Claire’s Contaminated Makeup and infectious ear piercing | Claire’s Beauty Fails 

Professional piercer here! One of my favourite fun facts to tell people about getting pierced with guns, is that the reason they tell you to twist and spin your jewelry, is because the jewelry is so low quality that it’s actually porous, and if you don’t spin it, your skin may HEAL TO IT!! I always like to tell people that Claire’s piercings is just a teenager doing their best. Please get pierced by professionals!! 🙏🏻🙏🏻

The fact they still haven't been restricted from piercing with guns to this day gets on my nerves.

As a tattoo artist I would strongly recommend to get even children to a GOOD tattoo place that does piercings. The hygiene standards are high and taken very seriously. Plus the kids feel like rockstars afterwards 😎

Surgical nurse here - plastic can absolutely be sterilized. Over half the supplies we use in surgery are sterilized plastics. Autoclaves aren't the only way to sterilize things. Also that's not what sepsis watch is, that's just what we tell everyone to look out for as signs of worsening infection. Trust me, if you're on sepsis protocol they don't let you leave the hospital and go home haha

I got my ears pierced at Claire's for my 9th birthday. I cried buckets for sure, but I also kept screaming, "I can do this!" I was a huge "sparkley elf princess" kid and any glass crystals or anything with a rainbow opalescent sheen was my jam. That said when my own kid wanted their ears pierced for their 7th birthday, I found a state-licensed piercer in a local tattoo parlour. My mother was horrified. "You're taking her to a filthy disease-filled tattoo parlour??" (Oh, Mummy, if only you knew). The piercer was this huge leather biker with a shaved head and beard. He was so sweet and talked to my kid's emotional support fox plushie like a person. It was a great experience. We recently went back for that same kid's 17th birthday to get their septum pierced. That said I'll always have a 90s kid soft spot for Claire's.

My “ extensive “ training was 10 mins with a impatient manager that was ready to clock out

I worked at Icing for around 4 months in 2016. The "extensive training" is around 6 hours of videos, and the "piercing competencies" are a more senior employee making sure you place the dots correctly and making sure you can get the back out of the gun when it inevitably gets stuck causing even more trauma to the site. I walked out when they told me I was required to pierce infants if the parents wanted me to.

Story time!! I FARTED on my sister's lap and in front of a mall audience when I had my ear lobes done at Claires, around age 10 😭 I wanted to look pretty and fit in with my peers but I was terrified and was anxious about it all day beforehand, and I guess my only way of emotional release was to pass gas 😭 definitely on my top 10 embarrassing moments list

This is why I took my daughter's to a tattoo/ piercing shop for their ears. No infection, no issues, and cost about the same as Claire's. Piercing guns are an absolute no.

I am firm believer that the child should be a willing participant to ear piercing. My parent waited for all three of their children to request ear piercings before having it done and if we had freaked out when it came time to have it done, you can be sure they wouldn’t have forced it.

As a piercer, I hear all sorts of horror stories from customers about their Claire's piercings. Plus having to fix their piercings after the fact and removing embedded earrings. I also get many customers who are not happy that I use one time use needles instead of a gun because of places like Claire's. Plus they still tell you to twist your earrings and use alcohol for cleaning 🤨 All around a bad idea to trust them with such an invasive procedure. Thank you for making this video

Sooo, I worked on the Claire's corporate product development design team ages ago. I had to concept countless ways to design with pink/purple/blue glitter/sparkles/feathers, etc. I did learn a lot there but your description of "pens with feathers on them" brought me right back to my first week of employment there.😂

I'm old enough to remember when Claire's sold stickers...rolls and rolls of stickers... and lots of glittery lip gloss. We could get cheap earrings, a massive volume of stickers, and glitter gloss for under $5.00 and leave the store feeling like we'd hit the jackpot.

