Piercing FAQs

Lost your aftercare sheet?  Follow the link below to view the aftercare instructions 🙂

Piercing Aftercare

All piercings swell for a portion of the healing time, but an over swollen piercing can cause many other issues if left untreated. Jewellery should be snug but not touching the attachments on the ends of the jewellery. It is important to identify and eliminate the cause early to avoid damage to the piercing.  If your piercing is showing signs of infection, we recommend you visit your GP for antibiotics.

Causes of swollen piercings:

• Constant pressure on the piercing from sleeping positions/ or clothing (like high waisted pants on a navel etc.)
• Reactions to poor quality jewellery
• Infections
• Trauma to the area
• Reaction to soap/ makeup residues on the area
• Incorrect aftercare

Treatment:

1. Check for signs of infection, (refer to question “How to identify an infected piercing”)
2. Use saline to soak the piercing and clear any debris
3. Remove existing jewellery and fit with a suitable replacement
4. Saline Hot Compress – Take your sterile saline solution and heat a small amount in a glass until it is hot to the touch, soak sterile gauze in solution and hold over piercing for 15 minutes every night for 2-3 weeks or until swelling subsides. *Alternatively you can make your own saline using ¼ teaspoon of non-iodized rock salt to 1 cup of boiled or distilled water.
5. Applying ice and taking ibuprofen, can help ease pain and reduce swelling.

Granulomas or “Trauma bumps” are small red lumps of excess scar tissue commonly found on healing piercings. These can be caused by a number of factors such as incorrect piercing angles, incorrect jewellery or constant trauma or pressure to the area such as sleeping on your piercing. Granulomas will usually shrink and disappear with the following treatments but can often take time to completely heal.

Please note: Only use one of these treatments at a time along with your daily saline cleaning. Making sure you give the treatment time to work before trying the next.

Salt Paste:

Grind good quality non-iodized salt nice and fine and then mix with a small amount of sterile saline until comes to a toothpaste like consistency. Paint this onto each lump before bed and then cover with a band aid. Gently wash away the paste the next morning with your routine saline cleanse.

Repeat these steps for 3 nights in a row with 1 week break in between for up to 3 cycles. IF BURNING SENSATION OCCURS PLEASE WASH PASTE OFF IMEDIETLY AND REFER TO THE NEXT TREATMENT.

Chamomile tea bag soak:

Take Tea bag and activate it in warm boiled water. Hold over your piercing for 10-15 minutes and then clean with sterile saline. Repeat every night for 2 weeks or until the lump disappears.

Saline hot compress:

Take your sterile saline solution and heat a small amount in a glass until it is hot to the touch, Soak sterile gauze in solution and hold over piercing for 15 minutes every night for 2-3 weeks or until swelling subsides. *Alternatively you may make your own saline using 1⁄4 teaspoon of non iodized rock salt to 1 cup of boiled or distilled water.

Unfortunately we cannot pierce with solid gold jewellery as solid gold jewellery should only be worn in healed piercings. Gold is a softer metal and any small scratches or impurities on the surface may irritate fresh piercings. However we can offer alternatives. We can anodise titanium to a golden colour for initial piercings, or you can select a titanium bar with a solid gold top, from our premium jewellery ranges, Anatometal, Neometal, Jumipurr, BVLA, Kiwi Diamond. 

IDENTIFYING AN INFECTION

The mains signs of an infection are:

• Inflammation
• Redness
• Pus
• Heat
• Pain

NOTE: symptoms not to be confused with normal healing processes.

It’s important not to misdiagnose an infection. More often than not, it’s just irritated or reacting to low quality jewellery. Infections will be very ‘angry’ looking, red, sometimes purplish in colour, and very swollen. They will also be painful without needing to touch the area, usually a throbbing sensation. An infection can excrete Pus which is thick and white, yellow, or green in colour.  This is not to be confused with plasma, the clear/yellowish fluid which dries to a crust and is a normal part of the healing process.

Treatment: if you think your piercing is infected it is best that you immediately see a doctor for antibiotics. DO NOT remove the jewellery entirely as it needs an open channel to drain. Removing the jewellery can seal the infection inside the body and cause an abscess.

The saline solution we sell (Neilmed) is preferred as it’s ready to use, correct formula, and sterile.

