Body Piercing News

Across the nation counties and states are tightening regulations designed for a safer body art experience for customers.  From Oregon, California and Nevada to other states eastward, shops are seeing new regulations and procedural changes that can be complicated at times.  The aim of these new regulations is to standardize an industry that for decades has resisted standardization.  The end result, it is hoped, will be a safer experience for customers whether they are getting a body piercing or a new tattoo.

If you own or work in a shop that has been hit with new changes and tightened regulations, you are not alone.  Thousands of shops in California have been impacted by the implementation of AB-300 (a bill passed by the state legislature last year) that calls for increased oversight and regulation of body art establishments.  One of the mandates calls for the use of safe metals and alloy materials for body piercing, like the body piercing supplies offered here.  If you are in doubt if your shop is in compliance, speak to the shop owner for clarification.  Remember, as a body artist it is ultimately your responsibility to be in compliance at all times.  You may also contact your county health department for clarification.

A very misunderstood fact about tattoo shops is what is called the ‘shop minimum’.   While most tattoo shops will not admit to having a ‘shop minimum’, almost all of them do.  What a shop minimum represents is the least amount of money they charge for their body art services.

This is not an  hourly amount (which may be higher) but in plain terms, it’s the least amount of money you will have to show them for them to bother with you.  If this sounds bad, it is, and represents one of the only types of businesses that work this way left.  We found one shop in Southern California that does not charge a shop minimum, nor does it charge by the hour – the price you are quoted is all you will ever pay – and best of all, if you aren’t completely satisfied, they will make it right at no extra charge.  To check this shop out, click on this link here.

Getting a body piercing these days is becoming routine.  With the popularity of piercing soaring, there are many places offering piercing services.  But there can be and usually are vast differences in the quality and prices of various shops that offer piercings.

In states like California and New York, where body art is heavily regulated, you should always go to a shop that is permitted with the county health department and who uses only sterile body jewelry and piercing supplies.  Ask to see the permit of the body artist or shop before you get pierced.  Also, you should receive printed after care procedures after the piercing to insure you are informed of what is needed to heal quickly and without complications.  If you are not sure if the shop you are considering is permitted and legit, go somewhere else that is.

If you have been waiting for a legitamate real (walk-in) body piercing school to open, your wait is over.  The world’s first dedicated body piercing school has just opened in Los Angeles, California and is taking student for it’s March 2013 classes.  Founded by master body piercers, the initial course will provide the information and basic materials to successfully body pierce in a shop environment.

For more information on course dates and course requirements click on this link to the body piercing school page.

With increased competition in the body art industry comes cost-cutting moves and ways to try to appeal to a customer’s sense of value.  While some shops run specials or lower their prices, other shops resort to more dangerous ways to cut corners.

In a disturbing trend, many shops are offering to charge less for a body piercing if the customer brings their own body jewelry.  While this may sound (at first) to be a good offer, it is at best increasing the chance of infection and at worst, illegal.  Using a non-sterile piece of body jewelry in a fresh piercing is foolish and increases the chances of serious infection for the client.  If a shop offers you this kind of ‘deal’ you would be advised to run (not walk) away since not only is their ‘deal’ inviting an infection into your near future, but they are operating illegally and probably are not registered with the health department either.  To find guaranteed sterilized body jewelry and quality body piercing supplies click on the link.  And remember, if a deal sounds too good to be true it usually is!

What started out as a decent idea, customer reviews and the sites that encourage them (Yelp.com, Google+, Etc.) are seeing a backlash from consumers.  The truth is that most customers know bogus reviews when they read them and are increasingly not paying attention to them.  ”The time has come when customer reviews have become irrelevant” said a leading internet market research firm.  This observation is based upon the glaring fact that most positive reviews are posted by the owners of a business or their close friends and family, while the negative reviews are posted by jealous competitors.

