My Ear Piercing Experience At Claire's

Hi ladies! I know I have not talked a lot about piercings on Gaby's Beauty Blog but I have had a few in my life - my first piercing was a labret when I was 16 years old, and I was absolutely over the moon that my parents let me get pierced, especially in the lip! I remember being the first and only one in my high school who had a lip piercing - that was cool! I removed it a few years ago because you know, as you grow up, you get bored of these things and apparent piercings are not always welcomed in your profesionnal life. I still have a few that are less apparent though - let me know if a post about my piercings and tattoos would interest you!

Ear piercings are not the most interesting piercings, and often, they are not even considered proper "piercings", but a few months ago, I was craving a new hole - yes, these things happen - so one day, after work, I headed to the mall with my mother just for fun, when we decided to go to Claire's to see if my friend Ariane was working. I was thrilled that she was there, and I decided to get my third hole pierced, on a whim!

My second ear piercing was done at Ardene a few years ago, and I liked that the two sale assistants pierced both ears at the same time, which I thought would hurt less, even though I can't really say that such piercings really hurt when they are done - a few hours after, your ears are likely to swell and burn a bit, but it is just uncomfortable. I asked Ariane if she could pierce both ears with the help of another sale assistant but the other girl was about to end her shift, so she reassured me that it would not hurt anyway - I knew that, but I am always so scared of needles!

First of all, Ariane showed me all of the starter earrings so I could pick my favorite - I chose the 3mm Cubic Zirconia since I love small things that sparkles - who does not? My friend then proceeded to prepare the area where I would be seating for the piercing - just by the store window, where everybody passing by can see me! - and she asked me to read and sign the Claire's Ear Piercing Registry Form. Once this was done, Ariane slipped on single-use, disposable gloves and first cleaned the surface of my ears with a disinfectant solution swab. She marked the spot on my ears and asked me if the positioning was okay, then she proceeded to pierce my ears with a professional piercing gun - this system consists of an instrument that creates minimal discomfort and ensures the right amount of pressure is carefully applied to effectively pierce the ear and insert the ear-piercing earring.

Can you believe I felt absolutely nothing when my ears were pierced? I thought the second ear would be worst but no - nothing! I don't really remember if getting my second hole pierced at Ardene hurt since it has been some years ago, but I highly doubt I felt nothing! The piercing was done within one minute, then Ariane showed me how to properly clean my new piercing - she cleaned my left ear by liberally applying Claire's ear care solution with a saturated cotton ball, without removing the ear piercing earrings, gently sliding the ear piercing earrings back and forth in my ear so the solution will go inside the piercing. Then she gently rotated the ear piercing earrings a partial turn, both forwards and backwards, two or three times. Then it was my turn, and it was easier than I thought.

I was told that I should leave the earrings in my ears for at least 6 weeks - after that, the earrings can be removed and other post type earrings can be inserted. Post earrings must be worn at all times for the first 6 months to ensure that your ear piercing will remain the proper size - which I was never told to do at Ardene, which explains why I am always struggling to get earrings in my second holes!

Everything costed me $30.00 - ear piercing is "free" with purchase of Claire's Starter Kit, which not only offers a wide selection of special earrings from which you can choose and includes a humongous bottle of Claire's Ear Care Solution, but also gives you a 50% off coupon for your next visit! My ears started feeling tender and burning a bit by the time I got home, but I can't say it really hurt - it was just uncomfortable. It also swelled a bit and it took a few days for the swelling to decrease, and within less than two weeks, my ears were back to their normal size and they were less sensitive to the touch.

After two whole months, my ears are still sensitive, especially when I sleep on them, but it's nothing unbareable - although I did not have this problem when I got my second hole pierced at Ardene. I think this is due to the earrings not being long enough to allow proper swelling of the ears, which is a bit weird and unprofessional in my opinion, but hey, what can you expect from sale assistants who practice their piercing skills on teddy bears and foam ears?

Yes, I know that getting a piercing with a gun is unsafe since it can't be sterilised properly, and that the jewelry does not pierce the skin but forces its way through, blasting away the tissue and flesh, but I already got my nose re-pierced this way (after the hole closed when I had it first pierced at a professional piercing studio) and it healed just fine. I had a few piercings and I never had a reaction so I thought these were just ears, after all! 

I am still not sure if I appreciated my ear piercing experience at Claire's more than at Ardene, but I would definitely recommend this place!