One of my piercers once told me that the number one sexiest piercing is the bridge.

If you don’t know, this is at the top of the nose, through the fleshy skin.

Some people are lucky enough to have the anatomy for a double bridge piercing.

It’s the one piercing where people come up to me and ask ‘does it hurt?’ I don’t think they mean that – you wouldn’t spend your life wth something that constantly hurt. Did it hurt? No. My piercer, Roni, was measuring up and we were chatting and I asked when was she going to do it. She replied, it’s done.

And it was.

The first piercing I ever had done was my septum. If you don’t know, it’s the bit of skin at the bottom of the nose, between the nostrils.

I had it done at a place on Holloway Road, this being the nearest place to my home at the time, now long gone, and, i suppose, the least intimidating looking of places.

And it hurt. And it makes your eyes water. In fact, many nose piercings do.

The first jewellery was very thin and small, small enough to flip it up into your nose to hide it. I know some people do stretch their piercings, but I didn’t. The natural weight of the jewellery made it stretch and now it’s 5mm, and that is where it likes to be.

Having never had a piercing before, I was very self-conscious about it. The healing seemed to take a long time, and often I thought I had made mistake. It wasn’t how I wanted it. But getting a piercing teaches you patience, and it is definitely something you get used to.

Many piercings hurt, of course they do, someone is sticking a needle into your flesh. But it’s only for a second or two. Some piercings heal quickly, others take months.

And apparently, the septum piercing is the second sexiest piercing.

Every third Sunday we will write about piercings. Rather different from music, films etc, but close to our heart.

It’s very hard to find discussion forums about piercings. Some are nicely designed but inactive, others, including some run by on-line retailers, seem broken or dead.

It’s a shame, because there are plenty of people in the world who like piercings and want to share them and their experiences.

So we have created one. Do feel free to try it:

A while ago I mentioned the piercings on my gentleman’s area. The picture I posted was a bit out-of-date as I get sudden enthusiasms for doing more.

If you want something very unusual, then why not a tongue split?

I’d love to have it myself, but couldn’t as I can’t bear metal in my mouth. That’s why I have problems at the dentist.

I gather that the procedure is relatively simple in the hands of an expert. But it’s painful and the healing takes a while and can be a nightmare.