earring through these days. So I now find myself with loads of earrings, which unless I can get my ears pierced again, will just have to continue sitting in a drawer.

Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated.

I didn't mine twice on each ear with amazon kits.

I then did both my sisters and my daughters.

They're very easy to use. Just make sure everything stays sterile.

Go to a piercer who uses a needle and an autoclave. Christ on a bike 🙄

Just make sure everything stays sterile.

Oh yes @YogaBare how did you manage this then? Literally none of the things you will have used will be sterile, or anywhere near a sterile environment.

Sterile needles, fresh from the packets, same as at a piercer. The needles don't go in an autoclave, they're single use, the clamps go in the autoclave. But I didn't use clamps as it was only an ear piercing, not anything that needing clamping.

Sterile, singularly packaged gloves.

A disinfected metal tray, with a single use sterile pad on top.

Alcohol wipes for the skin.

I used to work in a tattoo shop as a receptionist and watched the piercings daily and I did absolutely nothing differently to an award winning peircernin terms of hygiene APART from using metal clamps that do need to go in the autoclave but that's irrelevant to the situation as she didn't use clamps for ears either.

"A kit from Amazon".

Mmhmm.

You don't need an appointment in superdrug, claires, accessorize etc. id say doing it yourself would be tricky. You'd want someone else to do it as to do it yourself you'd need a will of steel. I know people who have done their own. But best go to a shop. The piercing is often free, you pay for the jewellery.

Where do you think alot of piercer get their supplies from? Amazon is a retailer that sells the same items that wholesale tattoo shops do.

If you bought the same TV from Curry's and one from amazon would you expect the amazon one to be lesser quality? Straight out of the box?

Also never made an appointment at our local piercers. You just go in, fill out a form and then wait (usually not more than 5-10 mins).

I would double check this first before doing it yourself.

As PP says, it's tricky when the ears have already been pierced. Mine had closed up, so when I had them redone, the piercer had to be careful to find a new spot, so they weren't going through scar tissue.

was the alcohol consumed prior to piercing??!

I think its cheap at superdrug £10 last time I checked. I had mine done at 13 but they have closed up a few times I just redid them myself and its always been ok.

Do not get it done at super drug or Claires

They use a gun which is blunt force trauma. The ear is pierced with the earring, not a hallow needle. The needle takes a cylindrical slither of flesh out of the ear, making way for the jewellery.

A gun simply smashes into the flesh with blunt jewellery.

Also the guns are part plastic so cannot go in an autoclave (cleaning machine) so everytime they're used there is miniscule blood splatter from each client 🤢🤢

Piercers use single use needles, from a new singular packet each time.

I haven't had it done at those places to be fair, I probably did as a teen when I first got mine done but that was in like 1990 or something.

It is so expensive though at a piercers my niece had it done there and it cost £80. I'd just redo it myself to be honest, with a needle!

Whenever I’ve had cartilage piercings done with a proper needle, they’ve not healed properly, or taken ages to heal, or scarred. Nose and cartilage. I had them redone with a gun and they were fine.

Why is that?

I know it wasn’t wise, by the way, in case anyone thinks they might follow my example. It was a looong time ago.

When I was young and stupid, I pierced my own ears.
No kit or anything, just ice and a hat pin that I'd attempted to sterilise.
Not suggesting you do it this way though!
BUT
They are wonky. I didn't go through either ear straight, and they bug the hell out of me 30 odd years later.
But as it was my third hole I've never bothered to do anything about it.

Me too - an ice cube and a darning needle worked a treat. Who needs a ‘proper’ kit, lol

Lol, I think you have upset, her by actually knowing what you were doing 😂 I appreciate the info though and will follow your lead when I do mine!

I wouldn't do this tbh . All kinds of problems. From sepsis or a normal infection can be painful and difficult to treat. Often just walk in appointments as above pp have said

I have done two of my own piercings as I ended up with lots of small odd earings. I did them when I was about 16/17. It didn't hurt then again I have painful periods. I didn't use an ice cube but I did disinfect the skin on my ear. I used ear piercing earrings and just pushed them through. My piercings didn't have to line up. I did later have two more done at a tattoo place with a needle as I wanted one higher up on my ear. (My initial two were done when I was a baby.)

If you are just going to place them where you had your old ones and you know you heal fine, then doing yourself won't be a problem.

If however you want them to line up in a different place, done on your cartilage rather than your lobe or have trouble healing then go to a tattoo parlour that does piercings.

Even with reputable piercing places which use needles, they're usually fine to do walk ins for piercings, it's usually tattoos that need booking in, as they take so much longer.

Find numbers for a few that you trust and then give them a call at a time when you have capacity to go - pretty likely you'll find someone who'll be able to help.

I wouldn't but like someone else said I doubt I'd get them properly matching, especially as you'd have to use your non dominant had at one point. I can imagine going cross eyed too trying to follow it in a mirror!

I got mine done in Superdrug, no appointment needed (I was in to buy shampoo and just thought why not 😂). I was watching carefully for hygiene etc, all seemed fine and no issues with the piercing.

For a re-piercing I'd definitely go to a professional body piercer. My sister is a tattooist/body piercer and she's done all my piercings and my kids with a proper needle.

My youngest let hers close up and she redone them for her, just because you can't get an earring through doesn't mean it's fully closed.

Most places do walk-ins for simple piercings, check in your area before going down the Amazon route with a spring loaded bit of rubbish. My friends daughter got hers stuck and had to go to A&E to get it removed, apparently they've seen a few cases like hers where the spring doesn't work properly and release the earring.

I went to a professional piercer recently for my thirds and they charged £5 per ear. I just walked in.

I would be more concerned about them being wonky than anything else, but overall, the risk of doing at home isn't that high, however the cost of professional piercing isn't high either.

It's entirely up to you 🤷🏼‍♀️.

Boarding school, late 70s, sunday afternoon. A can of Waspeez some snow from outside a needle and a cork.
We all got them. Mine still going strong

But i can't say i'd recommend it. i had no idea you could get kits now