When and Where Can I Earpierce My Baby Girls Ears?

Hi, my mom gotten my ears when I within a few weeks of birth. A lot has changed since then. I have a 2 year old daughter and she got her ear pierced after her first set of shots (2 months of age). 10k gold stud earrings were used. (That's how they pierce ears now.

About me: single mom to a 2 yr old who is looking to finish school.

I wouldn't go to Claires or other cheap jewelry store. I worked at one when I was a teenager, and they (we) didn't know what we were doing. Its not difficult, but you don't always hit the target w/little ears.

Please don't view this as judgemental, it's not intended to be that way. I just want to share that when I was pregnant, I was walking past a Claire's and there was a mom holding her baby (maybe 7 months or so) and one ear was done, they were getting ready to do the other. The baby was screaming.

If you have your ears pierced, remember how it felt -- it hurts. I know it hurts briefly, but why would you want to unnecessarily cause pain in your child? Every time my son gets shots, I want to cry for him knowing that it hurts.

Just a thought -- why not wait until she asks for her ears to be pierced rather than assume this is something she wants done? Additionally, there is probably a very good reason why your baby's doctor won't do it until 4 months...

Again, no judgement, just throwing the other side out there for consideration.

Personally, I stuck with the pediatrician. I felt safer with that.

M.

I think that you can pierce the ears at any time (since many cultures pierce soon after the birth).

As for where, I would definitely go to your pediatrician's office. Here is why I say this - I have a sensitivity to nickel and I have read that sometimes people develop the sensitivity if their ears are pierced with studs containing nickel (or maybe even an instrument containing nickel). I cannot wear most earrings for more than an hour or so, unless they contain mostly gold or platinum, or I even sometimes wears surgical plastic earrings (more attractive than they sound). My doctor's office uses Blomdahl products to pierce and I think that they are the best. Having a metal sensitivity is really annoying and if you can avoid it, you'll save your daughter some irritation down the road ( no pun intended :)).

P.S. - I was reading the Blomdahl site and here is what I learned....

"My kids want to have their ears pierced. I have heard that ear piercing can cause nickel allergy. Is that correct?"

Answer:
The ear piercing procedure as such cannot cause nickel allergy. It is the material that some ear piercing earrings are made of which can cause nickel allergy. All ear piercing earrings made of metal contain nickel – more or less - even gold and silver. The only ear piercing earrings that do not contain any nickel (= 0% nickel) are the ones made of Medical Plastic. Therefore we recommend that your kids get their ears pierced with Medical Plastic.

We are not born with nickel allergy. Nickel allergy is a skin contact alllergy which can develop as a result of continuous contact with objects that contain nickel, such as zips, buttons, coins, and jewellery. Ear piercing is a strong contributing factor to the increasing numbers of nickel allergy sufferers. World wide clinical studies have all identified and confirmed ear piercing as a prime risk factor for developing nickel allergy, with as many as 10-30% of all women affected.
Once you have developed a nickel allergy there is no remedy which can cure the allergy. The only solution is to avoid all contact with metals containing nickel. However this can be very difficult because all metals contain nickel, even gold and silver, mostly in the form of impurities. Therefore, there are no metal earrings which are entirely free from nickel.
If you already have pierced ears we recommend that you wear Blomdahl Caring Earrings - earrings developed in consultation with skin specialists.

I'm going to be the one to voice my opinion. I know it's your choice and you will do what you want but what about your daughter's choice? I always thought it was a kind of "right of passage" when the girl gets older. Then if they really want it, they can decide. If they are in fourth or fifth grade then they also can take care of it themselves. Yes, I know it's your daughter and you will do what you want but remember your daughter is also an individual.

I took my daughter to Claire's at 9 weeks old. I had to show proof of her DTP shot but no problems at all. They used 14 karat gold and I think it was about $30.

Hi Sylvia
Dont know if you had them peirced yet??
I just had my daughter's done exactly on the day she turned 4 months! I went to the Claires and the Harlem Irving Plaza. I originally went to Old Orchard, but the girl there looked like she was 14!! NO WAY!!
The manager at HIP is nice and she did a perfect job!
My daughter cried and forgot about it 10 minutes later. The 4 shots she got the day before had her crying for hours. They were much worse!!
Good Luck:)
I love them...she looks adorable!
Its about $40...get the 14k gold!

Hi,

I got my daughter's ears pierced just after 4 months at Claire's. They did a great job. My daughter cried for 10 seconds... just like when she gets a shot and she did fine after that. They have a selected set of earrings they use when ears are pierced.. you can pick from one of those.

Good luck. Be prepared to get some nasty responses to your post. I did when I posted something similar before I got my daughter's ears pierced. Do what you want!

Aarti.

I had the same trouble...I wanted to get my baby girl's ears pierced rather quickly too (she's 9 mos. now). I was told that I had to wait until she was 6 mos. So, I did and it was not so bad. I went to Wal-Mart, where they pierce both ears at the same time which helped because babies are smart and they would know what's coming if they only did one ear at a time. At Wal-Mart, the have special kinds of earrings that you could choose from for babies. Let me know if you find a place that does it sooner, in case I have another baby girl in the future :). Good luck!