Hiii ok so I haven't watched the full video yet but I worked in a Claire's for a short stint during a Christmas period! A) A lot of items being sold, including hair items, have probably been worn by staff as they enforce a rule that you were a minimum of 100 euro worth of shit! B) Because it was the Christmas period, a lot of families would take their young, and I mean like 6-8-year-old daughters in to get their ears pierced. Well during this very busy spell, one of the guns stopped working halfway through the piercing. As in... The jewelry would be HALF WAY "PIERCED" THROUGH THE EAR LOBES AND GET JAMMED AND STUCK!!! While the kids were crying and in pain! And no, it wasn't a one-and-done thing. They kept taking on customers KNOWING the gun was having issues. I said to the manager about maybe stopping it for the day because well, I have empathy for little girls being traumatised??? And she told me it was a stupid idea because the ear piercings were their biggest money maker... Like tf??? Edit: Also I'm in favour of renaming it from "Piercing" to "puncturing" because that is essentially what it is

I worked at Claire’s and pierced ears and while my store’s piercing station was clean and sanitized and the earrings came in sterile packaging, I can tell you there was no “extensive” training. We practiced on a cardboard ear a few times… & the piercing was “free” but you had to pay $40+ for the earrings we pierced the ears with. I hated doing them but they pushed the piercings to boost sales 😩

"bright crap with festhers on" never has a more accurate read been uttered 😂

I remember that Claires and the Icing were THE place to get jewelry for school dances. They would have the crystal tiaras and necklaces that looked so ✨️fancy✨️ as a preteen. 😂

The fact that after-care video said you should twist and push and move around the healing piercings 💀💀💀

It would be sad to lose Claire’s from the high street. Tweens and preteens (especially girls) hardly have any spaces that are just for them. I have such fond memories of going when I was younger and like you mentioned, in a small town with only a few shops, it was so fun to have a place to go with your friends and spend your pocket money on silly stuff!

"I would watch... waiting for someone to cry 😈" it's fun getting to know you through your videos 😂

Also shout out to my mum for listening to child-me and not forcing me to get my ears pierced when I didn't want it. I used to do dance competitions and my dance teacher ragged on me wearing clipons, but I was scared to get my ears pierced. I eventually decided around age 12 I wanted them and so she took me, but until then, she listened to my "no" and I'm so glad she did

Claire's WAS cheap, as a teen it was really affordable, been there a month ago after 10 years (needed stuff for a special occasion) and the cheap plastic earrings already cost almost 10€... so it's really gotten expensive for what it is

I've gotten maybe 15 ear piercings; these after care instructions are STRESSING me

When I got my helix done the piercer said that 6-8weeks is how long it takes for it to heal ENOUGH. But fully healing to the point where I could change out the piercing stud might be up to a year. One side kept getting irritated and infected on-and-off until nearly 1.5 years after I got them done and now they never give me a problem, but this was with me diligently cleaning them with warm salt water everyday.

I got my ears pierced at Claire's when i was six. The first ear hurt so bad i almost ran out of the store to avoid getting the other one done 😅

My sister pierced my ears at home with a sewing needle jammed into my lobes. I think we ran the needle over a fire to sanitize and we froze my lobes with ice cubes. We really had no options in the 1960’s like they do now. My daughter did the Claire’s piercing gun thing in elementary and it went well. Decades ago tho lol.

When I think of asbestos, I think of this sweet little boy we helped care for when I was in nursing school. He had a glass eye and cognitive delays, amongst other health issues, which were derived in utero due to his mother's exposure to asbestos. Apparently, whatever job she was working, at least partially through her pregnancy with him, exposed them both. I believe they said it was early on during her first trimester and she had no idea. He was the coolest, sweetest little dude. It's funny how certain patients really stick in your memory ❤

Definitely feel like I missed out not having Claire's in Australia! Didn't miss the trauma of a Claire's style piercing though, had it done at a beauty salon instead. Stretching crooked gun piercings in adulthood is an experience.

