I'm almost embarrassed (key word here is 'almost) to admit that the only piercings I have are one on each ear, and that I got them done at Steve's.
My first go-round with ear piercing had been at a Claire's in the mall when I was 17. My words of wisdom: Don't trust a teenager with a gun. It was awful and over the course of two years, they were infected constantly and never healed. The holes actually sunk to the bottoms of my earlobes, somehow. I let them close.
I got the new ear piercings a few years ago at Steve's. The lady there was nice, efficient and professional. Everything was very sterile, as you might hope at a tattoo and piercing parlor. They used stainless steel hoops which lent themselves to the healing process immensely (and were cute and fashionable). I healed very quickly and didn't get all disgusting and infecty. Plus, they gave me a bumper sticker and key chain! Woohoo, prizes!