Holier Than Thou

How to treat your brand:

The area should be left alone for the first few days, apart from genera everyday washing of the wound with an antibacterial soap.

A liberal amount of aloe vera can be applied around the edges of the brand every few hours to help ease tightening of the skin, although care must be taken not to get any aloe vera into the wound.

After 3/4 days, removal of the scab is advisable, in order to stop the wound from healing and to promote scar tissue. The branded area should be soaked in a warm bath prior to removal of the scab, the water will soften the scab, making it easier and less painful to remove and will thus avoid tearing of the surrounding tissue ultimately leading to damage and distortion of the design. The scab should be removed with clean fingernails, a toothbrush (purchased specially for this purpose) or tweezers.

Once the scab has been removed, you may find useful one of the following methods for irritating the brand. Keeping the wound open and irritating the area can help increase the likelyhood of scar tissue.

• Rub toothpaste/peanut butter or other irritant in to the area with a toothbrush for a few minutes, leave on as long as possible then rinse.
• Apply a small amount of lemon juice on to a clean cotton bud and rub into the area, repeat until the brand has been completely coated again taking care not to burn the surrounding tissue, causing tissue damage.
• other methods are suitable for irritating the area and promoting scar tissue, use caution and common sense

Keep the area clean in between scab removal with an anti-bacterial soap product and pat dry with a clean soft cloth.

If you find it hard to remove the scab even after soaking, the area can be wrapped in cling film and left for several hours. This will cause the scab to break down. Removal can then be done with a clean soft cloth. This process should not be done to often as it can cause/lead to an infection of the area, caution should be exercised at all times. The scab can be removed daily for as long as 4 weeks, care should be taken after this time if removing the scab as tissue damage around the brand could occur resulting in the design being somewhat distorted.

We advise you to think very carefully before deciding to have your cartilage dermal punched. Dermal punching removes the cartilage from the area and therefore is considered a permanent modification. Some shrinkage will occur with larger gauge punches if the jewellery is removed but it is highly unlikely the area will ever return back to normal.

It is common for the area to bleed quite heavily once the cartilage has been removed. This loss of blood can be expected for the first few days and is a normal part of the procedure. To help clot the blood flow, pressurise the area with gauze until the bleeding slows than apply a few drops of stop bleed to help the coagulation. Stretching up to the next gauge can also help staunch the blood flow.

Wash your hands before touching the area.

Soak off any dried secretion with warm water. Then bathe the area twice daily with your chosen solution.

Lavender oil/ Tea tree oil:

Mix with base oil. Follow directions on the bottle for correct amounts. Apply a liberal amount to a cotton bud and apply to both sides of the area. Rotate jewellery through, remove excess solution with a cloth. Pat dry gently.

Provon/ Anti-bac: Antibacterial soap:

Apply a small amount into the palm of your hand, mix with water into a lather, rub around both sides of the area, leave for 1 minute, then rinse off with warm water and gently pat dry.

Salt water (8floz of water to a quarter teaspoon of salt)/ Saline solution:

Apply a liberal amount to a cotton bud and clean around the area. Gently pat dry.

The area will heal in the same way a regular cartilage piercing does and should be looked after in the same way.

For the first few days after the procedure, we advise:

• Before going to sleep, apply a light absorbent dressing to the area.
• Upon waking, remove the dressing and bathe the area gently with warm water and lint free gauze to remove any dried blood, pat dry gently with a clean towel.
• Throughout waking hours, leave uncovered, taking care not to catch the area, causing it possibly to bleed.

Wash your hands before touching the area.