I got my carteledge pierced at Claire's way back in the late 90s or early 2000s. I think I only had it in for a few months because it was so uncomfortable, but I STILL have pain from that piercing if it gets touched. Got my second and third lobe piercings there and while I had no issues, I would never recommend someone get theirs done there. The fact that they can still pierce boggles my mind. I was actually at the mall a month or so ago picking up an order and saw one of those jewelry kiosks getting ready to pierce an infant's ears. My mouth literally dropped, like wtf are you doing?!

Robert, that eyeshadow is banging! You look fantastic. Claire's has been doing piercing gun piercings since I was young and I'm 51. They are terrible. My first ear piercings were actually done by my pediatrician and with a needle. Then I wanted them double pierced and went to Claire's. Cleanliness, safety, etc aside.....I think the sound of that damn gun was worse than the pain.

Hahaha. “Extensive to whooooom?”😂 Love you Robert!

I’m so glad you’re talking about this!! It drives me crazy when I see babies with their ears pierced!! Why would you ever make your child get their ears pierced?! That is crazy!! I told my daughter when my granddaughter is ready to get her ears pierced to take her to a good tattoo artist/piercer. Back in the old days, we all went to the mall to get our ears pierced, but now we should know better!!

"I would watch to see if someone would cry." 😂😂😂😂😂 same here!

Thanks for talking about this. Talc in makeup is a problem due to asbestos contamination. My uncle died from asbestosis and his daughters are still campaigning against its use, which is more widespread than you'd think. I knew about the ear piercing so my daughter had hers done at the local tattoo parlour instead. She was fine, her friends who went to Claire's got infected. I told the Mums but they were more scared of the tattoo shop than Claire's 🙄

I had my ears pierced at Claire's twice. One of those times was a re-piercing because the holes closed up. The piercing gun didn't work on one lobe (too thick I guess? maybe scar tissue?) and had to be redone again. The other hole the gun got stuck. Literally she let go and the gun was hanging off my ear like a gigantic earring. She had to squeeze it three times before it finally released. It was super painful and "healing" took forever. That ear was never the same. So easily prone to bleeding whenever I wanted to put in earrings (I don't wear them that often because of the hassle). And eventually I had to get my ears re-pierced again! This time at a professional tattoo and piercing shop. We had a fun time discussing which hole to reopen since the original re-piercing wasn't lined up properly in the back and now I still have to figure out which direction to push the earring into to get it to come out the other end. I never would have known in my youth there would have been lifelong piercing annoyances because of Claire's. Parents trusted them since they were "known" for piercings.

Claire’s was my first job, so this video was a must-watch for me! 😂 Can confirm that the ear piercing training was not in any sense extensive. I completed my full training within 2 weeks, and I was just trained by my store manager. My mom was a nurse, though, so I stuck pretty firmly to the sanitization procedures - rubbing down everything with a fresh alcohol wipe, changing gloves anytime you left the station and between piercings, etc. Oddly enough, I remember the piercing gun was stainless steel, not plastic. 😧 This was in the early 2000s, though, so maybe they changed it at some point. I rarely had trouble during or after piercings, and in fact all the ear piercings I got myself from Claire’s (2 in the lobe, one cartilage) have gone smoothly and to this day are still good and uninfected. But the most terrifying part of it all was that the plastic cartridges the earring studs came in (that connect to the top of the gun) were occasionally defective, and could jam mid-piercing. I recall one time the earring only made it half way through the lobe before the cartridge jammed, and the gun and cartridge were just stuck to this kid’s ear. 😰 My manager had to help remove it. Needles are without a doubt the safer option. I often thought since I left that job, like, how is it legal for them to offer this service without licensed personnel, even with the release form? And I assumed that by now they must have had to get rid of it, until I saw this video! All the other stuff you mentioned is all the same shit from when I worked there over 20 years ago, except the products are probably of even cheaper quality and even more over-priced. Back during my time there, they were doing a thing with NeoPets. 😂 They never change or evolve, they only seem to get worse lol. I think the store I worked at is still there in the same spot I left it. 😂

Had my ears pierced here about ten years ago, SO WONKY 😂🫣

Man, Claire's always had the BEST hairbows and scrunchies when I was growing up and a teen. Sometimes I still go there if I need an interesting hair accessory. But they need to stop piercing ears immediately, lol.

