Ear piercing for 12 year old - needle or gun?

[Leafy2018]

My daughter is having her ears pierced for her birthday this month. I'm really keen for them to be done well. I've read about needles being better than ear piercing guns. Can anyone share their experiences with me please? She isn't keen on idea of needle but I'm not totally sure how much pain she would feel with this versus a piercing gun? Is it much more painful?

I have only just got some earrings at age 35 that haven't made the little lumps in my ears get all inflamed. I think you don't get the lumps with the needle as it cores out a sliver of skin as opposed to pushing the skin aside with a blunt earring.

Also - we are in Hampshire about 30 minutes south of Guildford. Any recommendations very welcome! Thank you.

@sashh the gloves in that video are the same as the ones used in the NHS... Think about that.

Also, the video shows crap practice. Needles look nothing like that now. They are single use and have plastic attachments.

Thank you so much for all the replies. So helpful! @Esspee my daughter has wanted her ears pierced for about 2 years. She is actually quite afraid of pain so I highly doubt you would get them done out of peer pressure. I think calling it 'body mutilation' is a bit over the top and pearl clutchy. I'm not taking her for a tattoo across her shoulder blades!

Needle seems the way forward so I will investigate the best place to have this done.

Big thanks for all the info!

Leafy can you get to Chichester? If so I can recommend somewhere. Otherwise I've been recommendations on fb for, I think, a place in Farnham?

Be aware that if she’s back in school in the first week of September she won’t be able to do PE until the six weeks is up as she won’t be able to take them out.

Most schools, including ours, won’t let children cover them with a plaster for PE - they have to be removed.

Interesting thread - my mum was what I always considered fairly traditional/ordinary when it came to parenting, not extremely strict and not extremely relaxed either - turns out she must have been a real liberal to let me have my ears pierced age 5! With a gun, they’re fine more than 20 years later (no regrets in case anyone’s wondering whether I’ve been emotionally scarred due to this ‘mutillation’ - seriously, pretty much every woman I’ve known wears earrings, it’s hardly the same an eyebrow piercing, what’s to regret?) I remember having it done it barely hurt, no tears.

It is too young to decide on actions which can't be undone in the future

Can’t be undone? Hyperbole much?

Earlobe piercings can be “undone” by leaving the holes to close up or... by deciding to no longer wear earrings. As you well know. And if you’re going to argue that earlobes with holes that no longer have earrings in are unsightly and mutilated, well 🤦‍♀️

Yes - needle
Cleaner and done by someone actually trained to do it not a teenager with a Saturday job.
And most schools let you send in micropore to cover them. I’ve never known a child unable to do pe because of ear piercing.

Go to a reputable tattoo parlour and ask them for a recommendation. Whether a gun or needle is best depends on the thickness of the earlobes when you’re that age. Thick earlobes - needle. Thinner lobes - usually gun but depends on their equipment and the earring. Gun piercings are less painful and quicker to heal provided you follow the instructions and buy a long enough stud. So many kids have problems because their parents chose a fashionable earring rather than a longer stainless steel one. The first earrings should be functional.

I'm so pleased you got some good advice on here. I've had several piercings over the years (as well as a number of tattoos). The piercings done by a professional piercer at a studio were much better done, healed quicker and were less painful. The ones I had done with a gun when I was young were much harder to heal and were much more painful. I still remember how sore my ears were when they were pierced many years ago.
Also to the previous poster who said a piercer "may or may not be trained" no studio worth their salt would employ an untrained piercer. Claire's staff may have had "training" but I highly doubt it's of the same quality.
Most studios around here would pierce your daughters ears at 12 provided they had parental consent and you'll be given good aftercare instructions.

@WreckTangled Hi and thanks for offer of recommendation - I can definitely get to Chichester yes!

This has all been so helpful - sorry I'm bit writing more. House move and baby prevents it!

here you go she is booked for the rest of August but definitely worth going there

My ears were done with a gun at Claires and they both bent when they were pierced so my holes healed with a sharp bend in them that made them very painful when I needed to change earrings and I would only ever get a piercing with a needle now a days anyway cus I know better now, needles are just better all around and the piercers are held toa higher standard in a tattoo/piercing shop than a short retail claires course

Thanks so much, that looks absolutely ideal. Fantastic reviews. Really appreciate your help!

@NekoShiro I hear you. Mine have never been right either.

I got my daughters done for her 12th birthday. I had the same fears about guns and untrained teenagers at Claire's etc.

We went to London and got it done at Astrid & Miyu near Selfridges. They were great.

I'd only do it at the beginning of the summer school holidays though as they need to be left in for 6 weeks, and not all schools allow them to be left in.
Also your 12yo has to be responsible enough to know not to fiddle with them and how to use the saline.

Ps that was with a needle

My DD had hers done a few weeks ago using the method @sashh shared above. Very clean and the quickest method I've seen. I took her to a tattoo/piercing shop I've used myself many times. They don't need to be in 6 weeks before you take them out, it's 2-3 weeks.

I've ten piercings - some with guns and some with needles. The ones with guns - three - have always caused issues, and hurt more.
The gun makes a popping noise, a needle doesn't. A needle is sterile, a gun isn't. It's a no brainer to me 🤷‍♀️

All booked in! Thank you so much everyone for advice, experiences and for the recommendation. Can't wait to celebrate my daughter's special day with some jolly body mutilation!

Brilliant. Hope she is happy with them once they're done

A reputable piercer is unlikely to pierce a 12 year old - and for good reason

It's her ears she wants pierced not her bloody nipples fgs. Of course a reputable piercer will do it.

And most schools let you send in micropore to cover them. I’ve never known a child unable to do pe because of ear piercing.
I've worked in several schools. None of them allowed children to do PE in earrings, covered or not. A parent cannot give permission for their child to wear them and accept liability. If an earring comes out and another child stands on it causing an injury, or even worse passing on an infection, school would be liable.

It’s a tradition around here that the girls get their ears pierced last day if Y6 ad no earrings in jr school but are in st school and it gives them the six weeks to heal as they have to take them out for games.
Needle gets the vote from here too.

@Munchkin08 where in London did you get it done as I can’t find a borough that permits needle piercings on under 16’s..

It might take longer than 6 wks to heal in my experience, plus I don't like a tradition that suggests all girls are ready to have their ears pierced at the same time.

My ten year old has had plenty of needles in her body for health reasons, so if she thinks she can cope with piercings then I'm inclined to believe her. I wouldn't want a 12 year old who wasn't ready to feel she had to have hers done at 12 because all the other girls were.

The idea that its your body you decide what happens if and when, well I've used the whole ear piercing issue as a practice for consent in general.