When performing a navel piercing, all tools should be autoclave sterilized. Contrary to popular belief, alcohol, hydrogen peroxide and boiling water are not sterilants. A piercing done without the proper tools and without preventing cross-contamination can transmit bloodborne pathogens, including hepatitis and HIV. Belly buttons can be tricky to pierce, especially if you've never done a piercing before or are attempting to pierce yourself. For best results, all piercings should be performed by a professional body piercer certified by the Association of Professional Piercers.
Jewelry
According to the Association of Professional Piercers, the proper jewelry for an initial navel piercing is an internally threaded 12- or 14-gauge curved barbell. Internal threading means that male beads screw into a female bar. The alternative is externally threaded jewelry, on which a male bar screws into female beads. External threads can cause unnecessary tissue trauma when pulled through a fresh piercing. The most commonly used material for body jewelry is surgical stainless steel, although titanium and niobium are sometimes used as well. When performing your initial piercing, your piercer will use a longer bar than you actually need, to allow for swelling. Once the piercing is healed, the beads can be screwed into a shorter bar for a snug fit. Piercing jewelry should be worn by only one person, and should always be autoclave sterilized before use.
Cannula Needles
The only acceptable implement for performing a piercing on any part of the body is a beveled, single-use cannula needle. This very sharp needle is hollow inside and makes a precise, crescent-shaped cut through tissue. Piercing needles are commonly sold in bulk containers. Although they have never been used, they have not been autoclave sterilized. Your piercer bags needles individually and autoclaves them before piercing you. Needle gauges correspond to jewelry gauges; therefore, a 14-gauge needle makes the hole into which 14-gauge jewelry is inserted. Occasionally, a navel piercing can be done at a larger gauge, if the piercee wishes to wear heavier jewelry. Bars smaller than 14 gauge should not be used as they can tear through the skin during healing.
Pennington Forceps
Pennington forceps are also made of surgical stainless steel and are autoclave sterilized. The end the piercer holds has two loops for the fingers to go through, somewhat like a pair of scissors. The other end has two small triangles that are used to pinch the flap of skin the needle will go through. Your piercer will measure your navel with calipers, mark dots where the needle should enter and exit, and line up the dots in the triangles of the forceps. There are two varieties of Pennington forceps: regular and slotted. When your piercer uses regular forceps, she must open them carefully and remove the triangles from around the needle, which stays in your skin and is pushed out as the jewelry goes in. Slotted forceps allow her to lift them straight up after piercing you, with the needle slipping through the slots.
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