101 Piercing 1114 North Coast Highway 101, Encinitas, CA 92024

"I do not suggest going here if you have a more delicate/experienced set up. I take full responsibility for not listening to my gut and walking out. I was pierced by the owner, I believe his name is Bradley: double top nostrils. I have been professionally pierced for 11 years and have over 15 piercings, all of which have healed with ease and been a beautiful experience, with the exception of this set. This was my first time in the shop. Upon walking in I was stunned by the amazing selection of BVLA jewelry. I assumed a studio with fine jewelry would have experienced piercers to match. This was my first mistake. I was met by a young man, I explained I wanted to switch out some jewelry or maybe get a new piercing… he then told me that this studio does not work with piercings from other studios. Not sure why he said that. He brought out someone else to help me and I mentioned the comment, only to have this new person completely disregard it. It was weird right out the gate. First red flag is they sat me upright in a dentist style chair. Frontal face piercings should always be done laying flat on one’s back to promote relaxation and symmetry. It took this man 30-45 minutes to mark out the piercing, wouldn’t have been an issue except he had zero technique. He would mark one side, then move completely around to the other with no visual and mark the other side. He rubbed off the marks so many times that my nose became sore and raw prior to piercing. At this point my anxiety was growing and I should have left but he was confident he could do it. Eventually we laid the chain and used that as a marker. This was the best and only actual technique he tried. Second red flag came at the moment the needle went through, he told me he would give me a warning before he pierced, then had me breath twice and pushed. The first one was fine, two breaths, warning, push. He had me tilt my head towards him for the first piercing. This was also a mistake as it creates uneven tension in the skin. Third red flag was the second piercing, he let me breath in only once this time and gave me no warning before pushing. By default I assumed it would be two breaths like the first time. I wasn’t ready and my body was not fully relaxed due to this. We finish and he shows me the piercing, it is clearly crooked and one side is at a completely different angle than the other. He did immediately mention the different angle and stated “once healed, there are small adjustments we can make to that” which I know is a lie. If I leave my nose like this I will have a permanently crooked piercing. A responsible response would have been to own up fully to the mistake, take the piercing out and not to charge me. Instead he charged me full price, I tipped out of sheer politeness, and left. At first I thought maybe the piercing just needed to settle and it would look better. Here we are a week later and it only got worse. It’s now clear that both sides are at an mis-angle. A rookie mistake in my opinion. One leans forward and one leans back. My nose is rejecting the worse side and it’s been painful. I now have to remove both of these piercings, allow my nose to fully heal and return back to my proper home shop to have this redone. Accountability is so important when working on someone else’s body. A responsible piercer and shop owner would not have let me walk out like this. Beyond dissatisfied and disappointed in my experience. Please do not attempt piercings that you are clearly not experienced enough to successfully manage. Be honest and tell your client you can’t do it. It’s not worth a sale just to butcher someone’s set up they’ve been building for years."

"Amazing Piercing Studio! Ordered several BVLA pieces from this studio. All through email communication with Alison. Couldn’t be happier with my orders. This is a great studio! Fabulous customer service and I will definitely order from them again. It was hassle free and I live in Vancouver Canada. You won’t be disappointed. Highly recommend!!"

"I got my first body piercing ever done here by Andrea. I got here shortly after opening and there was a wait but it was SO worth it. I'm a bit of a worrier and Andrea was so kind and patient with me throughout the whole process. Even afterwards, ive come back a few times due to concerns about jewelry and healing. Each time everything was fine, but Andrea was very reassuring that she knew I was just looking after my health and wellbeing, and she again answered all of my questions and provided excellent follow up care. On top of all that I love my piercing, it makes me feel so confident and happy. I've never had a piercer like Andrea. Thank you, Andrea, and everyone at 101 piercing so much for all your help!"

"Had a great experience in a very professional setting. Both Bradley and Andrea were welcoming and Andrea who did my 3 piercings was excellent. It was easy and barely felt a thing! I’m super happy!"

"I have not physically been to the shop so my review is regarding online purchases only. I can tell you that 101 Piercing has the absolute best customer service out of anywhere I have experienced (not limited to piercing shops only). They respond quickly to email inquires and are willing to get you pricing on any jewelry piece and they update the options on the site very quick. They also have the best prices for BVLA out of any shop online. No other shop comes close to the prices and the ease of ordering via the site. I ma absolutely thrilled that I found this shop. I made my first purchase about two months ago and am now placing my third order. I'm not looking anywhere else."