Helping you decide
What is the difference between a needle and a gun?
While piercing guns may seem to be a quick, easy and convenient way of creating holes, they have major drawbacks in terms of sterility, tissue damage and inappropriate jewellery design.
Lets talk about guns
Piercings executed with a gun are done so with blunt force trauma. Despite the back of a butterfly earring feeling pointy, it is not ideally sharp enough to be pushed through the skin to create a piercing.
Piercings must therefore be accomplished by using excessive pressure over a larger surface area in order to force the metal shaft through the skin.
The gun has a propensity to malfunction and can lodge jewellery half-way through the skin. (Ouch!)
The jewellery designs of the studs used by guns are not appropriate for healing piercings either, as the tissue is constricted and becomes further irritated and Smash the cartilage, and can cause permanent damage to the area.
Wait, it gets worse.
Plastic guns cannot be sterilised through an autoclave, meaning they can put clients in direct contact with blood and body fluids of previous clients (Gross!)
This elevates the risk of transmitting blood borne diseases, such as Hepatitis and HIV.
Why on earth are guns still used? What can we do?
Don’t worry, All is not lost!
Lets talk about needles
Here at Steel Point, We only use needles that are pre-packed, sterile and single use!
Needles are more accurate and a lot less painful.
Piercings performed using a hollow needle cause the least amount of damage/trauma when put through the skin.
This is because the needles are sharp and create a tunnel for high-quality, implant-grade jewellery to be inserted into.
This type of jewellery will be measured to you, and appropriately fit to the area, allowing room for swelling during the initial procedure.
Being pierced with a needle reduces irritation and scarring, enabling the piercing to heal properly!
To sum it up, a piercing needle is much better than a gun. Needles are generally cleaner, more accurate, and less painful than guns.
Any reputable piercing studio will be able to explain the differences to you and provide you a range of quality jewellery to suit your anatomy.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, and becoming more informed!
If you have any questions, please get in touch or swing by the studio.
We look forward to welcoming you soon!
Amy-Jane
Lunarlobes