Expressing Yourself through Body Piercing Art

Body piercing is a fabulous way of expressing yourself and your personality in an outward fashion. Many individuals choose to pierce one or several parts of their body in order to either make a statement or add a unique aspect to their appearance. However, before you decide to pierce any part of your body, carefully consider the choice since this form of self expression is a bit more permanent than changing a hairstyle, experimenting with cosmetics, or creating your own fashion statement.

Body piercing has been used as an art form for thousands of years. Everyone from ancient cavemen to ancient cultures and civilizations has used body piercing to express a variety of thoughts. Some cultures, including the ancient Aztecs, use body piercing to commune with the gods, whereas other cultures, including those in several African tribes, use body piercings to express beauty, status, or wealth.

Men and women choose to pierce all parts of their bodies for a variety of reasons. The most popular reason given for body piercing is to add a unique feature to the individual. Many people to either want to pierce their body parts or have already pierced different parts of their body wish to break out of the norm that our society has set. Although body piercing is a more permanent way of expressing yourself, it can be done in a subtle and tasteful fashion for those individuals worried about how their personal expression will affect different aspects of their lives, including their public, private, and business lives.

By far, the most popular body piercing involves the ears. From simple holes on the lobes of the ears to piercings in the cartilage, earrings are available in all shapes, sizes, colors, and styles. For individuals looking for more envelope-pushing piercings, consider piercing noses, labrias, eyebrows, or even tongues. Just like the selection of earrings, most reputable jewelry stores or body piercing salons offer a wide variety of quality body piercing jewelry. Use different styles, colors, and jewels to further showcase your personality through your body piercings.

Before you make a rush decision to pierce a part of your body, carefully consider how this decision will affect all aspects of your life. Individuals with visible body piercings often complain of discrimination in their public or business lives. This is often a fact that you should take into consideration. Consult your business’s policy on piercings to prevent any problems later down the road.

Clinics see surge in tattoo removals

After а few boom years the tattoo has become victim to fickle fashion tastes. One in eight Britons is estimated to have а tattoo, more than any other nation in Europe. But the tide has turned. Laser clinics in the UK are reporting record traffic to remove the body art as popularized bу stars such as David Beckham and Britney Spears.

Clinics reported а 40% increase in tattoo removals over the past two years. In July it received 500 enquiries, more than twice its average. Almost two-thirds of customers are women in their mid-20s to 50.

"We've seen а dramatic increase in people coming in for removals in all our clinics' said Jane Lewis, regional director of one of the laser clinics, "Tattoos are very fashionable now, you see celebrities with them. А lot of people who get henna tattoos like them and think they'll have а real one.

"We are seeing а mixture of реоple. Some had а tattoo when they were younger but have now got on the career ladder: they are executives who can't wear а short -sleeved shirt around the boardroom table in summer because of what it will reveal.

"There are also women for whom аtattoo was hip when they were young but who now feel people tend to look at them and bе judgmental. Кids decide the name of the bоу they loved last week is not the name they want anymore. We also see minors brought in bу their parents the day after а tattoo'.

Laser therapy is considered the most effective form of tattoo removal. Ву matching the laser light to the color of the tattoo ink, the laser breaks down the ink pigments, resulting in а gradual fading of the tattoo. The process typically requires 6-12 treatments, depending оn the size and colors involved.

Sonia Amerigo, manager of a private laser clinic in Stockport said: "We can't keep up with the trend. We get various people of all ages, from businessmen who want to wear shirt-sleeves to young women who want to take their ех -boyfriend's name off"

Dr Sandeep Varma, а consultant dermatologist at a medical centre in Nottingham, who has researched people's motives for removals, said: "There has been an explosion in the number and types of lasers available. It's а booming business: if people keep coming back for 10 or 20 treatments they can spend from 800 pounds to 61,000"

Louis Molloy, owner of a tattoo studio in Manchester, whose clients have included David Beckham, Roy Keane and Ronan Keating, said: "I owned а laser clinic for а few years and I found the majority of people wanted removals of tattoos which were self-inflicted or which had no thought whatsoever put into them"

Stop Needling Me!

Sometimes it's possible to accomplish something important by doing nothing at all. Well, actually, I did do something. I resisted. I think that counts. Here's my story. Many of my friends have been getting pierced and tattooed for years. It's huge. Every neighborhood has at least one bodypiercing/bodyart place. Seems like they outnumber taverns these days. Naturally, they want me in on it. "C'mon Mike," they say. "It's fun! It's addictive! What? Are you afraid of needles? The pain feels good! And when it's over, you have something to show for it!" I find myself looking less and less like my friends because I'm not a human signboard for little animals, death, and calligraphic text. To compound the situation, I don't pick up the light in every room, reflecting off little pieces of metal everywhere. (And I do mean everywhere!) But I have a secret to share. I'll get to that shortly. While they've been spending their paychecks on this hoopla, I've been quietly satisfied with myself, exactly as I am. I'm not suggesting my friends do it out of insecurity. Some do, obviously, but many got started because their parents told them not to. I'm no momma's boy, but I'd like to know what kind of a reason is that? People are not packrats. OK, that's not true. I am a packrat. I keep way too much stuff. But that's not really what I mean. I'm talking about the fact that packrats are known to trade an item in their pack for ever-shinier objects. I do it too, but the one that kicks me is how my friends trade fifty dollar bills for yet another shiny piece of metal, or yet another patch of scribbled skin. Now, before anyone thinks I'm complaining, let me point out that I believe in freedom to choose, and if that makes them happy, I'm not going to stop them. What? Like they'd listen to me? I'm the prude with no tattoo, remember? How would I know what it's like? From my point of view, I don't need to find out. I don't think it's necessary to be a slave to the idea of trying everything once. Some things I don't feel the need to try. Lately, some of my friends have found that their obsession is working against them. I'm still single with no kids, but many of my friends are either married or are single parents. And that's where the difficulty comes in. Some of my friends have kids that are between six and nine years old. About that age, kids start noticing their parents a little more as people. They look at them differently than they did when they were infants. Mostly, because kids grow up incredibly fast today. Much faster than when we were kids, so they notice things quicker too. Lately what they've been noticing is mom and dad's tattoos and piercings. A woman at work told me just last week that she has no idea how to convince her nine-year-old daughter why she won't take her to the parlor and get her tongue pierced, "just like mommy." So here's my secret. I have resisted tattoos and piercing because I believe in being a natural person. I think the metal and the ink only serve to detract from the outer beauty of my friends and it does nothing to enhance their inner person. So I see no reason to use my body for someone's canvas. Friends can be so myopic. They don't want to see their kids all boogered up because they see their kids as beautiful exactly as they are, but they hold themselves to a double standard. They continue to encourage me to get some bodyart and I continue to resist. Why am I such a holdout? Do I really fear the needle? No, of course not. I'm the one who used to play with clothing pins and sewing needles, pushing them through the tops of my knuckles like a juvenile Freddy Krueger. I also used to do the infamous sewing-needle-shoved-through-the-flexed-arm trick. The difference is, it was just play to me, and I wasn't trying to make a fashion statement. I simply have a philosophy that says a person needs to stick to their values and not give in to peer pressure. Piercing and tattoos have led my friends to nothing but empty pocketbooks and hard questions from their kids. Maybe I'll go to work one day with needles through all my fingers like I did in school. That'll show 'em!