Video: Lee’s Bridge Piercing – Up Close and Personal
Watch as Lee gets a bridge piercing from James at American Skin Art in Buffalo NY. The needle pierces the flesh around 57 seconds into the video. The area is first cleaned. Then the proper jewelry is chosen based on anatomy, and the entry and exit points are marked and checked by both the piercer and the person being pierced. Lee reclines on the table. Then the area is clamped and a 14 gauge hollow needle is inserted, corked, and then chased by a 14 gauge straight titanium barbell. This is the second time Lee is getting the bridge piercing done. This makes it a little bit more painful than the average bridge piercing, due to old scar tissue. Still, it seems to be very little pain considering.
The horizontal surface piercing located on the bridge of the nose, between the eyes is called the Bridge, the Erl, or the Mid Brow piercing. The technical term for the tissue between the brows and above the nose is the glabella. You can get this piercing placed from the top of the brows to right above the bridge of the nose. A straight barbell or a small curved barbell can be used for this piercing. It is important that the placement is straight and the jewelry is a proper fit. This piercing is named after Erl Van Aken, an actor and early body modification pioneer, who had the first known bridge piercing from the famous shop The Gauntlet.
In order to receive a proper bridge piercing, the person being pierced must have sufficient skin in the right area, enough to pinch between the fingers. Your piercer must be very sure that you have sufficient padding between your jewelry and the underlying structures of your face as well; it could cause a lot of problems, including bone loss, to wear incorrect jewelry. Even with proper placement, procedure, and the correct anatomy, there is unfortunately a somewhat higher rate of rejection and chance of scarring.
It is a piercing urban legend that getting your bridge pierced will make you go cross eyed. If you do happen to notice the jewelry out of the corner of your eye that means the bar is most likely too long. Many people who wear corrective glasses or sunglasses do not think they can get this piercing due to aggravation from the glasses rubbing. Again, this is not true; if pierced high enough the piercing will not interfere with wearing glasses one bit.
The gauge of the needle and jewelry used is determined by the piercer based on how much tissue is available. For the initial bridge piercing it is recommended to use a 14 or 12 gauge barbell. The placement and gauge of the jewelry contributes to making the healing time a bit longer than an average piercing. It takes up to 4-6 months or more of proper care for this piercing to properly heal. You can use a straight barbell or a small curved barbell for the initial jewelry, and initial piercing jewelry is always longer to make space for swelling. The first time you change your piercing or downsize your jewelry, you should definitely consult your piercer.
Keeping the area free of harsh cleansers and moisturizers, anything scented, makeup, and hair is advisable during healing time. It is also very important to strictly follow your professional piercer’s aftercare guidelines. Cleaning the area regularly with salt water or a product such as H20cean is usually recommended. The bridge piercing is a very unique way to embellish an already beautiful face. With proper care, it can be very rewarding and gain lots of attention and compliments due to its rarity.