I watch Roly and I love him talking about all these subjects. I can't believe Robert talking about this too! Great! ❤

I am DYING at how much Robert took offense to Claire’s calling themselves “fashionable”. 🤣💀

I remember a girl I went to college with worked at Claire's and she told us she had about an hour's training before being let loose with a piercing gun. As I got older and I learned more about piercings, I became amazed that both my lobe piercings I had done at Claire's turned out alright. But also, knowing what a piercing gun does to your skin/cartilidge, it explains why one ear can get a little irrirated sometimes; because it's a point of trauma

I’ve been a silent watcher (I don’t comment usually lol) of your channel for a few years now and I just wanna say you’ve been on itttttt lately props to you Robert, rlly do appreciate the consistency🫶🫶

Making minimum wage employees with no training forcefully pierce the ears of traumatized children is just, so crazy.

Omg! The brown smoked out under your eyes is so dreamy!! 😍🤩😍🤩

i have 2 piercings on each earlobe. they were all done at claire’s with piercing guns 😬 i was lucky enough to not have issues but…. also what was the ear care solution that we had to use???

Okay, but like we need a tutorial on this eye look!!! Stunning look on a stunning person. :)

This is your most beautiful eye makeup I've ever seen on you! The colours, the blend - just perfection! 🥰

Robert is pumping out good content on all channels and we are thankful! 🙏

Love the eyeshadow!! I recognize the eyeliner from your Instagram post. You and James are my daughter's age (she was born in April 89). I remember taking her to the mall when she was younger and we always stop in at Claires. I haven't been to the mall in forever so I hadn't even thought about them. I do remember your video about Jojo and Claires

Hygiene is so important especially in a piercing environment. I have a few piercings and thankfully never went to Claire’s. Also I have to say Robert your eye makeup is always so flawless and beautiful ❤

my favorite earrings as a kid were those silicone spikey earrings!! looking thru the earrings at claire’s was so fun as a kid. i shoplifted quite a few of them…

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 some of your best work!!! I LOVED your passion in this one!

Ooh fun gemology fact /s The reason why asbestos causes lung cancer is cause it's a fibrous crystal meaning it's raw form are extremely slender prisms that form muscle-like fibers (which is why they made such good insulation) so when they broke apart and where inhaled, those extremely slender prisms where like a thousand microscopic needles shredding your lungs lol Other crystals with a fibrous habit include selenite, tiger's eye, serpentine, etc. So tumbled/processed versions of these crystals are fine but please don't be anywhere near the raw version of these or expose them to water

I went into a shopping centre a few years ago and there was a Claire’s. It was out in the open in the centre, like not in an enclosed shop. I ended up spending so long in there lol. Things were definitely overpriced, but there were actually a few accessories (mostly hair) that worked for me that were still cheaper than at a store geared towards adults. The amazing thing though was just the experience of being in a Claire’s again! I cannot explain how powerful the sense of nostalgia was. There was only one staff member and she was so lovely, and there were next to no customers so we chatted for a while. I told her how I was feeling, how powerful and honestly magical the nostalgia of being back in Claire’s was lol, and she said she’s heard that a few times. I’m still a lover of cute things so the Disney branded things were cute to look at too (not buy because expensive). The quality of makeup and jewellery is pretty bad, accessories are slightly better. Piercings are a no, and I feel really bad for the undertrained employees who have to do them. But overall I will always have a soft spot for Claire’s in my sentimental millennial heart 🥹✌🏻

Am loving these types of videos Robert. Well done❤

I just found your channel and I love it so much. Because not only is your makeup amazing, but I really just like listening to this sort of stuff lol :)

eye look tutorial please, this is so beautiful 😭

Robert I love you so much!! My comfort RU-vidr fr always love when you drop a new video makes my day brighter:)

Where I’m from Claire’s is like younger and Icing is supposed to look more mature, like “wedding” jewelry or bridesmaids. Pieces that are supposed to look fancier for older people.

