Unlike a tattoo, piercings are semi-permanent, which means that it is perfectly acceptable to get one on the whim. Yet despite the convenience of being able to remove your body jewelry, if you’re going to go through the pain, deal with the healing process, and pay the price, you probably want this body modification for keeps. Because many people get piercings spontaneously, more often than not people make mistakes when modifying their bodies. Whether the mistake occurs before the piercing takes place, during the process of the piercing, or months after the piercing has been put into the skin, we see these mistakes occur because many collegiates fail to inform themselves about the rights and wrongs of body modification. Yet, never fear my readers, there are ways to pierce like a pro, even if you’re a piercing virgin. You just need to make sure that you watch out for these 5 common piercing mistakes.Â
1. Neglecting to Research the Piercing Parlor
When someone gets a piercing out of the blue, they tend to go to the first shop that they see on the street. Yet this can often lead to serious piercing regret. You want to make sure that the piercing parlor is reputable and that the piercers have been trained properly. Although not all licensed piercers are the best at what they do and there are always those piercers who slide by and do severely mediocre work. By crowd sourcing piercers and piercing shops in your area, you can get a better idea of which places to avoid and which places to remember for your next modification. Having a piercing reference may save the day when you decide to get your next modification, because eventually you will have to face the consequences of impulsively modifying your body.Â
2. Forgetting to Double-Check Placement
During the piercing process, your piercer will mark where your piercing will be before they go ahead and stick a needle in your skin. Most professional artists will have you double-check their placement, just to make sure that the piercing is centered. Take advantage of this opportunity. Make sure that you use that time to be 100% sure that your piercing is centered and don’t feel shy to ask a friend if it’s straight. There is nothing wrong with getting a second or third set of eyes to make sure that your piercing looks right on your body, because even the best piercers can make mistakes.Â
3. Skipping Aftercare
When you get a piercing, you will most likely also receive detailed instructions of the aftercare that you must follow to make sure that your piercing heals properly. Take the recommendations of the piercer seriously. They are the pros and they know the timeline that you should follow for your piercing’s aftercare. Even if you think that your piercing has healed, you should still keep up the aftercare until the recommended time is up. There’s nothing worse than an infected or rejected piercing and taking your time to clean and baby your piercing will benefit you in the long run.
Â
4. Changing Body Jewelry Too Soon
This goes right along with the previous mistake and it can often result in a delayed healing. We know that you are dying to change your jewelry into something smaller and cuter, but this isn’t always the best idea. The larger, more industrial jewelry is the safest way to take your piercing through the healing process, as it prevents infection and can accommodate for swelling. When you get a piercing, you must understand that there are rules for a healthy and happy piercing and changing your jewelry too early can seriously upset the balance of the healing process.Â
5. Wearing  Cheap Jewelry
Even if your piercing has healed, you should still make sure that you take care of it by wearing quality jewelry. Jewelry made of cheap materials like plastic, acrylic, silicon, and low-quality metals can harm your piercing even after it has healed. Putting in cheap jewelry in too soon or piercing with cheap jewelry is not only a bad idea, but a dangerous one as well. This jewelry is destined to cause infections which can go much further than just damaging a piercing, but affecting your overall health. Do yourself a favor and skip out on the sale at Spencers. Trust us, it’s not worth it.