Ever wondered why your helix piercing takes forever to heal? 👂✨ Let’s break it down, because if you’re 6 months in and still feeling tenderness, you’re not alone! The helix sits on the outer rim of cartilage, which has less blood flow than the soft tissue in your lobes. 💉 Less blood flow = slower healing. On top of that, the helix is constantly exposed: your hair brushes against it, your pillow presses on it, headphones rest on it, all little things that can slow healing or cause irritation bu

Have you noticed the heart pierced by an arrow, dripping blood, on the Nicholas Hilliard miniature in our exhibition? It appears alongside crescent moons and the Latin motto ‘semel missa / semp(er) fixa’, meaning ‘once cast, always fixed.’ To the left are a further crescent moon and the sun, its rays piercing a cloud, accompanied by the words ‘facies mutabilis / sed amor stablis’, meaning ‘changeable face, but stable love’. The devices and mottoes seen on either side of the sitter’s head – toget