Surface piercings
Surface piercings don’t go deep into the skin, so although they’re very pretty, they’re more likely to be rejected by the body after a few months. We look at some classic surface piercings.
Surface piercings are piercings tend to be done on flesh which is not overly concave or convex, where the piercing entry and exit point traverses a surface flap of skin, rather than running through a piece of body tissue from one side to the other. Basically, a surface piercing follows along the skin like a river along a river bed, where as a standard piercing has a piece of skin to go straight through.
Surface piercings – body rejection
Although pretty, surface piercings tend not to be as long-lived as deeper piercings. The problem with surface piercings is that there’s less skin to keep the piercing secure. Some people are much more prone to piercing rejection than others. It varies from person to person, but the body can reject a surface piercing in a matter of months. Why does the body sometimes reject a piercing? Basically, sometimes the body considers the foreign object you’ve placed in it as a threat to your health. In order to protect itself, your body fights back by slowly pushing the foreign object out of your skin, healing the skin behind it as it goes. It happens with a splinter in your hand – unfortunately, it can happen with piercings too.
Let’s take a look at some of the surface piercings out there…
Stomach Piercings
These are usually done close to the navel, and as deep as possible to avoid quick body rejection. Teflon bars can be used, rather than surgical stainless steel, as the flexibility of teflon bars means the bar can move to fit smoothly along your skin. Staple piercing bars are an alternative to Teflon bars.
Nape piercings
This piercing is situated at the back of the neck. Much like stomach piercings it works best with a staple or Teflon bar. Nape piercings struggle to completely heal, especially if you have long hair that you wear down a lot. If looked after correctly they can last up to six months – maybe more, depending on the person.
Neck piercings
Neck piercings can be situated on the sides of your neck and or the front lower throat section. I’ve found neck piercings to be quick-healing. I got to keep my piercing longer by using a staple bar, lasting 8 months.
Neck piercings can be very imaginative and creative. If your have a good piercer you can use your lower throat piercing almost as a necklace, threading chain on each side of the bar and handing a pendant from the chain’s centre. It looks great – but please note that in doing this you can cause extra pressure on your piercing, especially if the pendant is not weighted and sized properly. Always wait until your piercing is completely healed before adding extra adornment to avoid infection and unwarranted ripping.
Hip Piercings
These piercings usually follow along your natural hip bone line. Teflon is the comfier choice here, as your hips tend move quite a bit, so flexibility will ensure your piercing can move smoothly along with you. This piercing is not terribly comfortable for people who wear high cut pants/skirts etc. and can be easily caught on almost anything.
Hip piercings are certainly pretty. It depends on the person but I’ve found they last around 7 months before body rejection begins to take place.
Wrist Piercings
Wrist piercings can be done on the top of the wrist of the inner side. These piercings carry a high rate of rejection due to their placement. The wrists is constantly moving and in contact with more nasties than we are aware of. Teflon or staple bars can work well with a wrist piercing.
The examples of surface piercings above are by no means the only placements out there. Scout around to find out more. Surface piercings are being greatly overthrown these days by dermal piercings, but for those of you who still enjoy the art of a surface piercing these little buggers are very pretty and original. Unfortunately, they tend not to last very long.
This piece was written from a body piercer’s point of view, and I acknowledge that everyone has a right to their own opinion. Please note that every person is different with body piercings and may have different stories or view points.
Feel free to discuss your stories and surface piercing experiences on the mookychick message board.
Recommended links:
http://boards.tribalectic.com (piercing community and major info resource)
www.tribalectic.com/Drupal/articleson/healing will tell you about piercing healing times and procedures, approved by the APP(Association of Professional Piercers
* This piece was written from a personal point of view, and I acknowledge that everyone has a right to their own opinion. Please note that every person is different with body piercings and healing times and may have different stories or viewpoints. When thinking of getting a piercing, first research as much as you can, then have a good talk with the piercer you are thinking of using.
Nape piercing
Photo of wrist piercing (creatively combined with tattoo) from subderma.com. Check their fantastic piercing galleries for ideas.
Facial surface piercing
