THE FASHION IDENTITY
EDITION 30-JULY
Interview With JASMINE MENTA Taken By Pitanjal Datta 1) Which is the most painful body piercing that you have done till now? Ans) Personally on myself the most painful I have received was my nipple piercing which many will agree is quite painful, however I have been told by many females that having their clitoris pierced is by far the most painful.
Our Fashion Inspiration for Piercings and Tattoos- Jasmine Menta
2) What's your tip to all people who are first time going for piercings...when they get nervous and tensed on seeing the needles and your piercing equipments?? Ans) When piercing I always practice a relaxing breathing technique, I will ask the client to breathe in and out and that seems to bring comfort to everyone. I also take the time before the procedure to talk with the client casually to ensure they feel comfortable with me before we start.
Jasmine performing a belly button piercing
Ear and Septum Piercings by Jasmine
3) Your favorite piercings that you consider the most fashionable? Ans) It is really hard to pick a favourite, I absolutely love my septum piercing and I also absolutely love my stretched ears. But I would have to say by far my favourite is my labret piercing. It was one of the first I got and it is now a part of me.As far as whats fashionable at the moment I find that septum piercings are very very popular.
4) Tell us on the process of ear piercings.... Ans) When piercing ears I will only ever use needles, there are many different types of ear piercings as you can see in the picture below and therefore many different techniques.
Jasmine at work in her studio
The ideal age for going for a Jasmine per- tongue piercing? forming an Ans) According to Victorian Legislation a tongue piercing can be ear piercing done for anyone over the age of 16 years however those under Refer to the the age of 16 may still have it done with parental consent.
diagram in top left for the variety of7) Describe us the procedure of tongue piercing....How long will fashionable the customer getting tongue ear piercingspierced feel the pain? you can opt Ans) Tongue piercings are always pierced at 14G and the for lengths of the bar for the initial
JASMINE MENTA OUR FASHION INSPIRATIONTELLS YOU MORE ON TATTOOS AND PIERCINGS..Read On.....
piercing can be anything between 19mm-24mm. This length is due to the fact that the tongue will in most cases swell significantly. The piercing itself for a tongue isn’t high on the pain scale however the days following is when it is most uncomfortable as that is when the tongue is most swollen. The swelling will last MAX 5-7 days.
A SWOLLEN TONGUE AFTER PIERCING JASMINE performing a painful tongue piercing 8) The precautions that you take before doing a very painful piercing. Ans) As I have said breathing, relaxing and being comfortable will take that edge off any piercing however in extreme circumstances there are some numbing
agents that can be used for some piercing. I will occasionally recommend Emla cream but these will numb the surface not the whole way FASHIONABLE through.
A BEAUTIFUL PIERCING BY JASMINE
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9) A word of inspiration to all piercing artists across the world..
Ans) Be creative, enthusiastic and try anything, while always putting safety and health first.
” JASMINE gets ready to do a painful piercing
ELAYNE ANGEL JASMINE’S INSPIRATION IN HER PROFESSION
10) Piercing artist whose work you really admire. Ans) 1. Fakir Musafar, an extraordinary man that has introduced concepts and practices for the "body-first" approach to explore spirituality in art, body modifications. He has experimented on his own body with body modification techniques such as body piercing, tight lacing, scarification, tattooing etc and I find his theories very inspiring. 2. Elayne Angel has been piercing professionally since the 1980s. She served as president of the Association of Professional Piercers and has an ongoing blog and writes a monthly Q&A column in a magazine for the Body Art Industry Trade. I have read her book front to back called the ‘Piercing Bible’ and she is remarkable.
12) Rate us the pain levels for different kinds of PIERCINGS... On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the most painful Ans) a) Ear Piercing 2 b) Septum Piercing 8 c) Tongue Piercing 5 d) Lip Piercing 6
13) Describe us the process of lip piercing...... Ans) Lip piercing can be done in many different areas of the lip, top or bottom and can have a ring or labret stud. They are done with forceps for better grip and can take around 4-6 weeks to heal.
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body, from something as simple as cutting hair to something as extreme as cutting extremities off.
Many body modifications requires surgical practice and I believe body piercing and dermal anchors are a form of body modifi-
14) What is the difference between body modifications,body piercing,dermal anchors?Are they all the same.?If different what are the differences? Ans) Body Modifications are a deliberate alteration to the human
DIAGRAMATIC VIEW OF LIP PIERCINGS
Body piercing is a piercing or puncture made in your body by a needle that a piece of surgical jewellery is put into. I believe a dermal anchor is a form of Body Piercing. Dermal Anchors are a mixture of an implant and a piercing. They allow body decoration in areas that would not normally allow surface piercings and have
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a single feature. It is more permanent than a regular piercing and works by inserting an anchor plate under the skin that has a ornament threaded attachment. Venezuela aka ‘Vampire Woman’ has had many body modifications to allow herself to look more vampiric
Having a piercing does not change a person’s personality. People who have visible piercings or body modifications will often be treated differently due to their appearance whether its when looking for work or in a shopping centre people judge and I think it is something society needs to start accepting as another fashion not something that turns peoples personalities.
