I got a piercing here when I was 18 - after I had already pierced myself several times. I know, I know - but I'm not a sadist. Anyhow, out of all the piercings I did myself non of them got infected. The one I got done here was infected for months! blech! i guess when you pay $20 for someone to jab some metal into you you should just expect that. Of course, from what I understand this is where you go to get your experience in the tatoo industry and once you've perfected your craft you move on to a more reputable shop. That could be totally bogus but I'm leaning more towards that explanation.