I have had both of my girls done at Claire's. My oldest was about 4 weeks when we had hers done and she never cried. My youngest was about 10 weeks and she only cried for about 20 seconds and then was fine.

When we went to have my youngest's done, we first went when she was 8 weeks and they said that they whad a N. rule and wouldn't do it until she was 4 months old. We then waited a couple weeks and went to another Claire's and had it done. So, it may just depend on which one you go to as to how old they'll take :)

I had my second holes done at Claire's years ago and everything was fine. Then my third ones at Wal-Mart and that was a HUGE mistake, they ended up all infected and everything, so I had to take them out and let them close up. I had the third ones redone a couple years ago at Claire's and everything was great.

So, I definitely recommend Claire's 100% :)

They also have a nice selection of cute little studs for you to choose from.

i pierced both my daughters' ears at 4 months at claire's. i did call ahead to make sure there would be 2 girls there so they could do it at the same time. and you have to use their earings there which are 14 carat gold. i got the big gold balls so it would be easier to twist them. they do cry for a split second, but then they are fine. they are not in any pain. i think it just startles them. good luck!

Hello,
I got my daughter's ears done when she was 4 months at the pediatrician's office. I had heard lots of people liked Claire's, but was nervous that we would get the one person working who wasn't as concerned about her getting infected. We waited until 4 months, and the doctor and a nurse did it while another nurse held her. Both done at the same time. Never had a problem and she didn't cry except a couple seconds (she had a shot, too, so it was all over at one time). Good luck!
E.

A friend of mine recommended asking if there are 2 people available to pierce ears at the same time. (this might not be possible if the doctors office does it) This way both ears can be done at the same time without worrying about messing up the second ear. (her daughter was older when her ears were pierced and she said it would of been better with 2 people piercing her ears)

My daughter's doctor recommended waiting until they had at least 2 sets of shots (so at least 4 months old). I got BOTH of my daughters (my oldest is now 2 1/2 years old and my youngest is 9 months) ears pierced at 5 1/2 months old at Claire's. No problems at all with either one of them. They are 14K gold posts...you get to pick what you want as far as stone or ball. They pierce one ear at a time (some places do both at the same time), but believe me, it's harder on you than your daughter. Both of my daughters just sat there and barely noticed anything at all. As soon as both ears were done, I just turned them facing me and they smiled happy as could be & it was done!
Good Luck!

we had my daughter's done at claire's when she was 9 months. they couldn't line the piercing gun up properly before that. she cried because we were holding her still, and stopped as soon as they pierced the ears. do ask for two experienced people -- we had the manager and a young teen. the teen got nervous, and that side is a little crooked. it will probably straighten out as she grows. we had no infection issues.

don't let the negative responses get to you. viewing ear piercing as a right of passage is just as much a cultural issue as piercing your daughter's ears now. to each their own...

I too wanted to pierce my daughters ears a few weeks after she was born, but like you the dr's office told me that she did not recommend it until she was 4 months old (that way she would have two sets of shots in her system). I did wait the 4 months and went to Claires. The girl did fine, especially having to deal with a wiggiling little girl. They have studs that have the back post covered, that way the sharp point will not pierce anything else. You just have to make sure that you clean her ears very well everyday. When her ears where pierced she did cry for a few minutes, but once the initial shock was over she was fine.
Good luck..

If you're putting DD in daycare, you should check with them before piercing. most of them have rules (and possible DCFS)against any jewelry before the 2 year old room due to possible choking hazzard.
Good Luck!

Some jewelry stores will do it, but not before 4 mo....that was the soonest anywhere around here would do it. If you don't want to wait you coukd go to sally beauty supply...they sell single use guns and you can do it yourself.

I got my daughters ear's pierced at Claire's when she was 2 months old..........the manager did it. You can always ask for the most skilled person I dont think that they would object to it. She is now 2.5 and we have had no problems at all.

I recommend waiting until your baby girl is 4 months old and have her doctor do it. I’ve heard horror stories from other moms who’ve gotten their infants’ ears pierce at Claire’s and other mall shops. I had my daughters’ ears pierced by their doctor at 4 months and did have any problems. I don’t know if the problems had to do with the piercing gun Claire’s used or the information given to them on proper cleaning. I just didn’t want to take the chance of having any problems with their ears and I figured their DOCTOR would know BETTER than any Claire’s or mall employee.

I got my daughter's ears pierced at 3 months at her doctors. Other places such as Claires wanted to wait until at least 6 months (I think) and wanted to see shot records. But the doctor is the best way to go to get them done when they are young.

I got my daughters ears pierced at 'Piercing Pagoda' in the middle of the mall. She was older though..about 7 months. They did a fine job though. You can probably take her there or to Claires and see what they say about age. The girl that did my daughters didn't ask how old she was....