I love your eye makeup in this video!

When I was a teen about 20 years ago I worked at Claire's and did the piercing, we were trained on bit if cardboard shaped like an ear with a bit of foam on the back 👍🏻

I just have to say I’m loving the eyeshadow look! ❤

i got three piercings done at claire’s and while i didn’t take care of them great because i was a pre teen i struggled so much with them but didn’t realize that wasn’t normal until i got my cartilage done years later at a proper studio and has almost no problems at all

I loved Claire's 😄 I love all the colors. Whenever you need something cute to match a new dress or outfit, you know you will find something at Claire's. They had tiaras, bracelets, necklaces and chokers, and endless earrings. It is so much fun and you won't break the bank 💕 Oh yeah, plus they have several sensitive skin options that you can't get anywhere else

Your makeup is outrageously gorgeous here! Beautiful

I lovee this classic black and silver eyes, with the brown eyeliner on the bottom!!! Nude lip look . YOu look great!!!! ❤❤❤❤❤

We NEED a tutorial of that eye makeup! 😍😍😍😍😍

Now I have my eyeshadow look for tomorrow. ❤

I’m so glad you’re talking about this and that you mentioned just how unsafe Claire’s piercing practices are! Those little guns destroy your cartilage because it takes a blunt earring and just shoves it through rather than using a sharp and sanitized needle. I had my first earlobe piercings done at Claire’s and it got infected and annoyed quickly, I’m also allergic to the cheap nickel they use. Since then I’ve gotten professional piercings and a tattoo done in an actual specialized shop and it’s much more hygienic, safer, and honestly a lot more fun. Also since those piercers have to go the APP (Association of Professional Piercers), it’s a lot more regulated. Also if your kiddo is really little, I believe that you can have a pediatrician pierce your child’s ears.

i got my ears pierced at claires, i would always recomend an actual piercing shop for piercings. side note- some of their jewellry is actually nice, i got some really cool butterfly hoops from there recently

I'm from Costa Rica, 35, and my mum pierced my ears when I was about 2 DAYS old with a sewing needle. She was the lady in the neighbourhood that would pierce the ears of all the baby girls. Eventually she stopped doing it for whatever reason. She hasn't done it since forever ago.

«I would watch, waiting for someone to cry» Love it 😂🖤

Former Claire’s employee here, I worked there for almost three years, we do get trained to pierce ears and I do know that they retrain everyone every six months to refresh. Most of it is reading and watching videos. But a lot of the time the managers (the good ones) will consistently coach everyone so that everyone was on the same page. I got coached and I was also trained to pierce cartilage (helix) and noses (because I was an assistant) and I was also Bloodborne Pathogens certified. So there is a fair amount of training when it comes to the piercing aspect. I can only say that for the Claire’s I worked at because the store manager is great at her job, I can’t speak for all the Claire’s just the ones I worked at. But as a piercer we do give thorough information and instructions on how to maintain and clean the piercing but it really depends on the person who’s getting pierced. Some people really don’t take care of their piercings and in the paperwork it goes over the after care process. Sometimes people don’t listen to the instructions , some people could have thick ear lobes and they put the backing on too tight. In my almost three years of working there I had very few complaints about the piercings I performed and I had regulars come to get more piercings. My overall experience with the company was positive, but that’s just my personal experience.

There is a full Claire's in my local Walmart. Not like a section, but outside the checkout there is a whole store. It's weird, but I get nostalgia every time I walk by it.

