CraigPokesU

My younger sister wanted to get her nose pierced for her 18^th birthday and Blake took great care of her. He was beyond professional and showed that he really cared about his client. The facility was clean and we would highly recommend this shop and especially Blake. We would trust him with any future piercing.

Bought the BF nipple piercings for Valentine’s Day. Called the store and got a same day appt w Blake who is charming and informative. He walked us through the process, explained jewelry choices and let me watch.

Thanks to Blake for fixing the mess on my earlobe– learn from my mistake– do not pierce your ears at the mall, my left earlobe was about to explode. Thanks for helping me out!

About six months ago, I got bought a clicker earring for my rook piercing from whom I thought at the time was a reputable tattoo/​piercing shop. After a couple months, the metal plating on the earring started to wear off (to display its copper core), the «jewels» fell out, and it started turning my ear green. I knew I needed to get the earring removed before I got an infection. I tried multiple times to remove it on my own, but was unsuccessful (probably because it was such cheap quality and in such a tight location).
I called Craig last minute on a Monday and he cheerily said I could swing by anytime without making an appointment (or making a $ 30 deposit). I was nervous about the visit since I wasn’t sure how hard it would be to remove the earring or the shape of my ear. About 5 minutes after I showed up, Blake showed me into a sterile room and was able to remove the earring quickly and safely, which was a huge relief. He was extremely professional and knowledgeable and gave me great advice about picking out jewelry in the future. He even hooked me up with a new high-​quality curved barbell earring made of titanium with CZ gems. I didn’t even have to pay the $ 10 earring change fee because I bought the earring he recommended. Extremely satisfied with my visit and would definitely come back again.

I went today to get my ears «re-​pierced» because my holes closed up awhile ago and I wanted to wear earrings again. I was greeted with a friendly hello and smile as I walked in the door and the inside looked very clean and inviting. Blake let me know that since my ears were already pierced, they technically didn’t have to be repierced– just had to pop the membrane inside that formed and put the earring in. Process was quick and painless. Blake was very friendly and made sure everything was done perfectly. I started to feel a little woosey towards the end bc in a wuss and he helped me feel comfortable and made sure I felt ok before I left. I highly recommend this location and Blake.

Blake did my lobe piercing and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience. He was very professional and explained everything along the way. He was also incredibly kind, which was extremely appreciated considering how nervous I was (this was my first time getting any sort of piercing). The parlor vibe was also upbeat, clean, and comfortable. I would highly recommend Blake and the facility in general!

I had my nose pierced by Craig in August– I’ve been so busy with work, I forgot to post a review!
This was the 3^rd time getting my nose pierced (first time here) — each time the jewelry fell out and I had to wait to try it again.
Craig was SUPER nice and very knowledgeable. The jewelry selection was the best selection I’ve seen in the multiple piercing attempts. He made the process quick and painless and gave me tips on keeping my piercing clean.
I don’t know whether it’s the third time’s a charm thing going on– but my piercing is still on, and I think the quality of the jewelry has led to no infections or problems with the piercing.
I am beyond satisfied with the service here and HIGHLY recommend Craig Pokes You!

After reading the reviews on Unilocal I knew I wanted to come here to get my nostril re-​pierced.
I walked in and asked to speak with someone, Blake answered all my questions, including explaining to me why I shouldn’t re-​pierce my nostril in the same place as before — the messed up the placement when I first had it done (20 years ago) and he recommended it be placed further back on my nose. I agreed with him and we got to work.
Blake was meticulous with his hygiene, washing his hands thoroughly before putting on gloves. He pulled out all the necessary equipment and opened the packages but didn’t touch the needle or the stud that would go in my nose. After everything was set out and opened he donned a fresh set of gloves. I was extremely impressed with this.
Blake pierced my nostril quickly and then gave me his business card which has his personal cell number listed. He told me to call him with ANY questions, day or night. The next day I called to talk to him about possibly needing to put in a retainer so I could get an MRI done. He assured me that was possible but also told me I can keep my piercing in as the metal in the piercing is titanium and not affected by MRIs.
I am absolutely happy with the service I received from Blake and would recommend him to anyone seeking to get pierced!

