As the weather gets warmer and you start busting out your warm weather clothing, it’s natural to start planning your next piercings. After all, there’s no better time to show off your style than in the warmer months when your clothes aren’t covering some of your favorite body piercings.
With so many piercing styles out there, it can be difficult to choose the best piercing for you. Here are some of our favorite piercings that truly shine during swimsuit season.
Belly button piercing
When it’s time to lounge by the pool, there’s perhaps no better piercing to show off than the belly button piercing. Located in the skin right above the navel, the navel piercing allows you to show off your belly with a cute gemstone decorating your belly button. You can even opt for more extravagant jewelry types, like dangle belly rings, to really help your summer bod to stand out.
A belly button piercing is perfect for bikini weather.
While the standard belly piercing is by far the most popular, you can get a number of surface piercings around the belly button for a truly unique look.
Be aware that the belly piercing takes around 6 – 9 months to heal (maybe even longer), and during that time, you must abstain from swimming and keep your piercing free from debris, like sand. Therefore, if you’re planning on participating in water sports or going on a tropical vacation this summer, then you might want to wait until the fall to get your belly button pierced.
Surface piercing
Surface piercings are quickly becoming one of the hottest piercing trends. They take place on the surface of the body, and they can be located pretty much anywhere that can be pierced deeply enough. Common surface piercings include the nape of the neck, , the sternum, and above the clavicle.
In order to conduct a surface piercing, your piercer will massage the skin that’s to be pierced, push the needle through, and insert a special surface barbell. This results in a double-pierced look, as the disks of the barbell remain visible while the bar stays beneath the skin.
Surface piercings offer an alluring look that almost seems impossible; you’ll be sure to get lots of attention with these types of piercings. If you opt for bright gemstones, their sparkle in the sun will add an additional wow factor.
Just like belly piercings, surface piercings can have a considerable healing time, so you might want to get these in the fall so that you can unveil them next summer. In addition, surface piercings aren’t always successful, even when performed by capable professionals. If the idea of some scarring or a piercing that fails is too much for you, surface piercings are likely not for you.
Septum piercing
Although septum piercings rock all year round, they heal a bit faster than the former two piercings; it’s possible to get this piercing in the spring and have it ready for beach time in the summer.
Septum piercings add a little edge to your look while remaining subtle.
Septum piercings take place in the thin cartilage, nicknamed the “sweet spot” in the nasal septum. If you want something a little edgier than a nostril piercing (and something that heals a bit faster), then this might be the piercing for you.
The minimum healing time for septum piercings is 4 – 8 weeks, so you should get this piercing as early in the spring as possible so that healing doesn’t affect your summertime plans.
Lobe piercing
In all of our excitement for different body piercing types, we often forget about a piercing staple: the lobe piercing. Like the septum piercing, lobe piercings have a shorter healing time (around 4 – 8 weeks minimum), so if you get your lobes pierced early enough in the springtime, and you’re given the all-clear by your piercer, then you might be ready for your beach vacation by the time summer comes around.
The best part about lobe piercings is that they’re incredibly versatile. You have a wide range of choices when it comes to placement, and you can even get multiple lobe piercings. Don’t be afraid to get a little creative, and find bright jewelry that will look fantastic in the sunshine.
A note on healing piercings during the spring and summer
When the warm weather hits, you might be tempted to go out and get a piercing right away. However, you must consider healing times. Many piercings require several months to heal, and you don’t want your new piercing to ruin your summer plans.
Even if you choose a piercing with shorter healing times, like septum or lobe piercings, there’s no guarantee that they’ll be fully healed within the 4 – 8 week healing period. Everyone heals at a different rate, and sometimes healing takes longer than anticipated.
Before changing your jewelry, stopping aftercare, or participating in water activities, you should consult your piercer. Often, piercings appear healed on the outside before they’re fully healed on the inside. You should also clean your piercing daily with high-quality piercing aftercare solution for the entire healing period.
Summertime is a great time to show off your piercings. Whether you’re planning on getting pierced this summer, or you’re making plans for next year, always make sure that you’re taking proper care of your healing piercing so that your piercing sees success.
