1. Does the placement of a piercing hurt?

2. Can I wear earrings in a body piercing?

3. Does it matter where I buy my piercing-jewellery?

4. Do you always use a new needle or do the old ones get resterilised?

5. My piercer does not have an autoclave (sterilisationdevice), but he always uses sterilised needles. Is this safe?

6. Which metals are safe for piercing-jewellery?

7. I bought/got a piercing from a friend/acquaintance. Can I use it?

8. Can I use my old jewellery for a new piercing?

9. How many piercing can I get in one visit?

10. I'm extremely nervous, can I have a few drinks before I come in?

11. Do I make an appointment?

12. Do I get a scar if I remove my piercing?

13. Can I switch the piercings myself?

14. Recognised training-seminars-diplomas-certificates-associations-leagues

15. What does it mean to have a piercing license?

16. Do you use piercing-guns?

17. Will my piercings trigger a metaldetectionsystem?

18. Why do I need a smaller stud once my tongue piercing is healed?

19. Can I swallow my tongue piercing?

20. Will my piercing get in the way when I visit my dentist?

21. Why is my bellybutton piercing stuck to one side?

22. How old must I be to get a piercing?

23. Do genital piercing disturb the snuggling?

24. STRETCHING.

25. Can I loose my job if I get a visible piercing?

1. Does the placement of a piercing hurt?
The pain lasts just a fraction of a second. A professional works fluently and fast, resulting in an almost painless piercing. Your imagination is a lot worse than reality!

2. Can I wear earrings in a body piercing?
NO!!! Real piercing-jewellery is the only safe choice. Earrings are much too thin and could tear out. The quality of the metal is a lot lower than that of piercing-jewellery, which increases the change for infections.

3. Does it matter where I buy my piercing-jewellery?
More and more small jewellery stores, trendy fashion-shops and even post order-companies include piercing-jewellery in their line of products. You could get your jewellery there, but the quality is not guaranteed. In these stores the purchaser is responsible for the buy of clothing, shoes, watches, jewellery in general, purses etc. Such a job requires the cheapest buy of goods to be able to sell those products with as much profit as possible. This person is not trained in piercing, doesn't usually have enough knowledge of materials and doesn't have a clue of sizes, diameters, thickness or gauge Of course, piercingstudios are supposed to make a profit, but theirs depends on their reputation. They can't afford to sell precarious piercings.

4. Do you always use a new needle or do the old ones get resterilised?
Piercing needles are only to be used once and afterwards immediately thrown in a special needle container. The opening of the wrapping should always happen in your presence, with you clearly able to see what's going on. THERE IS NO EXCUSE. If the piercer has opened the wrapping in advance, RUN LIKE CRAZY.

5. My piercer does not have an autoclave (sterilisationdevice), but he always uses sterilised needles. Is this safe?
NO!!! There is a lot more to be sterilised than just the needle: all tools MUST be sterilised every time again after being used. So your favourite piercer should have an autoclave on a visual spot in his studio.

6. Which metals are safe for piercing-jewellery?
For each new piercing these are the only appropriate metals: Implantation steel - Titanium - Niobium Once the piercing is healed, you may also wear jewellery in surgical steel, solid +14k gold, acrylic, pyrex, plastics and wood. Never use sterling silver, nickel or copper in a piercing.

7. I bought/got a piercing from a friend/acquaintance. Can I use it?
I. In a fully healed piercing.
Yes, assuming the jewel has the right size, right model, right metal and right quality. There mustn't be any scratches. You should always clean and disinfect the jewellery and put them in a pan with boiling water for a while. Never the less, we don't really like that idea. It would be better to ask the price of a professional sterilisation in your favourite piercingstudio.
II.In a new piercing.
Yes, assuming the jewel.. (See above)
A PROFESSIONAL STERILISATION IS A MUST.

8. Can I use my old jewellery for a new piercing?
Ditto question above (II)

9. How many piercing can I get in one visit?
Generally speaking, I'd say three. Depending on what kind of piercing you would like, your pain-limit and most importantly your physical condition. For some people 1 would be a good choice, for others 4 or 5 piercings at the same time are not an issue and the piercings heal just fine... A piercer with some common sense will always ask you about your general physical condition: whether you take medication etc.

10. I'm extremely nervous, can I have a few drinks before I come in?
Rather not! It decreases your sense of judgement, makes it more difficult to sit still and causes haemorrhages. Alcohol, drugs and certain medications (for example for you lungs, painkillers, etc.) thin the blood. This can result to the ink bleeding out when you're getting a tattoo and to the inevitable removal of the piercing if the bleeding can't be stopped. This can also happen when you use 1 of more blood-thinners in the first hours after the placement. Search just as long until you've found a piercer in which you have enough confidence. Someone who will guide you through the whole event in an experienced and calm manner without giving you the feeling that your an extremely fragile plant.

11. Do I make an appointment?
From our own experience we know that every minute can seem like too, at least. If you come around for an informative chat, this is not a catastrophe! Otherwise it 's the Big Day! Than, of course, wipe that semi-scientific theory off the table and get an appointment when you wish to get your piercing.

