21-year-old Ontario, Canada-based makeup artist Ciera Jewel comes by her love of body jewelry from her family. Her mother was a body piercer, and she’s been getting piercings since she was a tween (with parental permission, of course). Ciera has developed her own sense of style, favoring bold colors and often changing her hair color as well as her body jewelry.
She’s been a freelance makeup artist for three years, but started practicing on herself and her friends as a teen, trying out different techniques. The multi-pierced influencer describes herself as “body posi AF” and a “bisexual babe” in her Instagram bio. Ciera talked to Spencer’s about how she selects her body jewelry, the connection between body jewelry and makeup and her favorite body jewelry styles.
How would you describe your style?
I would say it’s alternative. I wouldn’t say it’s completely punk or completely goth. I like to change up my style all the time. I’m so inspired by change so I’m always changing how I look, how I do my hair. Some days I’ll take out all of my jewelry and put everything new in from my gauges to my lip rings. I’m constantly changing my appearance.
Why is that?
I like the looks on people’s faces a lot. I like that I can change myself and I can feel confident with that change. I don’t like looking the same for a long time. It has to be constant. I’m always changing up my hair color, I’m always getting new piercings, just something to look different.
When did you start getting piercings? What was your first one? How did you decide what to start with?
I’ve had my ears pierced since I was a child. Like almost every other girl, you’re born, then a few months later your parents just decide for you to get your ears pierced. My mom was a body piercer at a tattoo parlor for a very long time, so when she let me get a piercing, I was around 10 or 11 years old. I got my helix pierced. She did it at the shop where she worked.
You’ve been interested in body piercing since you were little. Do you remember what made you interested in piercing?
I was around a lot of people that my mom worked with who were covered in tattoos and piercings. Piercings have always intrigued me, especially facial piercings, so when I was around 10 or 11 I got my helix pierced. Then a year or two later I got my nose pierced, which was a big thing. Then it went from there. I felt lopsided so I got the other side of my nose pierced. I got my septum pierced. All my nose piercings were from when I was a teenager. After that my mom said, okay, no more piercings on your face and by the time she said that, I was old enough to go to a piercer myself and get them without needing her to sign for me.
How many piercings do you have now?
I have 12.
Are you planning to get more? Are you always thinking about that, or are you focused on the ones you have?
Funny you should say that. I got my high nostrils pierced last week and then had to take them out because one of them wasn’t fitting properly. So yes, I’m always thinking about getting new piercings.
Does that have to do with changing up your look?
I’m not going to get my entire face covered in facial piercings, but simple ones can entirely change my look and make me feel more confident in myself. I’m hoping to get a few more on my face and then be done.
Before you get a piercing, is there anything you do to prepare for it?
It’s funny because I don’t like needles. I have to mentally prepare myself, even now. It’s a few-day process. [I tell myself] Okay, on this day I’m going to get it done, and do some deep breaths.
How do you get into that headspace to be ready for it?
If I know I’m going to get this piercing and I’m going to see my piercer on this day, I think about the other piercings [I have]. They all have their own different pain. I think of what hurt the most and why it hurt.
Do you go with anyone or do you go by yourself?
Most of the time I go by myself. I did go last week with my best friend because she was having a crisis with her appearance so she either wanted to get bangs or a piercing. If she got bangs, she would hate them in three days. I told her, just get a piercing, it hurts for a few seconds, and at least if you don’t like it you can take it out after three days and it’ll heal. Bangs will take you three months to go out. She got her medusa pierced, which is really cute.
Aside from the ones from your mom, have you gotten them all from the same person or the same shop?
I go to the same piercer in my city now. He’s done my top lip, bottom lip, both thermals and both nipples.
Why do you prefer going to the same person?
He just has a really good reputation in the city. His reviews are phenomenal. I’ve known him since I was young because my mom knew him. It’s the reputation he has and if I look at the reviews of anyone else in my city they’re not very sanitary. He’s a professional; he’s one of the first in my city to do dermals. Anyone that’s covered in piercings in this city only goes to him.
How do you care for your piercings and have you ever had any issues with them?
I feel like almost all piercings are different to take care of. Like my nose, you have to clean it three times a day for the first couple weeks and then two times after that. My lip was the easiest to heal. That one healed up really fast. Nipples are a bitch to take care of. If you hit it off something, it wants to reject. It’s just painful the entire time. I’ve had my nipple piercings for two or three years and they still gives me trouble to this day.
How do you deal with that?
I usually salt water soak them. That usually sanitizes it if there’s any infection. I do that a couple times a day for a few weeks.
When I got my high nostrils pierced, those ones gave me trouble. I only had them for a week because my nose was swollen too big, and the jewelry went right through my nose. So I had to take those out unfortunately.
