Corset Piercing, Scarification Top Oddities At Local Parlor

DETROIT (WWJ) - Inside one local Detroit tattoo and piercing parlor there is new insight into the oddities that are gaining popularity.

WWJ's Kathryn Larson spoke with owner of Detroit's Custom 5150 Ink, Calista Southard, who said unique body modifications are all the rage right now.

"Nose, lips, eyebrows... that's still about the same but more people are coming in for the oddities of piercing. They want to stand out," Southard said.

One trend that is gaining popularity in the Motor City is called "corset piercing."

"They are surface piercings, and what they do is they line it up on the back depending on where she wants the ribbon to run down, like it could be down the side of your ribs or down your entire back. I've seen it on the back of calves or the back of thighs, even on a chest," Southard said.

Piercings are lined up parallel to each other and once they have healed, a ribbon is threaded through the pierced loops to give the illusion of a corset.

The next trending modification is not for the faint of heart. Southard described the process as "scarification."

"There's this stuff called scarification and it's really crazy. It's drawing pictures on people but they use a scalpel and the actually take out pieces of your skin," Southard said.

During scarification, a scalpel is used to remove the top layer of skin. As you can imagine, lots of blood is involved with this modification. Once the "drawing" process is complete, the skin takes weeks to heal and can become easily infected. Once the scab flakes off, the skin is left with a scarring picture.

You're probably wondering who would want to do this.

"I was thinking that too, like how horrible is this. And I was talking to one of our tattoo artists the other day, and he said it is really crazy but for those people that are cutters, it's a really good way to deal with their problem," Southard said.

In some places of the world, scarification is seen as a sacred tribal process. But in Detroit, it's just one extreme measure some people are taking to express themselves.

Southard warns the procedures are not for everyone and can be dangerous if a piercing rips or skin becomes infected.

If you really want a body piercing or other modification, Southard said think about it for a long time before making your final decision and keep in mind all the risks and dangers involved.

See pictures of extreme body modifications at this link.