I've fallen in love with Robert's jumper 😍🙈😂

Oh my gosh, you're right. I did shoplift rings from Claire's. Oh my God you just reminded me and I completely forgot. But Claire was always an excitement. Also, please for after birthday parties as odd as that thought as now lol

This is exactly what happened to my oldest! I Will never forget the cries my daughter had getting the earring out of her ear. I had to take her to a tattoo piercing shop and thankfully whatever she did healed my daughter's ear

Totally off the subject but you’re really inspiring me to do more with my eyes. I have the same color, brown with auburn and I just wear brown eye shadow all the time.

When they said "extensive training" i knew it was just videos 😂😂. But I had incredible memories of Claire's. And yes, I shoplifted from there. A cross of all things.

The same as they are in Asda in the UK, they have them in grocery stores here. One store in Oregon is called Winco. Thought it was super strange the first time I saw it.

I had my ears pierced at Claire’s by a woman with one arm in 1988. Twice. Never had any reaction to those, but have had infections from very upscale piercers using needles. (I think anatomy wise, my ears only tolerate the lobes being pierced! ) I’m 50 now so this was such a throwback 😆 I didn’t even know Claire’s was still around and those piercing guns are way more painful than a needle 😖

I got my second ear piercings at Claire's about ten years ago. I can't wear any earrings in them now since every time I do, within an hour my ears get red and hurt a bit. My little sister had something similar happen with the ear infection (no sepsis thankfully and it cleared up) in the video. It was sometime after the initial piercing but it was with the jewelry. It was a gnarly sight to see and try to clean up. After that, my household became strictly no Claire's jewelry.

I love your eyeshadow!

I had my ears pierced by them long ago and my thoughts are the quality diminished after the early 90's. I don't remember any of my friends having any issues with them either. Sad for the ones who did suffer, I hope they healed and didn't have serious problems

Hi I'm new to the channel and I already love you :)

Really love your makeup

Stunning eyes Robert!!❤❤

They have a deal with walmart in canada when you mentioned asda pizza i was totally agree so nice and great price

There used to be a Claire’s in Valletta here in Malta however it has since closed down and I only know of one other shop and that’s at the airport!

Chaotic fact in the Wizard of Oz the scene where the main characters fall asleep in a poppy field and it snows on them…THAT SNOW WAS 100% ASBESTOS! 🤯🤯

Love your eye look

Omg you described the "Claire's Shopping experience" perfectly!😂 It's kind of like a garage sale if the homeowner was a 14yr old girl❤( or just someone who likes ultra kitschy stuff)

The makeup look in todays videos is 😍

Love the shirt!

That bottle of ear cleaning solution brought back some memories

TYFS! Nailed it with the plastic ear gun 😊☮️💕

I worked at Claire’s, and was a store manager, during the 80’s, 90,s and early 00’s. There is absolutely no training for ear piercings! We were trained on foam ears then straight to people. Yes, we were told that we did have to pierce babies and kids ears, even if they didn’t want it. It was horrible.

A very similar thing happened to me when I got my ears gun-pierced in 1996, at Walmart (which had a jewellery section similar to Claires back then). 😅 I got them pierced for my 11th birthday and was so excited, but within a week they were hugely swollen, embedded, and absolutely pouring with pus. My mother didn’t want to have to remove the earring and then pay to get my ears pierced again, so I remember her standing in the bathroom trying to swab all the infection away with neosporin and pouring rubbing alcohol over them, while I sobbed uncontrollably from the pain. We had no internet back then, so I doubt she realised that stuff like sepsis was possible. I’m pretty lucky that they eventually healed with no complications - although tbh, they’ve never been quite right. The holes almost felt diagonal and it was very hard to get earrings in, and if I left my earrings out for more than a day they would heal over. I finally just let them totally close a few years ago and have plans to go get them re-pierced properly.

Claire's is such a childhood staple for so many of us! I feel like it was a right of passage the first time you bought some gaudy plastic tat from there. ❤

Claire’s was always where I got my belly rings in high school. Theirs were always the cutest