Summer is finally here. There is no better feeling in the world than finally getting a chance to wear that new bikini and navel ring that you have been working so hard to rock. Your summer skin looks perfect with its piercings and tattoos. You put in that long, luxurious dangling belly ring and it looks stunning in the blazing sunlight. You’ve put on your shades because it’s almost blinding to look directly at this gleaming belly bling. Thank goodness that this ice is not the kind that melts, or you would be wearing nothing but a puddle. That being said, it’s time to sit out and catch some rays.

Sometime later, you inspect your nubile tanned summer skin and ….BAM, ugly weird tan line! Long, dangle belly rings are absolutely glorious, but precautions must be taken if you want to execute that kind of glamour and enjoy basking in the sun without its unsavory side effects. No matter how much makeup you put over a weird tan line or burn you won’t be able to make it go away.

Whether your skin is sensitive or not, it is wise to be careful not to get sweat, tanning oil, or sun block into a new piercing. Brand new piercings are technically open wounds, so getting them in contact with lotion or oil will only aggravate the piercing. UV rays dry out the skin, so you should also be careful of drying out your piercing and causing infection. While your belly button is healing, it’s best not to sun bathe or go into a tanning bed. I know this will be hard for a lot of our tanorexic folks out there. A lot of girls will take their belly rings out while tanning to avoid these odd tan lines; this is obviously not an option with a new healing piercing.  If you do decide to tan with a new piercing, one option can be to cover it up with a cotton ball and some surgical tape or a band aid. After all, it’s much better to have a pale skin around your new piercing than infected red skin around it.

Swimming should also be avoided until your piercing is completely healed. It may be very tempting to get pierced during the warm, summer months when you want to show off that lovely midriff, but this practice is not ideal if you love to swim. The bacteria levels in any public or natural water source are extremely high. Sand and other small particles are also to be avoided.  And always be mindful of a metal belly ring heating up in the sun or tanning bed. While tanning, it may be best to wear a bioplast belly ring or retainer to lessen the chances of this occurring. Long dangle jewelry can act like a reflector, and the area around it may be affected.

It’s easy to wear a short, curved barbell belly ring in a tanning bed to avoid crazy tan lines, but you don’t have to sacrifice wearing your long dangly belly ring to the beach. You can put a thin layer of sun block behind the jewelry in a healed piercing (still being mindful not to get it in the hole) to protect the skin behind and around the area of your belly ring. If the jewelry allows, you can sort of coil the dangle up and tuck it in so it rests right in your belly button. Another option is to move the dangle around and not let it sit in the same place to insure that no unsightly tan lines occur. There are plenty of options to tan and wear your beautiful belly ring with pride. Have fun this summer!

Watch as Lexii gets her first piercing. Her belly button was pierced by James at American Skin Art in Buffalo NY.  She is a sophomore in High School and was lucky enough to have an awesome mom who took her to get pierced and was actually holding the camera while it happened. Her sister Jennah also got her lip pierced that day; look for the video soon. If a minor wants to get pierced in New York State you must have your parent or legal guardian present with a birth certificate and ID.

Belly button piercings are the number one body piercing (next to the ears). The jewelry options are endless: belly rings can be a curved barbell, spiral barbell, top mount, or BCR. This piercing does however take a very long time to fully heal. The abdomen lacks blood supply which causes slower healing than most other piercing locations. A professional piercer will assess where your anatomy allows for a belly piercing.  Placement and jewelry needs to be specific to your body in order to allow for proper comfort and healing. This precaution is also to prevent migration and rejection. A piercer will look at this placement when you are sitting and standing. The most common place for a belly piercing is through the center of the fold on the top of the navel. It is also very popular to get multiple belly piercings.

Most people find their navel piercing to be fairly painless, when done properly by a professional piercer. Initial jewelry is most often a 14g curved barbell but rings are also used. Healing time is approximately 6-9 months with proper care and cleaning.

The piercing may be done standing or lying down; Lexii’s was done lying at a slight incline. After moving her shirt out of the way, the piercer then cleans and marks the site of the piercing. After she approves the placement he lines up the forceps. Then he uses the 14 gauge hollow needle to pierce the belly button skin from the bottom up, corks it, and inserts the new jewelry.

As with any piercing the hype is worse than the actual poke itself. Lexii was naturally a little bit nervous, being her first piercing, but she didn’t even flinch as the needle went through her flesh. (The actual needle insertion is at around 30 seconds in the video). She exclaimed with a huge smile on her face “It didn’t even hurt! I love it!”and after complimenting the piercer on a job well done, immediately took a photo for Facebook.

Aftercare for your new belly piercing includes sea salt soaks and cleansing with antibacterial soap. Avoid exposing the fresh piercing to the sun. It is recommended to avoid sleeping on your stomach during the initial healing as well. Clothing rubbing up against the fresh piercing can also cause irritation, so make sure you dress accordingly. Wearing low rise pants and loose breathable garments will prevent friction. Use caution while working out or playing sports and especially avoid abdominal exercises. You should not change your own jewelry for the first 6 months, and if you are experiencing difficulties, contact your piercer immediately.

A good option for those who are impatient is to make sure your initial belly ring has removable balls, this way you can change the look of your piercing without removing the barbell. Avoid wearing elaborate jewelry until the piercing is completely healed. Adding the additional weight and potential for snagging is a bad idea.

Lexii’s first piercing was a great experience because James was very calming and professional. She did not even realize that the piercing was complete, it was just a little bit of pressure and discomfort from the clamps. The cleaning was a slight tickle and the most “painful” part of the piercing is not being able to change the jewelry for 6 months. She loves her brand new belly button piercing and cannot wait to eventually change to longer, dangly jewelry. The days following: the piercing was not too painful, just a little swelling and redness. Patience is the key to success. Following your piercer’s aftercare guidelines is very important for the health of your piercing.

Piercing: Depending on the preference of the piercer, a belly piercing may be done either standing up or laying down, and may include markings with surgical pen, a hollow needle receiving tube, a pair of Pennington forceps, and/or a cork.  As with all piercings, the area will be thoroughly cleaned prior to the piercing itself.

Aftercare: Aftercare for belly piercings may include gentle cleansings with antibacterial soap and cue tips, sea salt soaks, or saline rinses.  During the initial weeks of healing, avoidance of sun exposure, chlorinated water, and makeup or self tanner are also recommended.  Because of their precarious placement, care must also be taken to avoid scraping, tapping, or blunt trauma, all of which may increase the chances of migration or rejection.

Jewelry: Although most belly rings are variations on the standard curved barbell (often referred to as a banana bell), other types of belly jewelry may also be worn including BCR belly rings, spiral barbells, and top mount belly rings.

Style Variations: Depending on individual anatomy, piercings of the navel rim may be performed at almost any point along the belly button, or in multiple places at once.  Piercing of the lower rim of the belly button is an especially popular alternative to the standard, and is often called “bottom belly piercing.”