Materials we use—and why it’s Important! 

At Emerald Sun Studios we use only implant grade materials that are acceptable by APP standards (the Association of Professional Piercers). The APP sets the minimum standards for safety and quality in the industry. All of the companies we get our jewelry from have proper mill certificates ensuring that every part of the piece is implant grade titanium or gold. This means that from the time that metal is taken from the ground it is checked for purity and quality. You will never have to worry about being allergic to the metals we use, because it is the most biocompatible material on the market.  

We use threadless, flat back labret style jewelry. Rather than having a butterfly back on the piece, our jewelry has a small disk on the back and a removable front (no sharp pieces which can scrape or cut the child’s head when they sleep!) All of our jewelry is interchangeable, so we can choose the proper initial length for swelling and give the child many options for initial tops to choose! YES, you get to choose your own jewelry! No child is one size fits all, in anatomy or taste! 

It is a common misconception that piercing is just poking a hole and putting in jewelry. There is much more that goes into the health of your piercings in perpetuity, including jewelry bought after the healing process is completed. Be very careful with branding such as “hypoallergenic”, “sterling silver”, and “stainless steel” as companies putting out these products are not required to label all of the contaminants. There is also no such thing as “surgical grade materials”. This is generally a buzz word used by companies so they can carry low quality jewelry such as steel which contain trace amounts of nickel, lead, cadmium, and other bio-contaminants. 

Implant grade materials are the only truly hypoallergenic material that is safe to use for long term wear. The titanium we use is the same medical grade titanium used in implants (ASTM F-136). It will never tarnish or rust in the ear and has a lifetime guarantee. 

Will the Needle Hurt More than a Gun? 

Some children are worried that the needle may hurt worse or take longer than using the piercing gun. This is false! The needles hurt much less because they are doing much less damage to the tissue. We liken it to cutting vegetables with a sharp filet knife vs. a dull butter knife. Where the guns tend to damage the tissue more, causing blunt force trauma to the ear and creating a scar tissue channel (like a butter knife), the modern-day piercing needle is engineered for piercing, cutting through the tissue gently and swiftly, causing a cleaner wound and much less pain for the child (like a filet knife). That being said, we do not lie about how much it will hurt, because we don’t want them to expect it to be painless. It hurts, but it’s quick! By the time they leave our shop, the pain will be completely gone. Our piercing needles are autoclaved for a sterile procedure, and every needle is single use to limit the scare of cross-contamination. This allows us to be pickier about placement, make a proper fistula for easier and quicker healing, and do it in a safe, clean way. 

What Documentation Will I Need for my Child? 

State law requires that we have a photo ID for the parent that matches the child’s birth certificate. This is to ensure that the child you are bringing in is actually your own child and having the parent present ensures that the parent is 100% consenting to the piercing performed.

What are the Age Requirements for Kids’ Lobes? 

At Emerald Sun Studios we try to pierce as low as possible in order to offer this service to the widest audience we can. However, every child is different! We have had 3-year-olds that were totally ready and sat better than most adults. We have also had 10-year-olds that weren’t ready yet and have chosen to wait until a later date to get their first piercings. That’s totally okay! Having a consent-based experience is always key. 

You will know your child is ready when they are asking for the piercing themselves without any duress. They must be comfortable with us getting up close and personal when we are performing the procedure, and they must be able to sit still through the entire process. They also have the option to back out at any time. We give the child a “three no’s mean NO” rule. This means that they will get all of the information at the appointment, and they get three chances to opt out. The third time they say no, the appointment will end. We have no intention for coercing a child to get pierced, but we understand that some children just need a little extra information to get the procedure done, too! We will never pierce a child until they are totally ready, which means we will need an overwhelming “YES!” before we will continue.  

What does the Piercing Process Look Like?

If you are thinking your child might be ready to be pierced, but you’re not sure if they will be able to go through the process, we always offer a “meet and greet” appointment where we can go through the process together, as well as take a look at our tools and space. This is absolutely free, and we encourage these consultations for younger clients! 

At the time of the appointment, we will go through paperwork and pick our jewelry together. This will give us a chance to build a repertoire with the child, let them meet the staff, and tell them our shop rules, which are as follows: 

RULE #1:

 The child is the boss when they are in our shop. Not the piercer, not the parents, but the child, because it is their body. This means that we will ask before every step, we will give you all the information that you need, and we will answer any of your questions that you have! We will not pierce anyone until they are totally ready, and you have the option to back out at any time. No one will be angry if today is not the day that you get pierced! Only you can know if you are ready for this experience or not. We are working for the child, not the other way around!

RULE #2:

When we are actually piercing, after an OVERWHELMING yes, you cannot move, which includes grabbing your ears! When something hurts, it can be instinctive to want to grab the area, but you don’t want me to miss or accidentally poke you in the wrong spot. We want them to be perfect the very first time! 

Next, all of the jewelry goes into a Statim medical autoclave sterilizer to be cleaned of any contaminants. While the jewelry is being sterilized, we will begin with cleaning and marking the ears. We use alcohol prep pads to clean the area. We then use an ink called gentian violet (a purple, antiseptic dye) on a toothpick to make our marks. We want the placement to be perfect, so that the piercings grow with the child’s ear, and they will be properly placed throughout their lifetime. Once we are all happy with the placement, we will prep the skin (usually with iodine unless they have an allergy!) and the procedure will begin.

The piercing is performed with a straight, single use needle. We will practice breathing techniques, and make sure that the child is fully prepared before we push the needle. The jewelry is then inserted, and the ear is cleaned with a sterile saline pad afterwards. 