Appointments are made through Craig’s website. He requires a $ 30 deposit to reserve an appointment which I think is a great idea. People are flakey! I booked with Craig because of the excellent reviews on Unilocal and not to mention-​Craig has an amazing website. It was really informative and gave off the vibe that he really knows and cares about everything that he does!
Parking is a bit limited so plan accordingly. When I got there I met Craig and a girl walked me through some paper work as well as the jewelry picking. They have plenty of pretty jewelry to choose from for septum piercings. I unfortunately explained to Craig that I’m probably going to have it flipped up 90% of the time and he was understanding and even offered to flip it up for me after he was done with the piercing.
I was then led to the piercing room in the back. I took a seat and Craig felt around my nose for my sweet spot. I watched countless videos on Youtube prior to the appointment so I knew the basic drill. Before he started I asked Craig if I could see the piercing in before he flipped it up. Craig opened the sterilized instruments and asked me if I was ready and I replied «I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.»
I noticed that as Craig was piercing my septum he paused for a second as he was doing it. As soon as he put in the jewelry my nose bled! I mean it’s a needle going through my nose I can’t not expect blood right? It did catch me off guard because out of all the youtube videos I watched I didn’t remember anyone bleeding as much as I did. He told me that as he was piercing he hit a piece of cartilage and he had to redirect the needle to avoid it. Craig applied some pressure on the piercing and it eventually stopped. He handed me the mirror to take a look and I was nervous!
Upon taking a look, I noticed that my piercing was off. The piercing as not parallel and the right side stuck out more than the left side. I told Craig that the piercing looked crooked and he told me that it was because my nose was crooked! He also mentioned that it may only «look» crooked because of the nature of the jewelry. He went on the explain that if I were to have on a ring it wouldn’t look crooked. I wasn’t buying it. Okay, maybe my nose is crooked. as a professional piercer I would like that person to take into consideration that my nose is perhaps is crooked and to work with it!
I ended up asking what the process was like if I wanted to get my septum re-​pierced. Craig told me «We would have to do it right now.» I was okay with it and we began the process. He ended up having to pierce it «crookedly» to get the piercing to look straight. In the end I just wished that he would have admitted/​noticed that the initial piercing looked crooked instead of blaming the jewelry/​my crooked nose! He’s a professional and I would assume that someone in this field is a perfectionist and if something is not looking right tell the customer! Re-​dos are okay just as long as the job gets done!
And that folks is the story of how I had to get my septum pierced twice. It’s almost been a year and my septum till this day has never given me a problem and it healed really quick!
tl;dr? Speak up if something doesn’t look right. My piercing was probably a fluke but overall my experience was a positive one.

Top notch service from Blake. I got my tragus and rook pierced by him during the same session. He explained the whole process, set expectations clearly for the whole procedure, and really put me at ease. He was quick and caused minimal pain. Both piercings are healing excellently with nominal swelling (it takes 6 – 12 months to fully heal). Blake is a true professional and I would get another piercing by him in a heartbeat! He’s got great tableside manners and clearly enjoys what he does. He even kindly explained aftercare a month later when I called and asked about foreign travel. The jewelry sold here is high quality, implant grade and worth the extra bucks. The shop is clean and the staff inviting. I’ve been back a couple times to check out/​swap out piercings and have always received excellent customer service. Looking forward to coming back!

Craig pierced me on Friday. For reference: I got both nipples (re)pierced and a VHC (first time).
I can only say wonderful things about Craig!
1) He made me feel comfortable practically naked in front of him.
2) He got all 3 piercings done including the necessary «sketching out» part of the nipple piercings done within 15 minutes. (The piercings themselves only took about a minute each.)
3) He was reassuring and fast — which is exactly what you want for piercings.
4) It’s only Sunday and nothing is sore! Unless I touched myself, I wouldn’t be able to tell I had my VCH done. The nipples were super sensitive the first day have calmed down significantly and aren’t reminding me that they’ve been poked. I can only assume that his lack of over-​handling is the reason.
5) He accommodated my request for smaller barbells and placement to be «deep» on the nipples as I don’t swell and last time I had them done the longer barbells we’re «lifted» and kept catching on things which made healing time prolong. The reason I had to have them redone was because I took them out (18 months post-​piercing) and fell asleep; they healed up overnight. So, I know how long they take to «heal».
Craig’s apprentice made sure to explain why titanium was better than stainless steel so I did opt for the former and I’m glad I did. I can already feel the difference in lack of irritation.
I’d whole-​heartedly recommend Craig in a heartbeat!

BEST EXPERIENCE POSSIBLE
Just a few days ago, May 27, I decided for my 18^th birthday I would go and get a piercing. Not just any piercing– I decided i wanted a double forward helix. I payed for an appointment and within minutes had a confirmation email. I emailed Craig questions that I had and he was so helpful with everything and very patient.
This piercing looked painful from the outside but truly was not that painful with my experience, though I do not have that high of a pain tolerance. The piercings came out absolutely beautiful and I couldn’t have been more happy to have gotten it done by Craig. He really cares about YOU and not just money. My ear is in no pain whatsoever and I clean twice a day– simple as that. I will be going back to Craig for future piercings W/​OUT A DOUBT.

As of this month, I have gotten three piercings done by Craig. He pierced my tragus, and he did a double forward helix piercing.
My piercing experience with Craig is the best I have ever had. He is incredibly professional and knowledgeable.
Update: also got my daith pierced. Couldn’t be happier! Craig is the best!

