"I want to support you, but times are hard"

Hey fox friends! It's time to talk about a topic that seems awkward, but really isn't:

The economy and piercings/body mods. I know piercings (and tattoos) have been a "fun little treat" for so many of you, as they should be! They are fun! You do deserve a little treat!

But I also know that the burnout from your job is real, that more and more is expected of you with less hours/pay. That gas is more expensive. That it's harder and harder to get a basket of groceries for under $100. That bills keep happening, that life keeps slapping you around. That means that we have to make sacrifices, and eventually we reach the point where body mods are that sacrifice. And it f**king sucks. (We won't even talk about how hard it is to heal a piercing while you're stressed and burned out, we'll cover that in a later post)

So: you want to support your favorite artist, but you are beyond ballin' on a budget. What can you do? 1) Check us out on flash events! That's usually a great way to get a smaller tattoo done, a cheaper piercing, or a piece of jewelry on sale. 2) Leave us a review on Google! Tell your friends and family. If you spend time on socials, recommend us for things that would match what we do. (Family member in town and you guys want to get your nose pierced? Hey you know a gal!)

3) Pop into the shop and get some business cards or some stickers (the shop has free stickers and I'm happy to give you some as well). You can leave some cards at your favorite shops if they have a place for them (and please bring me some! I have card books for people as well) slap a sticker on a crosswalk! Your favorite bar bathroom! They're stickers, the possibility is endless!

4) Engage with us on social media! I know I am Not Great at social media. I regularly forget to take pictures, I post stuff on my stories that isn't always piercing related. You can (please get some help so it's not too blurry) send me some healed photos. Tag me in your posts and stories if we did something! Send me things that will make me cringe and regret having eyes* (*in like a piercing way, I LIVE for "is this rejecting?" reddit posts LOL)

I will do my best to reply in a reasonable amount of time (I do try to stay off on Insta after work hours or I will spend the rest of the night absorbed on my phone instead of getting my 5 Star Island or going to Baldur's Gate) but please know: it is always wholesome and welcomed when you see something that makes you think of me/our time together and you can absolutely send it to me.

I also like pet pics, just saying

Something else, and I know there is discourse on if downsizing is a scam (spoiler alert, it's not. It's actually a critical part of the piercing healing journey, but more on that later) but sometimes we had the extra funds for the piercing, but situations have changed and now the ~$35+ is not in the budget. This applies more to those who have several piercings, but if you can find and bring me all of the threadless labret bars you have, I can sort through them and see if you have anything smaller that we can downsize into. This means that it's only the ~$17 install fee instead of ~$35ish. This also works with hoops and whatnot too, I was using the labrets as example since that's the most common style of jewelry for 95% of piercings I do :)

(But please bring them to me in a sealed container/bag!)

Keep fighting the fight, keep your head up. Things feel bleak now, and they've felt that way for a while. In the darkness, stars shine the brightest. Hang out with people who get you, find your community, keep it up. We got this* <3 (*as a threat and a promise) - Bree <3