to let my DD get her ears pierced...

[PuppyMonkey]

... if she's 11 years old...?

hmmm, borderline for me, think it's too young still - but I don't yet have a 11yo begging!!

I keep impressing upon dd 4yo how VERY VERY PAINFUL it will be, am hoping to get her beyond 11 with this approach but who knows!!

I am quite tempted to just say I don't mind... because I suspect she will be too chicken to actually go ahead.

She reckons she is the only girl in Yr 6 not to have hers done...

No YANBU. I think that it is a reasonable age.

Well I was 12 and had spend 6 months begging.
11 is plenty old enough to know what she wants and to take care of the piercings, so why not?

I'd probably let her at 11.

dd1 had hers done at 11.

I felt that she was old enough to understand that it would hurt and she wanted to go ahead anyway, so she did.

It depends, I think, on the child. If you think that she is aware of what she is letting herself in for but still wants to go ahead, then twould be ok.

No I think that's fine. Both mine had theirs done when they were 9. But you need to be really vigilant with the cleanliness part and use the surgical spirit twice a
day for about 6 weeks.

I agree Smartie - that's sort of why i was thinking of letting her do it now so I can keep an eye on her a bit during six weeks hols and it should be all healed up by time she goes to (secondary-ahh) school again.

I let mine have theirs done at 11y. It usually coincides with them leaving primary school and starting secondary. It's worked well for us.

i've told my dd she can have hers done in the summer hols before secondary... but have noticed lots of her friends are starting to get them done now (8) and am wondering when the subject will be raised...
i didn't have mine done until i was 16 - i did it in the lunch hour of my saturday job lol.

I probably would relent at 11 on the condition she knows what is involved in looking after them and will commit to doing so.

However I think I have impressed on my DD (9) that having a gun shoot a piece of spiky metal through your ear is in fact very painful, so I don't think I am going to have to deal with it for a few more years.

Actually, I haven't a clue where to have it done! Claire's Accessories???

YANBU my DD has hers done, she's 10.

I think 11 is ok and Summer holidays is ideal, as they may have to take them out for PE at school, and you have to keep them in for 6 weeks. I think once children are going into senior school it is fine.

I was made to wait til I was 16, and had them done on my birthday when Mum sent me up the road for bread!I hated her for making me wait. Ironically have never really worn earrings since I left school as they irritate my skin.

I had mine done when I was 11, my mum had just had hers done and I think she felt she couldn't say no. I went with a friend to a hairdresser my mum knew. I have to say it didn't hurt but the expression on my friend's face as he watched was priceless.

tbh i dont understand what all the fuss is over pierced ears! most adults have them done its clear that she will have them don at one point in her life so why not now when she is asking? if she doesnt like them she can take them out and no harm done and it doesnt hurt that much!

my four year old was old enough to realise that she had to clean her peierced ears and it was her reminding me most of the time. we got some drops to use. so i cant see any reason why an 11 year wouldnt be able to do this.

dd1 started asking when she was 3 my mum thought it would be a good idea to tell about how she pierced her brothers ears with a hot needle to explain that it hurt apparently! which out the idea in dd1s head so i thought id let her get them done in order to prevent her sticking pins through her ears as she had already climbed up to my jewellary box an dtried to do it herself with one of my earrings!!

i explained how they did it and that sh owuld have to clean them etc and we took her to a hairdressers to see the guns and decide if she wanted it doing! she went ahead and got them done but wouldnt put them back in when one fell out as she thought it would hurt so they healed over. she had them done by a (qualified) friend of mine just before xmas as she wanted it doing again! so it obv didnt put her off.

its not like she she asking if she can have a tattoo or peirced eyebrow!!!

Mine were 12 when they had theirs done, but I think 11 is fine.

I let my DD have hers done on the last day of summer term last 6 weeks before 10th birthday, this was so they would heal in the summer and she could get earrings for her birthday. 2 weeks later we ended up in a&e with the earing stuck inside her ear, after the back got caught in a towel and was dragged through her ear. The earring was too small and was very narrowed almost to a point where it met the stem.
If she wants it done again this year it will last day of term again and I going to find a jeweller that does earrings that are chunkier. It will be 6 weeks before her 11th birthday.
She is the last of her friends to get them done.

nah, i say 15! Thats how old me and my sisters all had to be!

micci25 i agree completelyi think that it looks awful in toddlers but once they get over a certain age and understand that it will sting then why notmy sister and i were not allowed our ears pierced until we were 11 and we were the only girls in school not have pierced ears - and we did in fact try to do them ourselves and get friends to have a go with a needle i will be letting dd have them done when she is older not sure about claires accessories they are very expensive for what you get and when they did mine (third hole in each ear - i was 20 odd) they did the holes wonky!!

I begged and begged for mine to be done, and finally was granted my wish at 16...((and that was only becuase I spent xmas that year very very ill, and so I think they agreed as they finally felt sorry for me!!!))

I than always swore that my DD's would be able to have theirs done when they asked, which for each turned out to be 4yo!!!

I was early amongst my friends, but I am still happy with my choice,as are my girls.

so, from my point of view, YANBU.

but I suspect many others here would say wait.

end of the day tho, tis your choice still!

i would let her at 11

do not go to claires accessories if you do decide to go ahead!! they are riducoulsy expensive!! the second time my dd1 wanted hers doing it was xmas eve so the hiardressers was closed! so we checked claires and were told prices started at £22!! and went up £40 depending upon which earrings they chose!

dd1 was dragged away kicking and screaming and i called my friend who came around later that day and did them free!! go to a hairdressers there prices are a lot better its about £12 here.

11 is fine.

I don't think the cost should be important, but what I don't like about Claires is that they use non gold earrings, which can cause allergies and they do babies (fed up seeing babies sitting the window howling). Most jewellers when I was younger wouldn't do under 3 (still too young)