Sandy Dominguez lays on the doctor-like reclining chair at Body Manipulations ready for her next installment of piercings. Her bare back faces the ceiling, exposing a series of small barbells starting from the nape of her neck followed by a set of four more barbells that continue vertically down her back. Today she’s getting barbell number five, which puts her at the halfway mark of finishing her corset piercing.

Women have been squeezing their lovely lady lumps into corsets since the 16th century but this isn’t you’re great granny’s corset. Now you can get the same old-fashioned criss crossed ribboned and lacy look without all of the stuffing and breath holding…unless you’re afraid of needles.

“It’s not that bad,” Dominguez claims. “Only one of them really hurt.” Then again Dominguez is a pro, boasting previous labret, eyebrow, naval and nipple piercings in addition to the ones on her back. Plus slightly stretched ear lobes which Dominguez proudly explains she did herself.

According to Wade Magrauer, a piercer for Gotham tattoo in the Castro, corset piercings have become popular mainly for performance art, photos and fetish purposes. They consist of a specific pattern of piercings, most commonly placed in two rows vertically on the back. Ribbon is then laced through the jewelry giving it an appearance similar to the back of a corset.

Dominguez first discovered corset piercings at a tattoo expo when she met a girl who had just gotten them done at one of the booths. The next week she went to Body Manipulations to get her own.
“They’re piercings that you don’t see often, plus they’ll look really good with a backless or low cut shirt,” explains Dominguez. “At least I hope so.”

At first glance, Dominguez doesn’t seem to have any piercings at all. Her petite, tan, frame is covered up by a large hooded black jacket. The most prominent feature on her is her makeup. Heavy dark eyeliner peeks out from behind her thin wire framed glasses finished off by candy apple read lipstick.
“I like putting things where I can hide them if I want to,” says Dominguez as she brushes back a lock of black hair behind her ear, exposing a butterfly tucked away between its creases.

While some of these piercings are pretty, many of them are done with improper surface piercing jewelry, which can lead to scarring and infection.

Most corset piercings are done with captive bead rings that are circular in shape in order to thread fabric through. The ring is held in place only by the spring pressure exerted on the metal ring. Piercings done with surface bar rings, the type Dominguez has, have a higher success rate. Their staple shape helps keep the piercing in place though they are not permanent. “Surface piercings get rejected because your body pushes them out like a splinter,” Mugrauer explains.

The body’s rejection of these piercings is why they are temporary in most cases. Plus, depending on where they are placed, the rejection process can be sped up.

Back at Body Manipulations, Dominguez flips through portfolios on the small coffee table in the waiting area. “I wanted to get mine like that but I don’t want them to push out,” Domingiez says pointing at a photo of a girl whose full back corset piercing is wrapped in thick shiny red ribbon like a Christmas present.

Because of the high rejection rate, Dominguez takes her piercer Carrie Sorrels’ advice and doesn’t get piercings going the complete length of her back. The lower on the back the piercings are the less skin there is making it easier for the piercings to push out of the body.

After further examination of the photo, Dominguez decides to abandon the whole ribbon idea altogether. “I think I’m just going to put diamond studs in them,” she says. “I’m not really into all of the frilly lace and hoop rings.”

According to Magrauer other than the chance of infection, there are no serious health risks to corset piercing. Most of the time they just leave a nasty scar if not properly cared for. Although Dominguez thinks surface piercings aren’t as serious as getting a tattoo, the decision still should be thought out.
“Make sure that you really want them because they do leave holes,” Dominguez laughs citing the hole left from her past eyebrow piercing. “And they will stay for a long time.