Not too long ago, when people wanted to embrace a bold and edgy look through body piercings, eyebrow, navel, or septum were the popular choices.

Today, piercing lovers are going one step ahead and finding more and more areas to pierce. They have come up with surface piercings as a popular alternative piercing style. It involves piercing flat areas of the body to wear jewelry that appears to sit on the surface of the skin.

Keep reading to find out more about surface piercings.

What is a Surface Piercing?

Surface piercings are simply piercings that pass through the flat areas of your body, such as the chest, the back of the neck, waist, wrist, upper cheek, etc. They don’t have natural entry and exit points like you have with ear, lip, or navel piercings.

These piercings are threaded beneath the surface of the skin and pass through the second layer of skin known as the dermis. The piercer will typically pinch the skin and push through a needle, along with anchoring jewelry.  The result is a double-sided pierced look that sits flat.

The type of jewelry used for most surface piercings is a surface barbell or surface piercing bar.

Surface Piercing Styles

If you’ve decided to go for a surface piercing, you have plenty of options to choose from. The most frequently pierced areas include nape, chest, cleavage, hips, upper cheek (anti-eyebrow), and nose bridge.

Do Surface Piercings Hurt?

This will depend on the location of the piercing, your pain tolerance, as well as how skilled the piercer is. Surface piercings should not be done on fleshy areas as they can hurt more.

Similarly, a nape piercing or one that’s close to your eye will probably hurt more than a surface piercing done near your collarbone. Surface piercings done on or near genitals are painful.

How Long Do Surface Piercings Take to Heal?

The process of healing can take anywhere between four months up to a year, depending on the location of your piercing and how well you follow the aftercare practices.

Surface piercings are also more prone to piercing rejection or migration so you should be extra careful. Consult your piercer if you face excessive pain, swelling, or any other issues.

Surface Piercings Aftercare – Things to Keep in Mind

  • Perform regular sea salt soaks/compresses or take sea salt baths to keep the piercing clean and promote healing.
  • Avoid swimming to prevent any infection.
  • Wear loose-fitting clothes to avoid any unnecessary friction.
  • Do not touch or move the jewelry. Once the piercing is fully healed and you want to change the jewelry tops, it’s best to go to your piercer and get it done from them.

Surface piercing is a unique piercing style that can give you a bold, new look. If you decide to give it a try, make sure you only go to a professionally certified piercing artist.