Piercing Wizard Podcast

Okay, campers, rise and shine, and don't forget your booties 'cause it's cooooold out there today. Lola and Ryan talk about AI creeping its way into the piercing industry. Will it be an assistant, or a potential rival? We also circle back around to a topic brought up in episode 248 "is the all-gold business model sustainable". With gold prices at an all time high (and climbing) how does this affect piercing? How do we articulate one of our products increasing in cost, without scaring away our clients? Come join Ryan & Lola for TWO live seminars in Florida. Feb 23 in Tallahassee & March 1st 2026 in Ft. Myers. Get more info or sign up at www.ryanpba.com or with this google form: https://forms.gle/5V1PXzijLbgb7R5s7 Find out more at https://piercing-wizard-podcast.pinecast.co

I can't recall where in the world I met Ricardo Miro, but in 2025 I saw him in no less than 3 different countries. He owns Perforart Piercing in San Juan Puerto Rico, but if you are a regular attendee at international piercing events he will be a familiar face worldwide. Ricardo started a career in body art helping to clean up around tattoo shops and made an impressive upward climb that took him to Italy for 9 years to follow his wife, then back to Puerto Rico and beyond. Ryan and Lola will be teaching two separate days of seminars in Florida soon. Monday February 23rd 2026 in Tallahassee, FL and then again Sunday March 1st in Fort Myers, FL. Get info on the subjects, available bundles and discounts, or get signed up at: https://forms.gle/EtZPY1XXDZ5XBwtg9 Find out more at https://piercing-wizard-podcast.pinecast.co

2025 felt like it was a month long, and here we are at the end. Lola and Ryan recap some highlights from the year as we answer your submitted questions. 12:30 - Advice for someone stuck in a shop with hazing. 24:00 - Concerns about the legitimacy of extreme body mod "certification". 28:45 - What advice do you wish you had gotten earlier in your career? 36:30 - Tips for someone attending the APP conference alone for the first time. 45:45 - Revisiting the previous question of "is the all-gold business model sustainable?" from episode 248. And much more. Thanks for listening in 2025, thanks for coming to our classes and watching our videos too. We have lots more coming in 2026. Ryan & Lola will be offering two live seminars in Florida (Tallahassee on Monday Feb 23 2026 & Ft. Myers on Sunday March 1 2026) you can get info or sign up with this form: https://forms.gle/r84tYGKoXgaj8eAT7 Find out more at https://piercing-wizard-podcast.pinecast.co

Sound the horn, the Goss Horn!! Piercer Jonahan Goshorn comes on the show to tell his piercer tale. Jonathan started his new job in a piercing shop one week before the 2020 pandemic kicked off, he spent years doing the work to get better and move from apprentice to piercer. In 2023 I met Jonathan through the APP scholarship process and the conference it brought him to. We talk about how to find and build your confidence as a new piercer. Ryan also talks about the APP election cycle happening as this episode publishes. If you are a member you have until December 9th 2025 to vote for up to 4 people to be on the Board of Directors. Log in, read the bios, and cast your vote. It only takes a few minutes. Lola Slider has accepted her nomination to run! Ryan also also wants to remind you that the application window for the 2026 APP conference legacy scholarships are open NOW through December 31st 2025. Want to come to conference but you need a helping hand to get there? Read the info page and apply at: https://safepiercing.org/legacy-scholarship/. New content available at www.patreon.com/ryanpba, check out a new video with Lola Slider showcasing her marking and piercing methods for paired lower lip piercings. Available with 50+ other narrated piercing videos on the $15 arch mage tier. Find out more at https://piercing-wizard-podcast.pinecast.co

Lola interviews Ryan(pba) about Precision Body Arts (PBA) turning 25 this year. Lots of trends have came and went in 25 years of piercing, lots of stumbles, lots of growth. Going from giving out a pager number up to fighting to stay relevant in a sea of online reviews, piercing has changed a lot and Ryan's shop has kept plugging along. We talk about some of the past, present, and future of piercing at PBA. Ryan has a new narrated video about vertical bridge surface piercings available for you at www.patreon.com/ryanpba. Check it out!