Craig is the man. No frills. No bullshit. He is warm and friendly and gets you in and out in a timely matter, all awhile being thorough and making sure you get what you want. He changed out my rook barbell to a titanium hoop and oxydized it to a goldish color but knew I really wanted the 14k gold seamless hoop, so he knocked $ 15 off the price of the gold hoop once it came in. Notified me promptly and took care of it immediately. No appointment necessary. Additionally, for not being a stand-​alone piercing shop he has some of the most interesting and quality pieces of jewelry I have ever seen. He doesn’t carry the cheap shit.
Parking in the 2^nd entrance behind Cowboy Café in Rick’s tattoo shop. Opens at noon. Cash only (there is an ATM in the shop).

I had, by far, the best experience I have ever had getting a piercing with Craig and his team. I found Craig on Unilocal and booked an appnt with him (via his website = awesome) due to his incredible reviews. I received a confirmation email for my appointment within an hour.
My appointment was to have a double front helix piercing and was looking to have VERY small jewelry. After reviewing his website, IG, and images on Unilocal, I was confident that I had made the right decision to go w/​Craig for my piercing. He regularly updates his website and iIG account and he has a great selection of jewelry.
I arrived for my appointment and immediately felt welcomed and comfortable. Craig and his assistant, Peaches (I think — sorry if I’m wrong), were both very knowledgable, helpful, and made it a great, quick, easy, and relatively pain-​free experience. :)
I look forward to going back to Craig and highly recommend him to anyone that is looking to get a piercing. GREAT EXPERIENCE!

Craig is awesome! Super nice, knowledgable, and certified. Definitely going back for more.

The first time I came to Craig’s was to get my rook and tragus pierced. I had gotten my upper cartilage and second lobes done at Claire’s and had no idea what to expect when getting pieces at a tattoo parlor. However upon research I realized that going to Claire’s was a mistake and professional pierced don’t use piercing guns.
The young woman that the front desk at Craig pokes you has really instrumental in helping me decide what I wanted to do with my ears. There was no pressure and in the end I decided to just get the tragus since my ears are pretty small.
Craig was extremely professional and patient while I decided which ear I wanted to have my tragus pierced on. After doing my tragus he examined the cartilage piercings which were done at Claire’s and gave me better quality titanium flat backed jewelry which would allow the piercings to heal better.
I returned a month later to get my conch pierced and also have an assessment of what other types of piercings my ears could handle since they are small and have limited room. Craig gave some great suggestions and was really welcoming to my two friends who came along for support and to ask questions of their own about piercings they were interested in.
My conch piercing was quick and easy. Again he took a look at my other piercings which were done at Claire’s to make sure things were healing okay.
I will say Craig’s pricing is higher than some other piercers BUT the comfort I have is that he is a professional and talented in his craft. He is American Red Cross trained in a bunch of blood related and would healing things. And he makes sure that there is no cross contamination throughout the process. In addition he won’t charge you for things unless you need it so you don’t have to worry that he’ll try to upsell you for unnecessary things.
His selections of jewelry is awesome and he doesn’t put starter hoops but rather studs in your ear to help with healing.
I could go to other places and save 10 or 20 bucks on a piercing but I feel really comfortable with Craig’s expertise.
FYI It says «Ricks Tattoos» on the building sign.

Craig is absolutely fantastic. My roommate and I were both walk-​ins. We felt very comfortable with the area, and everyone at the store made sure that we felt welcome.
Two years ago I had my left tragus pierced and had to remove it after a week because of inflammation. It’s been almost a week with my new tragus and rook piercings (both done by Craig on the same day), and I almost forget they are even there. They are healing beautifully, and there has been no residual pain (aside from the initial healing pain).
My roommate was pierced with an industrial and she completely agrees with how great Craig treated us. He truly cares and it is clear that he is a great teacher as well — He had an apprentice with him and she was just as friendly. I was able to get the appropriate jewelry for my two piercings, and they provided all of the necessary information for aftercare.
**I created my Unilocal account just to write this for Craig. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND CRAIG.***

Craig is charming and he knows his stuff. He’s very informative and he doesn’t forget about any little details. Making sure that I knew what he was doing. On top of that I was in and out of his office within ten minutes top. I’d recommend any of my friends to go get poked by Craig.

Reasons why I like Craig :o)
1. He has an awesome website.
If you’re considering getting a piercing beyond the traditional ears or belly, his site lists all of the options available. Very educational and informative.
2. He made me feel comfortable.
My visit with him, and his intern/​apprentice, was really pleasant. To me, it’s important to feel comfy with whoever is sticking a needle in you.
3. Great communicator.
Initially, I contacted Craig via his website to schedule an appointment. Within the next two hours, he called me to discuss my appointment and confirm our time. He also provided parking tips and shared his pricing and cash only policy.
4. Not pushy/​very patient.
At my appointment I was still a little uncertain about my decision. Craig patiently answered all questions, and even advised on additional questions. (I was already planning my next piercing.) He didn’t rush our appointment – noted and appreciated.
5. CLEAN
Clean, sterile environment. Piercing devices/​needles were packaged and opened for use.
He’s the man. I’d return.