OR

Dissolve 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon non-iodized (iodine free) salt in 1 cup (250ml) warm distilled or bottled water

Note: A stronger mixture (more salt) is not better. A saline solution that is too strong can irritate your piercing.

-Contact lens solution is not the same as saline solution and is not recommended for use on piercings.

To expand an ear lobe you must first have a pierced ear. It is recommended that if your ear has only recently been pierced that you wait until it is completely healed before starting to expand. This is usually 6-8 weeks after the initial piercing.

You should always sterilize your jewellery before using it. It is also a good idea to wash your hands and clean your ear lobe with a basic saline solution before starting the stretching process. This reduces the risk of infection. A basic saline solution is 1 cup of water to 1 teaspoon of salt.

The best time to stretch your ears is directly after a shower as the heat from the water softens the skin and opens the hole of the piercing. We suggest also trying to use a non-alcohol/ perfume based lubricant such as KY, Vaseline or Gauge Gear. Using lubricant will help reduce the jewellery piece gripping against the skin, and thus reduce the risk of skin tearing.

It is suggested to start with a small size stretcher / expander, usually a 3mm. Take a shower, sterilize your jewellery and begin to slowly push the narrow end of the expander through your ear.  This may hurt a little. If your ear starts to have a burning feeling use the black grommets on either side of your ear to hold the expander in place and leave your ear a day to settle. To expand an ear correctly it is a slow process. It should take a week to completely push the expander in following the same process each time. (Shower, sterilize, lube, expand).

Be aware that you shouldn`t use excessive force to push the expander in all the way on the first try. Using excessive force will tear the skin resulting in bleeding, pus or infection.  Tearing the skin means you have made your ear hole an open wound.  The open wound will heal at the size of your expander reducing the chance of the hole closing back down when you take your jewellery out.

Once your expander is all the way in we recommend waiting 4-5 days before continuing to the next size. When going up in size no more than a 2mm size jump is recommended.

At Angel Body Jewellery we have one of the largest ranges of stretchers, plugs and tunnels in Perth.  We sell all sizes from 3mm – 30mm, and a selected range up to 50mm

* Want to go BIGGER?  Imagine your ear lobe as an elastic band. The more you stretch it and then let it go back down to size the more elasticity it loses. Same with your ear! Once you lose the elasticity your ears can be stretched to amazing sizes! … Just be aware of the holes it will leave.

Unlike regular piercings where you can get away with only cleaning them once every few months, stretched lobes require constant maintenance if they are to be odour free, plump, and healthy. This is because they have a larger surface area which results in a larger amount of sebum and dead skin cells to be produced. It also means they are more exposed to the air (resulting in dryness) and outside elements such as dirt, hair dye, make-up, perfume, smoke, etc.

DAILY ROUTINE: Before (or during) your daily shower, remove your plugs. Rinse them under the water and put aside. Gently massage your lobes under the running water. A mild soap can be used but is not necessary. After the shower, gently dry your plugs and your lobes. Then use an aftercare product such as Jojoba Oil, Gauge Gear, Vitamin-E Oil, Coconut Oil, etc on your lobes by placing a small amount on your fingers, rubbing them together to warm up the product, and gently massaging it into your lobes. Massaging your lobes increases the blood flow which softens up any scar tissue and promotes healthy cell growth so the longer, the better. Apply any excess product on your fingers to your plugs (especially important for wood plugs). You are now ready to reinsert your jewellery.

Note for stinky lobes: Wood plugs are NOT an alternative to a good hygiene regimen. Although they will absorb some of the excess oils being produced by your lobes, they will not solve the problem and can cause the plugs to crack and go yucky very quickly. Wood is also not to be exposed to water so it is advised to remove them before showering and never wear while swimming.

Wearing acrylic or silicone for more than a couple of hours a day can cause irritation for your lobes as well as redness, itching, and increased sebum production. Materials that can be worn for longer periods of time are wood, stone, and metals.

Split, torn, or bleeding lobes: Remove jewellery immediately. Keep clean and dry and wait until fully healed (may take several weeks) before attempting to insert any jewellery. Will undoubtedly shrink in size but is much better than split, infected, or very thin lobes.

Blowout: Downsize (at least one gauge/2mm), resume aftercare procedures (increase massaging time), and when inserting your plugs do so from the side where the blowout rests (i.e. if the blowout is on the back, when inserting your jewellery do so from the back-inwards to encourage the tissue back to the interior of the lobe.