Tongue Tied Trivia Quiz

Answer: Inside the mouth

The lower fraenum connects the lower lip to the lower gums inside the mouth. The most popular jewelry to use in these piercings are small curved barbells. A 'Superior fraenum' piercing is called a "Smiley" due to the position of the curved barbell.

Answer: Earl

Earl Van Aken is a trendsetter and innovator in the world of American body piercing and body modification. He is not only the first documented person to have pierced their bridge, but he is also the first person to have created a "handle" off of their body, whereby a large section of skin/flesh was pierced and sculpted away from his stomach and which is the same overall size as the handle of a coffee mug.

Answer: False

The process of 'tongue splitting,' or cutting, cauterizing, and tying off the tongue so that it resembles a snake's tongue, was a popular process in the 1990s. While the process is reversible through surgery, the process of reattaching the tongue is far more painful than that of splitting it.

Answer: False

While all of these piercings are located above the upper lip, a "Madonna" piercing is located on the right side of the face, whereas the "Monroe" piercing is located above the lip on the left side of the face. The names of both piercings are derived from the iconic beauty marks of Madonna and Marilyn Monroe.

"Medusa" piercings, on the other hand, are located only in the upper center lip, directly under the septum in the so-called 'dip' under the nose.

Answer: Aerosmith

Bellybutton/navel piercings were also popular due to the fact that they could easily be hidden under clothes and then subtly 'revealed' to others; as such, it was especially popular with teenage girls and college-aged women.

The Aerosmith video also starred Stephen Dorff and Josh Holloway; the piercer in the video was Paul King, owner of 2 'Cold Steel America' piercing parlors in San Francisco.

Answer: Her upper lip

Many tribes of Africa have been known to have their women (or men) wear lip plates, specifically in Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mozambique, and Chad.
While the Pelele is specifically worn on the upper lip, most tribes use lower lip plates or stretched labret piercings which can result in saucer-sized plates/piercings.

Answer: True

As yeast is a key ingredient in beer, each and every person that gets a tongue piercing is told that they should not drink beer for 2-3 months while their piercing is healing. If people do not heed this advice, the yeast from the beer will get into the piercing and cause 'oral thrush,' i.e., a yeast infection of the mouth.

As someone that has worked in a piercing parlor and has seen oral thrush - please heed this advice if you are considering getting your tongue pierced. Oral thrush is both unpleasant to have and unpleasant to look at.

Answer: Brooch

A brooch piercing is a surface piercing on the upper chest, just above the breast, similar to the location of where a woman would pin a brooch to her shirt.

As far as ear piercings go, if it can be connected by metal and not cause daily injury to the wearer, the sky is the limit. The tragus, for example, is the tough piece of cartilage that juts out at the entrance to the ear canal, whereas the daith is the piece of folded cartilage just below the rook of the ear. An industrial piercing, however, is even more versatile as it is a piercing that connects any two points of cartilage on the ear by using a long barbell.

Answer: Nickel

Statistics show that 1 in 7 people has an allergy to nickel, so it is not recommended that you use nickel or nickel-plated jewelry for body piercings. Stainless steel, platinum, titanium, niobium, gold, and palladium are all hypoallergenic metals that are frequently used to create body jewelry and there are tons to choose from.

While gold and stainless steel are great metals for body jewelry, they are not recommended as jewelry for new piercings, as they are more prone than the others for moderate allergic reactions. Titanium is the least likely to cause any allergic reaction and is recommended for new piercings.

Answer: Photos of past piercings performed at the shop

While it does instill confidence when you are able to see photographs of all the piercings your piercer has done at their shop, it is definitely not a necessary element.

Each and every piercing parlor must be certified and licensed by the local Health Department, they should have a sharps container for used needles, and they must have an autoclave to sterilize the jewelry and equipment. Any shop that does not have these items is one that I would not recommend trusting to pierce your body.

One should always trust their instincts and keep this information in mind when selecting a piercer, because it is not just about individuality, it is about your health and safety.