FAQ
You’re having a very sharp hollow needle pushed through a part of your body. It’s going to hurt. But as for pain levels, it’s different for everyone. It also depends on the location of the piercing.
2. How long should I wait to change the jewelry/how long does healing take?
Generally, you wait three months to change the jewelry. That does not mean that after three months you can take the jewelry out and leave it out for any length of time. Most piercings aren’t fully healed by that time, they’re just healed enough that changing the jewelry won’t irritate them badly. This also does not mean that you can switch the jewelry out on a regular basis. You should rarely change it out in the first 6-9 months of having the piercing. However, lobe piercings can be changed out sooner as they tend to heal quickly.
For most piercings, healing time is from 4-9 months depending on the location and thickness of tissue.
3. How do I clean my piercing?
We have an aftercare page.
4. How do I pierce my own (insert body part here)?
YOU DON’T. GO TO A PROFESSIONAL.
5. Is it okay to skip sizes when stretching your ears/how long should I wait between stretching?
No, never. You should wait until your ears are ready to be stretched. Between smaller sizes (16g to 8g) this is generally 4-8 weeks. Between slightly larger sizes (8g to 2g) you should wait about 8-16. For anything above that, you should wait a minimum of four months.
I realize that not many people wait that long between stretches. And I realize that many of you think I’m an idiot for telling you to wait that long, but it’s what’s best for your lobes. I’m simply telling you when your lobes will be most ready to stretch.
6. Where can I get custom jewelry?
Onetribe makes incredible organic jewelry from many different types of wood and stone, as well as other materials.
Anatometal makes beautiful jewelry from titanium and niobium, they will also do custom work for you.
Gorilla Glass is a company based in Oaxaca, Mexico, that specializes in custom jewelry.
I own jewelry from each of these companies and I adore all of it.
7. Is it okay to use alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, contact solution, or any other stupid chemicals I would know not to use if I had any common sense on my new piercings?
No. Use saline, witch hazel or tea tree oil.
But if you’re going to use tea tree oil, use it sparingly and rarely as it has the potential to dry out piercings if used too often.
Also, don’t use the stuff you get at Claire’s.
8. I have this bump…
It could be a hypertrophic scar or a keloid.
If it’s on an older piercing, resume cleaning it three times a day. If it’s a new piercing, continue cleaning it three times a day with saline. Dab a small amount of tea tree oil on it once a day and do a hot compress with a chamomile tea bag, also once a day. If it doesn’t go away, you may need to upgrade the quality of your jewelry or take it out completely and let it heal.
9. How long will it take for my piercing to close up?
It just depends, everyone is different.
10. How far can I stretch my ears before they won’t go back if I take them out?
It’s different for everyone. Generally, it’s around 2g, 0g, or 00g (6mm to 10mm)
But I have seen people whose ears were stretch much larger (an inch and a half) shrink back to as small as 4g.
12. I have to take my piercing out for work, will it close up?
Most likely, buy a retainer.
13. Where can I find that snake ear ring?
Click here.