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15) Introduce us to a PIERCING Artist's Kit... Ans) There is a great deal used by body piercers and it will depend on their personal preference. Personally I use, forceps, needle acceptor tubes, opener and closer pliers and then there is my personal must have HEAMOSTATS.
17) A common misconception among the masses about PIERCINGS that you would like to change.... Ans) Having a piercing does not change a person’s personality. People who have visible piercings or body modifications will often be treated differently due to their appearance whether its when looking for work or in a shopping centre people judge and I think it is something society needs to start accepting as another fashion not something that turns peoples personalities. 18) Who can go for a piercing? (Eligibility) Ans) I believe anyone of the legal age or with consent can have a piercing, whether you are 20 or 95 it’s an expres-
sion of self and everyone is allowed to do that.
TATTOOS & P
19) Can everyone tolerate the piercing pain?
DERMAL ANCHORS Performed By Jasmine
Ans) I think it’s a relatively mild pain in comparison on many other things and majority of people would be able to tolerate it. Like I say to many of my clients by the time you acknowledge the pain its already gone.
20) Any ways that you can think of to reduce the intense pain of piercings of cer-
certain body parts..? If yes how? Ans) I mentioned in another question Emla crème has been
A BEAUTIFUL DERMAL BY JASMINE what has taken the edge off for some of my clients.
PIERCINGS 21) Your favourite tattoo design you have inked....
JASMINE OUR FASHION INSPIRATION FOR TATTOOS
Ans) My favorite tattoo that I have is my owl on my upper arm. But in regards to tattooing I love doing trash polka style on my clients. 22) Tell us about the inking procedure.. Ans) Tattooing is a means of marking the skin with a design by inserting pigment into punctures in the skin through means of a tattoo machine. It’s a delicate process and through different sized needles and techniques many different variation of tattoo is possible.
23) If someone gets a permanent tattoo and wants to change it after some time what do you generally do...the procedure you follow? Ans) If I have a client that wants a change a tattoo
depending on if what they have can be changed I will make the appropriate changes however if it isn’t something doable I will recommend them to have some sort of lazer removal first. 24) What's
your suggestion to all our readers when they cannot decide which spot to get inked at.....Where do you think the tattoo looks the most fashionable? Ans) It is always a personal preference as to where someone gets tattooed. I always ask them to consider their lifestyle, work etc because that could limit where they get it for example, office workers where visible tattoos aren’t accepted will need to have them hidden etc. I will often suggest places I think the design they have chosen will suit the body flow and shape but otherwise I think all areas are great, most common is the wrist, or upper arm or thigh.
25) A word of motivation to all our readers for "Tattoos and Piercings"... Ans) Tattoos and piercings are a work of art that you wear on your skin, it is your personality and your vision and becomes a part of who you are. Express yourself in whichever way you see fit and remember to enjoy life to its full.
26) An important question that we missed asking you on Piercings? Please give us the answer to the question also... Ans) How to become a body piercer?There are a lot of companies that do training courses, I have done my Nationally Accredited Training through Eze Training as they are the only ones in Australia that provide Nationally accredited body piercing courses. And then I worked alongside my mentor developing my skills, I am still forever learning.
27) An important question on tattoos we missed asking you and the answer to it? How to pick a good tattooist? I recommend visiting the studio, meeting the person you would like to tattoo you and view all their art and see if it really is the style you look for before you get them to design your piece. Also by visiting the studio you can ensure that it is health department approved and that they use appropriate sterile equipment.
EDITION 30 MONTH JULY
FROM THE EDITOR Hey Fashionistas...Its been a great pleasure bringing you this wonderful interview of “THE FASHION IDENTITY” where we got the fortunate opportunity to interview Jasmine ma’am a renowned piercing artist and tattoo artist. In this edition we have tried our best to give answers to the mostt common but important questions that you may have regarding Piercings and Tattoos in Fashion.Here Jaz ma’am also has given her point of view and elaborated on the style statement of different fashionable tattoos and piercings. Jasmine ma’am we owe to you in gratitude for giving us your time and effort to put forward this edition for our readers.No words are enough to thank you.Would also like to take this opportunity to thank Katherine ma’am for introducing us to Jasmine ma’am for this interview.Once again a big THANK YOU to both of you on behalf of our readers
/PitanjalDatta /TheFashionIdentity
With warm regards
Pitanjal Datta