Piercings

Like most forms of body art which are popular today, piercing is a form of body modification that has been around for millennia.

Mummified remains that are over 5,000 years old were discovered to be sporting earrings; nose piercings are estimated to have been around since 1500 BC, and the first mentions of nipple piercings can be found in writings from Ancient Rome.

While piercings in these eras were often done with religious motives in mind or to signify status within a society or a rite of passage undergone, people today tend to get body piercings mostly for decorative reasons.

Young people often want to make a statement about their personality and individuality with an unusual piercing and the possibilities when it comes to piercing body parts are endless.

Having your ears pierced is an extremely common and easy practice, however, creating openings in your skin on other body parts can sometimes come with risks and should be done by a specialist. Piercings are considered a true art form.

Before you get pierced you should be 100% sure it is what you really want and make sure the piercer/body modification specialist is REPUTABLE and HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, and that the person uses BRAND NEW STERILE NEEDLES.

If you want to avoid major health risks, you want to make sure your artist uses brand new needles to avoid the spread of Hepatitis B or C and HIV. Also, you would like initially to get pierced with stainless steel or a safer metal to avoid any allergic reactions to other metals, for example gold, nickel or anything that looks cheap.

After your artist does these things, the rest is in the client's hands. If you want your piercing to heal properly, keep it cleaned and follow your artist's instructions. When it comes to the healing process everyone is different.

The healing time (varies) depending on body part and also person. Because we all don't heal the same. For instance, cartilage areas tend to usually take a longer time to heal compared to the softer parts of your ear.

Vegan Ink

For Vegans, sticking to an animal-free lifestyle is more than just watching what they eat. The most dedicated vegans are also cautious about what's in the products they use, including the ingredients of their tattoo ink.

Because vegans strictly avoid anything created from animals, tattoo ink with any animal product in it would be going against vegan beliefs.

Jason Wynn, a UA graduate and employee of Scapegoat Tattoo, an all-vegan tattoo parlor in Portland, Ore., said most tattoo ink is considered vegan, but there are certain colors that are by-products of animals.

"Black is a tough color because it is often derived either from burnt bones or from the resin of shellac bugs," Wynn said.

He also pointed out that most tattoo parlors use soaps or ointments in the treatment of tattoos that contain animal by-products. Even if customers were able to use vegan-friendly ink, such as ink of the brand Starbrite, they would still have to be cautious about what to use to treat the tattoo.

For vegans in the Valley, it can be difficult to find a vegan-friendly tattoo parlor.

Fritz Andrews, a tattoo artist at No Regrets Tattoo Parlor located on the corner of University and Hardy drives, said that although his shop offers Starbrite ink, he doesn't like the idea of giving a vegan tattoo to someone because he worries the quality might not be the best.

"I'm not comfortable with only using certain inks, because some ink has better pigment quality than others," he said. "I wouldn't want to use an ink I'm not familiar with because I want to give my customer the best art possible."

Though he said he has never had a request for a vegan tattoo, he does have some customers who ask for all-natural tattoo ink.

He said that it's hard to fulfill these requests, as ink companies aren't obligated to list all their ingredients on the ink bottles. So in reality, companies could be putting whatever they want into the ink.

Because of the lack of information about ingredients, Scapegoat Tattoo does a lot of research to ensure the ink they use is vegan, Wynn said.

He said that the quality of vegan-friendly ink is on par with other inks and there isn't a significant price difference between vegan and non-vegan ink.

Andrew Stravers, 21, a vegan for five years in Tempe, said that he sought out a vegan-friendly tattoo shop after hearing that some tattoo ink used squid ink as one of its ingredients.

He chose to go to No Regrets Tattoo Parlor to get his four tattoos done because he heard they use Starbrite ink there.

Stravers said it's hard to be 100-percent vegan in a non-vegan world, but it's important to him to stick to the tenants of veganism.

Valentines Day Love

When it comes to Valentine's Day, the lads and lasses in love do not seem to have dearth of innovative ideas.

To strengthen the emotional bond, lovebirds have been lining up at a city's tattoo studio for the past week to get the names of their beloved tattooed on their body.

The craze for showing off even their lover's picture's on body has suddenly caught up with them in a big way. Even costly tattoos are in great demand.

Girls have got tattooed names of their boyfriends. The boys, too, have got names of their girlfriends tattooed on their bodies." However, when contacted, the lovebirds refused to be named.

Alex Finch (Poké Ball Tattoos/Subdermal Implants.)

Pokémon fan Alex Finch displayed his tattoo of six Poké Balls, supplemented by six subdermal implants to create the effect of three-dimensional Poké Balls implanted into his arm. Finch spoke with ANN and stated that he has been a fan of the Pokémon videogame and anime franchise since he was in third or fourth grade, and that he chose to get six Poké Ball tattoos in reference to the number of Poké Balls which can be carried in the original videogames. He also noted that the tattoos shown are "just the beginning" as he plans to get additional tattoos of videogame, cartoon, and anime icons on the rest of the arm, including more Poké Balls.

In the franchise, the Poké Ball (or Monster Ball in the original Japanese version) is a spherical device used to capture and store wild Pokémon, to be released in battle. There are several varieties of the Poké Ball, including the Super Ball, Ultra Ball (Hyper Ball in the Japanese version), and Master Ball, which have higher rates of capture success than the standard Poké Ball. Later additions to the game franchise such as Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver added more varieties of Poké Balls.

The tattoos shown depict the original Poké Ball.

Lip Rings (Studs).

Lip rings and studs happen to be a dynamite alternative for body modification. While these kinds of piercings demand attentive carefulness and hygiene maintenance specifically for the first couple months following the piercings, they are still one of the best, most favored body piercing options possible. Lip rings and studs remain one of the most sought after body modifications for numerous reasons.

First, the mouth is very observable to anybody that you might come in contact with. contrary to earrings, which happen to be oftentimes hiding behind the hair and unnoticed, lip rings and studs happen to be frequently more easy to visualize. Likewise, earrings happen to be so common and commonly worn that they are frequently considered a typically established adornment.

Nevertheless, lip rings and studs provide a lot more of an adventurous way of expressing oneself, and is a more high-spirited decision. Depending on your sociocultural norms, and your age group however, as it is a much more normal jewelry alternative for younger age groups than older.

When it comes to lip ring and stud placement, before getting your piercing, make sure that you understand: the reasons why you happen to be gaining it, how you wish to use your piercing, and if there could be any social or job-related problems with lip ring placement, size, or type.

In the enthusiasm of gaining a fresh body modification, lots of people get tied up in the hoopla, and might not remember all the outcomes. That doesn't signify you should not get a lip ring, only be willing to appreciate that parents, employers, and other people besides friends may not appreciate or agree with your preference.

After considering these ideas, it may assist you in making an alternative of what styles of lip rings and studs you're interested in, as well as the placement of them.

If you labor in a more conventional occupation, make sure to review your employee manual on what kind of facial jewelry is customary in the workplace. Many employers allow discreet, low-profile lip studs, if it is not inserted in the employee manual make sure to ask your employer beforehand.

If you're lucky and your boss is more fashionable and fresh, then lip rings are perhaps acceptable in any type. Make sure and check your employee manual beforehand.

If all lip rings and studs are approved then there happen to be so many pleasurable and wonderful choices through facial adornment. It all depends on what kind of statement you would have a preference for to make and what your individualism is.