Septum 101: The Nose Knows- What to Look for from a Safe Septum Piercing

If you didn’t know, septum piercings are hands down one of my favorite piercings to do! I think they look phenomenal on every nose, the jewelry choices are fantastic, and the unique anatomy of every client keeps me on my toes doing these. Many piercers consider septums to be a more challenging piercing, going so far to discuss doing them as where skill meets luck (thanks Ryan Ouelette!) That said, a good piercer with a great foundation can provide you with an amazing experience getting a septum. But, as we all know, not all piercers are created equal, and many lack the correct training and education to pierce a septum correctly. Next to navels, I would say I see septum piercings done incorrectly the most often. So this write up is here to help you understand what to look for when getting your septum pierced!

To start, Septum Piercings are placed in the Alar Cartilage. This is what is commonly called the “Sweet Spot”. There is a misconception that the sweet spot is not cartilage, which is untrue. It is simply a softer, squishier cartilage at the tip of the nose. Imagine if you could wiggle your nose a la bewitched, this would be the cartilage that would allow you to do so. Because this is the anatomy where the septum needs to be pierced, it ends up high and tight to the front of the nose. This is the correct placement. You never want a septum piercing placed further back against the face, or in the tough lower cartilage of the middle of the nose. A septum done correctly should sit snug to the nose, and if you want to wear a larger or showier piece, you can simply purchase a larger diameter. Perhaps the way I see these done incorrectly the most often is too low, or too far back. You should always check portfolios to see a range of a piercers work. They should have both healed and fresh shots of septums, and at least a few that show angles. The piercings should be towards the front of the nose, and placed up at the nostrils. If a ring is oversized, it may have some hang, but there should be some that show a properly fitted placement. A red flag is all photos where the jewelry hangs down to the lip.