We do one ear at a time. There is a reason for this! Doing both ears at the same time is very traumatic to the body and may cause one or both of the angles to be off. Doing one ear at a time, we can breathe through each one separately and focus on getting that angle absolutely perfect.

Afterwards, we will go through aftercare together and answer any follow-up questions! We want you to have a successful healing experience, and we want you to have all the information that you could possibly need. We set up kid’s lobes in a 45-minute time block, so we can really take the time to go over everything you may encounter for your healing process.

Other FAQs 

Can grandma, sister, and other people attend the appointment? 

We understand that a child’s first piercing is a huge rite of passage, and we want to accommodate this for large families. Being in a new setting with new people is scary, and it may seem fun and even safer for the client to have a group of their loved ones to encourage them and hold their hands. However, what we have found in our years of experience is that it is a little overwhelming for the child to have many people in the room at one time. We suggest having only one or two people in the room during the procedure, however we do have a lobby area in the shop for other family members to sit while the child is getting their piercings done. It also keeps cross contamination down to a minimum so we can provide a safer, more sterile procedure.

How long do we need to keep the initial piercings in? 

The original piercings at the time of the appointment will have a 6-week swelling period. At that point we will have you come in for a checkup, where we will assess the healing process and check if any downsize in the post is needed. We can get the child new tops at this 6-week appointment, or we can use the original tops as everything we have here is interchangeable. They will be healed enough to switch out jewelry at 6-9 months, depending on how the child heals. At that point, wearing costume jewelry during the day or for a special occasion is fine, just be careful about the materials that the jewelry is made of, and put the implant grade titanium back in at night so that you know for the bigger part of the day they have good material in those piercing channels. It does take 3-5 years of having something in that piercing channel every day for the child to be able to keep the earrings out for a day or two without risk of them healing back up. So, it is always best to keep our jewelry in as long as you possibly can!

Can we bring in our own jewelry? 

We will only pierce with our jewelry because we are able to verify that the material is implant grade. Also, the tools that we use to pierce fit in with the jewelry that we have perfectly, so to ensure for a safe and effective transfer into the wound, it has to be a certain type of jewelry. Our insurance does not cover outside jewelry, so if we pierce you with outside jewelry and the child has an allergic reaction to the material, our insurance will not cover the medical expenses of the child.

How long until the child can go swimming after being pierced?

The outside of the piercing channel will heal before the inside of the piercing channel, which happens at that 4–6-month mark. For this reason, we suggest not submerging the piercing for at least 4 months. (And yes, this is including the bathtub!) Even in the cleanest of bathtubs, pools, and hot tubs, they have found trace amounts of infectious diseases such as staph, MRSA, and E. Coli. These diseases can enter the piercing channel and cause major issues for the child. No amount of chlorine or sea salt will completely kill these diseases, so it is best to wait until you know the child is not going into these places to get pierced. (Fall is always the suggested time, because then you have all winter to heal until that next summer!)

What is the aftercare for piercings?

Click here to visit the piercing aftercare section of our website.

How long do we continue to spray with sterile saline wound wash?

You should be spraying the piercings with sterile saline two times a day until it is fully healed (around 6 months).

What is the cost, and why?

Our prices are broken down in the highlight section of our Instagram. Click here to view it.  

Why can’t you pierce my baby? 

Most professional piercers wont pierce babies’ ears for a few reasons: 

Firstly, since the child will be held and exploring their own bodies, there is a higher risk of touching or snagging, allowing bacteria to enter the piercing channel, as well as friction and movement to the healing piercing. When a baby does get an infection, it can be a lot more severe since they do not have fully formed immune systems. They also do not have a way to tell you if they are feeling pain or irritation when these infections do occur. When a major infection does occur, babies are not able to take proper antibiotics as well.

◦ Secondly, since the child will continue to grow the rest of their lives, there is no way to ensure that it will end up in the proper spot when they are older. Ears tend to develop at different rates. 

Lastly, they are unable to consent. It is a body adornment that should last for their entire lives, so if you are piercing them when they are too young to consent you are taking away their ability to choose. Waiting until the child is old enough to ask for it themselves allows them to better follow proper aftercare.

A kind warning: 

Please do not take your baby somewhere they are piercing with a gun. It is blunt force trauma to the ear and does not create a proper fistula (piercing channel). Plus, most of those places are using improper metals and improper beginner jewelry (butterfly backs, stainless steel, sterling silver) which do not allow the healing wound to properly breathe, pick up bacteria easier, or may contain nickel, cadmium, or even lead.
 

Where can I get jewelry after the initial jewelry?

We always suggest getting jewelry from a professional piercer, as most reputable companies do not sell to the public. Jewelry that you get from places like Amazon or Etsy will not be truly implant grade, as they can market those pieces however, they see fit, and will use “titanium” as a buzz word to sell to a wider audience. If you’re not happy with the jewelry that we carry, we can give you the websites from all of our distributors and we can order you jewelry from those sites. We can also give you a list of APP shops that will carry quality jewelry, and you’re welcome to check out what they have as well! 

Why do we downsize the jewelry after 6 weeks?

Your body tends to swell a lot when getting pierced, so we use longer labret backs in order to accommodate that swelling. A typical swelling period is 4-6 weeks, so we keep the initial jewelry in for that period of time. We downsize the jewelry at that point so that there is no extra length in that backing. This way the jewelry cannot move back and forth as easily, and it takes away any of the extra length that may pick up bacteria or form “crusties”. It also lessens the chance of snagging that jewelry and irritating the wound.