You’re also a makeup artist. How do piercings and makeup go together for you?
I feel like they go hand in hand for my look and my appearance because of the type of makeup I do. I do more of the alternative—thick eyeliner, dark smoky eye, black lipstick—and I really don’t think I could see myself without any of my piercings.
Even when I get new piercings on my face, I feel like they belong there the entire time. It accentuates the makeup. I’ll do lipstick and sometimes I’ll go right over the lip ball and it just brings some more character to my look.
Is there anything you have to be careful about when putting on and removing makeup when you have piercings?
I definitely have to be more gentle with the application around my dermals because makeup and product can get into and around those dermals. The decleanse at night has to be really good to get that makeup off of all of the jewelry and not leave any product inside any of the holes.
How often do you change your body jewelry and how often do you get new jewelry?
For the most part, I change my jewelry when I see new jewelry that I like. If I get new plugs in the mail or if I go to the mall and go to Spencer’s and see new jewelry that I like, especially lip jewelry, I’ll be sure to change everything. If I get lip jewelry with a big diamond, I’ll change my nose jewelry to a diamond stud. It’s probably every few weeks that I change my nose jewelry and my lip jewelry.
What do you look for from new body jewelry? Is it a specific style or color?
I look for very simple [styles]. I’m very simplistic with the colors. I like silver plated, I like my diamonds though for my lip and my dermals to be big and flashy. I want people to notice them, so my dermals and lip piercing are very big. With my nose and my bottom lip I like it to be very simple. I like my hoop in my nose and just a little bar in my lip.
Do you have a lot of makeup clients who also have piercings?
My client base varies. I do have a lot of friends of mine that get their makeup done that have piercings but a lot of my clientele is wedding-based makeup and a lot of the girls don’t have many piercings. At the most, they have their nose pierced.
Do you have any piercings you plan to get in the future?
I plan to repierce my high nostrils because I’m really upset that I had to take them out. I’ve been thinking about getting my bridge between my eyes pierced. I think after that I’ll be good with facial piercings. I’ve never been one for ear piercings. I keep everything very central.
Why is that?
I’ve never really liked ear piercings. I feel like they’re all clustered in one small area. I like that with facial piercings, everything is separated.
Has our culture been more open and accepting of facial piercings over the last 10 years?
The comment I get now are completely different from the comments I would have gotten 10 years ago if I had a full face of piercings back then. It’s mostly seniors, more traditional people, that make the comments. My grandparents don’t like them and will joke around with me and call me metal face all the time, but besides that I feel like it’s more accepted now to get piercings, to get tattoos, to be out of your shell and be yourself, which is really nice.
Do you have any advice for someone about to get their first piercing?
Look up the piercers in your city. Looking at the reviews is so important. It’s crazy because I remember when my mom was piercing, she would have so many clients come to her and say, “Can you fix this piercing that blah-blah-blah did?” Everyone knew in the city that that person wasn’t the most sanitary. People usually went to him because he had a very cheap rate, so definitely check the reviews.
If you want to get a piercing, don’t ask opinions from other people asking if you should get it or not because I’ve made that mistake so many times. Friends and family would say, “You’re going to ruin your face, don’t do that.” Then I would just go do it myself.
Do you have any advice about figuring out the best body part to get pierced first?
I always say the nose. Nose is really easy. My best friend said “I want a piercing but I don’t know what.” I told her to get a medusa, since she already had both sides of her nose pierced. It depends on the person and their facial structure, but nose piercings look good on everyone.
Have you observed any differences between the various types of piercings you have in terms of pain levels or recovery time?
When it comes to pain tolerance and healing, it all depends on the person. I know people who got their nipples pierced and it was the most painful, traumatic thing, but when I got them, I didn’t even flinch. But mine healed horribly and mine still give me trouble to this day. It all depends on the person.
What are your favorites of the body piercings that you have?
I love my medusa, probably it’s my favorite piercings next to my dermals. Because it’s just a labret post, it’s really easy to find jewelry. It’s hard to find nose piercing jewelry, nose hoops, because I like them at a certain gauge, and for the most part I find the gauge too small. My dermals make everything so symmetrical on my face.
What do you feel like your piercings say about your personality?
With outsiders, some people can feel like I’m intimidating just looking at my jewelry and by the way I do my makeup, because sometimes I do my eyebrows into a high arch that makes me look angry all the time. But once you actually talk to me, it’s like, “her personality is not like her appearance.” I tend to be very nice and outgoing. You can’t really look at my face and be like, “Oh, her personality matches that mean mug that she has.”
How do you feel about it that people make that assumption? Are you offended?
No. It’s totally understandable because of the way I do my makeup. It 100% looks like I’m mean, but people actually have to talk to me to know that I’m not like that. I’m very enthusiastic; I’m a very sensitive person.
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