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Best Places To Get Piercings In The Bay Area

Ear Piercing (credit: Lior Mizrahi/Getty Images)

San Francisco has piercing studios with years of solid experience, strong reputations and strict compliance with the 2012 Safe Body Art Act passed by the California State Legislature in 2012. This makes the Bay Area's places and highly trained, registered artists among the best and safest for piercings and tattoos.

Body Manipulations
3234 16th St.
San Francisco, CA 94103
(415) 621-0408
www.bodym.com

Body Manipulations has been in the business for 25 years, putting it at the forefront of worldwide experience. Open seven days a week, walk-ins are accepted anytime between 12 p.m. and 7 p.m. The longtime owner, Paul Stoll, has been instrumental on the Steering Committee and in the passage of California Assembly Bill 300, a 2012 law governing safety standards for practitioners of body art. If you want to stop in for a general check up or an adjustment, that's always free. Helpful aftercare guidance is found on the website. High-quality jewelry is sold separately and tattooing is also done on site.

Industrial Tattoo
2434 Dwight Way
Berkeley, CA 94704
(510) 644-0968
www.industrialtattooandpiercing.com

What you're looking for are folks who know what they're doing and take it seriously, skilled piercers, friendly and professional people. Since 1996, this independent business has been a fixture on the Berkeley scene. Gloves, gauze, needle and jewelry are STATIM sterilized; packages will be opened in front of the client for maximum assurance. Visit the website to meet the piercers and follow #industrialberkeley on Instagram to see body art. Walk in without an appointment or book a piercing party with 10 or more friends for a 15-percent discount on jewelry.

Braindrops, Haight Ashbury (Credit, Laurie Jo Miller Farr)

Braindrops
1324 Haight St.
San Francisco, CA  94117
(415) 621-4162
www.braindrops.net

Super sanitary, super friendly, super light freehand touch and no clamps say fans of this professional piercing studio that also has Tooth Gem Tuesdays. Since a picture tells a thousand words, find lots of Instagram and Facebook clients showing off pretty Swarovski, NeoMetal gemstones from $30, BVLA and Quetzalli Jewelry, which is one of the nation's largest inventories. Piercing artists are sharing portfolios on the website.

Zebra Tattoo & Body Piercing
1419 Broadway
Walnut Creek, CA 94596
(925) 946-1087
www.mrzebra.com

To feel the passion, meet the artists talking about the Zebra family and their work on YouTube. A number of the artists have transitioned from customer to advisor to apprentice to artist over the years. From a beginning two decades ago in Berkeley, the second location serves everyone from soccer moms to trendy grandmothers. "They're putting their faith in me," says Rosey, "I appreciate just seeing how happy they are."

Rose Gold's, Haight Ashbury (Credit, Laurie Jo Miller Farr)

Rose Gold's Tattoo & Piercing
1157 Masonic Ave.
San Francisco, CA 94117
(415) 701-7673
www.rosegoldsf.com

If you were looking for Soul Patch, here it is...new name, great reputation. The atmosphere is relaxed, the consultative process isn't rushed, the measurements are taken with care, the jewelry selection is reviewed and the aftercare is discussed. Places such as these know that some people can harbor a piercing wish for years before making the decision to go ahead, while for others it can be a spontaneous choice, so walk-ins are welcome seven days a week at this place.

Laurie Jo Miller Farr loves walkable cities. A tourism industry professional and transplanted New Yorker by way of half-a-lifetime in London, she's writing about the best of the bay and beyond for Yahoo, USA Today, eHow, and on Examiner.com.


 

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