This PWP was recorded in front of a live studio audience (at the 2025 UKAPP conference in Nottingham). Ryan & Lola invite special guests Tais Fernandes and Becky Dill to come back on the show and talk about how to actually get things done. -Opening a studio. -The Bay Area Piercing Group and its long term impact on the piercing industry. -How to become an instructor. -How to write an effective proposal for a project. -Working with health departments. -Strategies for a slow season. -Do we notice the next big trend coming? +more questions from the audience.

Every piercing starts out with a little risk. The risks of our every day piercings can be reduced through education and experience, but what about when we're trying something new or trendy? Lola and Ryan discuss the risks that may come with rare piercings, piercing trends, or just experimentation and creativity. Celebrity finger piercings, Austin bar piercings (I didn't know what that was either its ok), and kitten fangs. Where is the line between risk and harm, and how close do we get as professional piercers? We also discuss our recent trip to Poland for a conference, and our future teaching plans. Time is running out to watch Lola Slider's "Size Matters: jewellery sizing theory" webinar at www.patreon.com/ryanpba. Watch it before the end of September 2025 or you'll miss out. You can also check out Ryan's new video about Austin Bar piercings, and much more on demand.

Nefarious Larratt is the child of BME (Body Modification E-Zine) creators and directors Shannon Larratt and Rachel Larratt. BME was hugely influential to the Body Art community, and has been sorely missed in its absence. Chances are, BME was your favorite piercers' favorite website, but it was so much more. Ryan & Lola really lucked out on this one. At the BMXNET 2025 conference in Berlin they got to sit down with Nefarious for this conversation on the past and future of BME . com. If you would like to learn more about BME . com, or submit body mod content, visit them online or follow bmezine on instagram.

Ryan and Lola tap dance on a land mine and discuss phase two of the APP's body jewelry verification program. This will be an on-going conversation between jewelers, piercers, and organizations, but we wanted to share some judgment-free information that has helped us get a grasp of where we are currently. We also talk about some potential issues related to single-use metal piercing instruments, the importance of titanium jewelry options , and frenum piercings. Interested in more info about Frenum piercings? Check out Ryan's new video at www.patreon.com/ryanpba. Available starting on July 25 2025.

Ryan and Lola went to the 2025 APP Las Vegas Conference and all you got was this lousy podcast. We sat down in the mezz the day after conference wrapped up and recorded this short recap for you. The 2025 APP conference was a good year, not the biggest, but it was a good year of classes, jewelry, and fellowship. We hope your Post-Vegas-Depression or your FOMO is subsiding. Enjoy this podcast, drink some water, get some rest, and lets get back to piercing.

Lola and Ryan are heading back to Las Vegas for the 2025 Association of Professional Piercers conference. They preview some of the classes they'll be instructing, how to make the most out of your week, and their new piercer merch (including an exclusive shirt just for patreon subscribers).

Lola and Ryan continue their road trip and answer your questions all about eyebrow piercings! -What is proper anatomy for an eyebrow piercing? -How deep do you go? -Marking & Placement. -Does it matter which direction you pierce in? -How can you tell if it will bruise? -What is up with these bumps? -Can you paralyze someone if you do it wrong? Interested in learning more about eyebrow piercings? You can watch Ryan's new video at www.patreon.com/ryanpba. When you sign up you also get access to the full archive, including eyebrow piercing parts 1 & 2!

Body piercing is a job that requires a diverse set of skills. Sometimes piercers have side hustles, hobbies, interests, and auxiliary services they would like to bring in to their businesses. Where do those services live in a studio with limited space? Lola and Ryan talk about the risk versus reward of adding in services to a space that may not have been designed for it. Ryan has a new video about eyebrow piercing, and it includes exercises to help build your skills. Check it out along with the entire on-demand archive of 50+ videos when you sign up to the $15 tier at www.pateon.com/ryanpba.