As with Ebay and other sites that are dependent upon user reviews, there is no fair and impartial oversight to the review process.  Most reviews (either good or bad) that are obviously fraudulent are left as is by the companies that host these reviews, unless of course you decide to pay them to take them down.  Our staff has been contacted by numerous shop owners that have alerted Google, Yelp or Yahoo when they were assaulted with bogus negative reviews by competitors only to be offered paid advertising with the implication that if they paid the reviews would disappear.  If this sounds like extortion, it is to a certain degree, and it is big business.  Fortunately for the hard-working small shop owners out there that have suffered quietly as their public images have been smeared by envious competitors, there is growing evidence that propaganda-weary consumers are ignoring reviews altogether.  In an informal survey taken by the BodyPiercingNews.com we found that when asked if business reviews could be trusted at face value, only a mere 11% said they thought they were real.  When those that distrusted online reviews were asked who they thought actually wrote the reviews, over 90% believed online reviews were written either by the business owners themselves or by the businesses’ competitors.  With over 90% of people already disregarding online reviews, is it any wonder that the revenues and traffic to search sites is dwindling?  What do you think about online reviews?  As always, we welcome your opinion.

In almost every state there are sweeping changes being made to the body art industry, changes that are necessary and in the interest of safety.  In California, a new law took effect July 1st of 2012 called AB-300.  This law covers the new stricter requirements for tattoo shops that is an attempt to insure sterility and a safe, clean environment for body art techs and customers alike.

Whether you are in California or other states, chances are you have seen recent  changes being made by health departments and state governments to tighten up an industry that has in the past been left to much of it’s own devices.  When it comes to truly sterile body jewelry most health departments are in universal agreement that it is better to use pre-sterilized body jewelry and one-time use disposable tools and needles.  If you are looking for a supplier of body piercing supplies that offers the finest sterile body jewelry and everything needed to be in compliance, check this link for sterile body jewelry for top quality supplies shipped free (anywhere in the USA).  Take care and be safe!

Whether you are looking to learn how to tattoo or body pierce, the traditional form of apprenticeship has by definition changed quite a bit in recent years.  It used to be a simple matter of just volunteering your time and energy at a tattoo shop for a year or two in exchange for learning the proper procedures in shop hygiene, tattooing and piercing.

Now with the interest in tattooing buoyed by television shows and the increased popularity of tattoos in the mainstream population, finding a shop that will even take you as an apprentice can be a daunting task.  Once you have the proper tattoo and body piercing supplies, you will need to either apprentice yourself to a mentor or teach yourself through various means.  Be prepared to pay for the knowledge you are asking to receive, not just in time spent at the shop but in dollars.  In a recent survey conducted by the Body Piercing News found that about 75% of shops now charge apprentices (between 3 and 10 thousand dollars).  IF you are lucky enough to find a shop that will take you on (without charging money to do so) make sure you make the best of it and enjoy yourself.  Remember, you will be learning one of very few recession-proof trades that will serve you (and your customers) forever.

There may have been people selling body piercing kits longer, or companies claiming to be the ‘original’ seller of such supplies, but our research here at the Body Piercing News found that only ONE company sells professional-grade body piercing kits and supplies at a reasonable price and has been doing it for years.

Whether you need body piercing kits or supplies, sterile body jewelry or sterilization equipment or skin preparation, we recommend you click here for the best in body piercing kits and supplies. If you know of any other companies that compare in quality and price to this company’s we welcome your input. Happy piercing!

Starter body piercing kits are offered by many sellers, but if you really pay attention to what included (and what is not included) you will find there are vast differences between kits.  Some companies that do not specialize in body art supplies offer piercing kits that are at best, converted Chinese ear piercing kits, or at worst, not piercing kits at all.  As a professional body artist your reputation and the safety and satisfaction of your customers depends upon the proper tools, materials and sterility of everything you use.  You must pay careful attention to everything that is included in the kit, as well as to the reputation and sterilization policies of the company offering the kit.

Another major consideration is the overall value of what you are buying.  Ask yourself the question: How many piercings will this kit allow me to do?  By dividing the cost of the kit by how many piercings you can do with it gives you a COST PER PIERCING value that will tell you the true gauge used for determining how good a deal it really is.  Out of the dozens of companies that offer such items, we found one company that consistently offered the lowest cost per piercing on it’s starter body piercing kits.  This company’s cost per piercing value was many times UNDER A DOLLAR A PIERCING on it’s larger starter/apprentice body piercing kits.  Also, they offer the option of including all pre-sterilized body jewelry in their larger starter body piercing kits, which alleviates the worries and labor involved in sterilizing the jewelry beforehand.