12. Do I get a scar if I remove my piercing?
Yes, but in most cases it is so small, you can hardly notice. (Question 25: stretching)

13. Can I switch the piercings myself?
Piercings closed with a screw-lock are pretty easy to swap. Piercings with a clip-in lock on the other hand, are not that easy to place. Even if you get lucky on the opening of the ring, you can't get the clip-in back in its place without the appropriate tools. Real DIY's amongst you: don't you treasure-hunting in daddy's toolkit, but buy the right equipment at the piercingstudio. You'll get some additional advice, too.

14. Recognised training- seminars - diplomas certificates - associations - leagues
A self-respecting con-artist can easily promote himself to professor in piercing-sciences. You just hang out this pamphlet:
Courses and seminars piercing
5 day training
Training by piercing John Potato
Member of the (English/American/anything else) piercing association
Recognised diplomas
Prize?? 000, -

Seminars can be educational, fascinating and amusing, but don't be fooled by people who work like this. In Belgium there is no law concerning piercing practices. Certificates and diplomas are only legitimate to the distributor.

15. What does it mean to have a piercing license?
These are foreign licenses, distributed by countries or states where there is some kind of oversight concerning piercings and tattoos. For example: in a couple of states in the US one needs a license before opening a studio. This simply means that someone of the public health department checks the place once a year, to see whether there is an autoclave, whether there is no carpeting on the floor etc. The distributing of the license has nothing to do with the skills of the piercer.

16. Do you use piercing-guns?
ABSOLUTELY NOT!! If you ever respect your body the slightest bit and more importantly, if you like your health, you don't get a piercing placed by such a gun. The qualities of those torture-devices: they don't operate in a correct way, the placement of the piercing is not exact, the piercing is a lot more painful, the jewellery placed is inappropriate and cheap and to top it all of: THEY CAN'T BE STERLISED!
This is the reason why we find those things very dangerous, even for the piercing of the earlobes. These days there are disposable guns. These are appropriate for the placement of earpiercings, considering they will only be used once. A little more expensive than the old system: let's see where that leads!

17. Will my piercings trigger a metaldetectionsystem?
Don't worry, us piercingfreaks, we have never messed up airport security. Pity though...

18. Why do I need a smaller stud once my tongue piercing is healed?
After a piercing in the tongue, it can swell quite a lot, hence the longer stud. Once the piercing is healed and the swelling disappeared, you could crack your teeth on the ball while your eating. The piercing could also irritate the palate and the bottom of your mouth. Keep the long piercing, though, if you ever lose the short one, you 'll have a back up. Or you could use the spare-parts. Don't forget that the piercing closes extremely fast without a jewel.

19. Can I swallow my tongue piercing
It could happen. Every morning when you're brushing your teeth, you should check whether the piercing is still screwed on tight. But don't overdo it, you might damage the screw thread, preventing the piercing from being locked tight.

20. Will my piercing get in the way when I visit my dentist?
No, your piercing will not trouble your dentist or get in the way of his work. But dentists are only human. Your dentist could have some prejudice against piercings. If this is the case, and you've had the piercing for over six months, it would be wise to remove your piercing before you enter and replace it after the visit.

21. Why is my bellybutton piercing stuck to one side?
This happens to a lot of women. Tight pants, skirts, pants or belts pressing the piercing will inevitably push the piercing to one side. Avoid all clothing, which presses the piercing. People with office-jobs can also be confronted with this problem. In any case: adjust your clothing. If the piercing-cavity is already disfigured, you could correct it by sticking the piercing to the other side with some skin-friendly tape at night.

22. How old must I be to get a piercing?
Babies can be pierced by the wicked witch of the west with a darning needle and be fine. So the Belgian government has decided that as long as the piercer doesn't have a criminal record of paedophilia or sexual harassment, he's in the clear! Just like that. A professional piercer has enough honour and common sense to set a minimum age for his costumers. For certain piercings the minimum is 16 (bellybutton, nose etc) or the company of one of the parents. Don't forget your ID. For others piercings one must be older (for example: intimate piercings require a minimum age of 18).

23. Do genital piercing disturb the snuggling?
No, they don't. Quite on the contrary: they intensify the emotions of the carrier. And sometimes the partner finds a lot of pleasure with them as well. Intimate piercings have the tendency to look very erotic. They are the discrete piercings of the people who enjoy life.

24. STRETCHING.
You'd better reserve a quiet night at home when you wish to have a stretching, which is an enlargement of the piercing-cavity: in this case, patience is a virtue. You can have this procedure done in the studio, the most important thing about stretching is the time and small steps you'll have to take. Your favourite piercer probably sells stretching tapers, cone-shaped pins in several sizes. If you go overboard on the size or you try to speed up the process, ruptures will appear. Nothing al too dramatic, you'd say, but it causes scar tissue. And if you decide to remove the piercing to shrink the hole, this won't look pretty.

25. Can I loose my job if I get a visible piercing?
You certainly can, even if your contract doesn't mention anything involving clothing and/or general appearance. Your boss will have no problem in finding some other reason for firing you. When you're considering a visual piercing, always make sure you know where your boss stands before spending your money. Some employers are still convinced that a piercing and a tattoo influence your zest for work. Or they choose to pursue the ignorance and prejudices of their clients. Consider a tongue-piercing, for example: you can keep it hidden during working hours not to mention the success you'll inherit with the opposite sex. Or a septum piercing, this is through the partition of the nose. This one can be hidden by the use of a septum-keeper.