Nobody likes rejection, piercers especially. Lola and Ryan discuss a hard truth, sometimes piercings don't work out. We talk about some of the common factors that lead to piercings migrating or rejecting, if anything can be done to prevent or reverse it, and how to talk with clients about it. Enjoy. If you are interested in learning more about Dydoe piercings, Ryan has a new video available for you at www.patreon.com/ryanpba. Get access to that and 50+ other videos on the $15 arch-mage tier.

Lola Slider is beautiful, smart and quite abrasive to most of her fellow piercers. Soon Lola crosses paths with handsome new arrival Ryan Ouellette. Lola may let her guard down enough to fall for the effortlessly charming Ryan. But seriously folks, we made an episode where we list 10 things we love about piercing. Ryan made a video about conch piercings, it showcases four different examples of piercing and focuses heavily on tissue bracing methods. Check it out at www.patreon.com/ryanpba.

I'm posting this episode on Lola's birthday! and that's totally why its the last day of the month, and not because I've been too busy to finish an episode. Lola and Ryan have a conversation based on another submitted question "how do you give feedback to jewelry companies?". Its a tricky subject, we try to discuss it without mysteriously vanishing. We also talk about gauge size and what logic might go into selecting what you use. Interested in paired tongue piercings? Ryan has a new video for you at www.patreon.com/com. And if you'd like to sign up for Ryan's upcoming bevel theory webinar you can get more info at www.ryanpba.com.

Lola and Ryan kick off 2025 by talking about diversifying your platform. With the temporary (and possibly future) loss of tiktok many piercers learned the risks of focusing on one platform. We also answer a submitted question "how do you manage clients who aren't naughty enough to fire, but still make you dread their appointment?". We also talk about the 2025 conferences we'll be attending, and a short chat about Christina piercings. If you're interested in more Christina piercing info Ryan has a newly published video on the subject available at www.patreon.com/ryanpba. You can also get info about a March 2025 seminar in Quebec Canada at www.ryanpba.com.

Thanks for listening to yet another year of the Piercing Wizard Podcast. Ryan and Lola do a short recap of 2024 then get in to answering your submitted questions. Stay tuned for lots more in 2025! We answer the following questions: -What goes into writing a good piercing class? -Favorite piercings to do? -Favorite jewelry makers? -What helps with imposter syndrome? -What do you to during the "slow season" to bring in clientele? -What do you think about surgical steel? -What jewelry do you use for "Ashley" piercings? -What trends do you see growing and disappearing in 2025? -Plus more!

I first met Tais Fernandes in Germany, but they've also been a scholar in Las Vegas, they work and live in Sweden, and they are from Brazil. That is a wide perspective of the piercing community. I wanted to invite Tais to come on the show to talk about communication, volunteerism, and how to engage with clients in a small city. You can sign up or get more info about my February 2nd 2025 seminar in Indianapolis with this form: https://forms.gle/d5oqG4WoPWsMYF1K7.

Cozmo returns 111 episodes later. Cozmo is a key volunteer behind the scenes of the Association of Professional Piercers. We talk about his work on the APP's membership committee, as an instructor with a focus on his classes covering bedside manner and studio security, and his work as a mentor. If you're looking for more Cozmo content you can check out his @DailyCozWerks channel on youtube and the same name on IG, where Cozmo visits different coffee shops on his motorcycle (neat!). I have a new helix piercing video in the works for you at www.patreon.com/ryanpba that will be posted before the end of the year. I have a new seminar in Indianapolis on Sunday February 2nd 2025, you can get info or sign up here: https://forms.gle/N4EJYyU1i9hNzVke6. Lola and Ryan will be doing another ask-us-anything episode soon, submit your questions here: https://forms.gle/r8HqZv5Wkzu3Nd8S8.