Monday April 28th, 2008 @ 1:05 AM
Filed under: Ear
i want to go to like a 2-0 and i want to know if theyll grow back i need to prove it to my parents to asure them that it will thanks
Unfortunately if you’re looking for a sure-fire guarantee, no piercer will give you one in answer to this question.
There’s many things we have to factor in this, and its ultimately falls on if your body wants to return to normal. Unfortunately at 2ga or 0ga its very unlikely that the pathways are going to close entirely up. They might shrink in size and go to say around a 6ga or 8ga, but I honestly will say they’ll never get back to a 14ga or 16ga size.
+3 / 15 votes 
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | 7 Comments
Monday April 28th, 2008 @ 12:40 AM
Filed under: Ear
I got my tragus pierced in October (for the second time, the first time it was pierced in the opposite ear too shallow and had to be removed). And the thing still isn’t Healed. I believe the piercer used a 16g 1/4″ CBR. I have been good about soaking it in salt water and leaving it alone otherwise, but I’m wondering if it isn’t something else keeping it from healing. I was having a look a few weeks ago, and noticed that the CBR is slightly “bent” (ie: it is not a perfect circle). The part that is bent is directly opposite where the bead is on the ring, so it is naturally the part that wants to sit in the piercing itself. I brought it up to my piercer, hoping he would change it to a barbell, and he said the piercing had to be totally healed first and that cartilage is just a bitch to heal. I try to keep the ring rotated (after I clean it) so that the bent (smaller diameter) part of the ring is not in the piercing…
So my question is: am I just slow to heal (my last tragus was healed after this amount of time), or could this slightly bent ring be an impediment to the healing process? And if so, is it worth the trauma of getting the jewelry changed to a barbell mid-healing?
To just quickly answer the main portion of the question, regarding healing. Most cartilage is indeed a “bitch” to heal. I normally instruct my clients to understand that cartilage piercings can quite often take anywhere from 6 months all the way to a year or longer, to fully heal. This is just the nature of ear cartilage, but also “slower healing” can be a result of other factors as well: 1) How often its bumped/hit, 2) Stress applied to the body (lack of sleep, lack of proper hydration, improper hygiene,etc) 3) Improper jewelry type/quality,etc.
Now without seeing the pierced location up close and personal, its hard to troubleshoot the matter properly. I will say though that using a 1/4″ (6mm) CBR seems a bit too small for my liking, for an initial tragus piercing. If I’m ever using a CBR in a tragus (I very rarely do by the way) I tend to put either an 5/16″ (8mm) or even a 3/8″ (10mm) depending on the thickness/shape/size of the tragus and ear,etc.
Also the statement you made about the CBR being slightly bent opposite of the bead is not an ideal situation. To me that might describe said piercer taking an 5/16″ CBR and tightening it down to a 1/4″ size, or a different bead was used in the 1/4″ then what it originally was made for/with. By tightening/closing the tighter on the smaller bead like that it can if done improperly create that “bent” look you’re referring to.
Now finally you got the piercing done in October, we’re now entering into May, thus making it roughly 6-7 months old. At this point there’s absolutely no reason NOT to just give it a try, just to see if any positive result can come from it.
What I’d personally do is visit a bunch of shops in your area, or anywhere else you might end up. When you visit these shops, they’ll hopefully spark up a conversation with you. To which you can ask for their opinion about your tragus piercing, giving you a 2nd, 3rd, 4th,etc opinion on the matter. Then after you have visited a few shops, logically decide what the overall consensus is on the situation and make your decision accordingly….Personally though I’d say get that ring out and get a properly fitted implant grade internally threaded (or threadless) labret stud, but that’s just me 
+5 / 5 votes 
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Posted by Warren Hiller | Permalink | Comments
Sunday April 13th, 2008 @ 3:46 AM
Filed under: Ear
I’ve had my rook pierced for 7 months, and it’s done wonderfully. I know that they take quite a while to fully heal, but I’ve noticed that mine still excretes a little bit of lymph when I soak it (I soak every other say for 5-10 minutes). Is this normal? could it be doing this because I still soak it so regularly?
Thanks! 
That’s pretty normal and nothing to worry about at all. Salt water soaks promote lymphatic drainage, that’s why they’re great for healing piercings, so if it’s ever going to lymph a bit, it’s going to be after a soak. I’d say keep it up until it’s well and truly healed, most cartilage piercings like rooks can take a year or longer to full settle in!
0 / 0 votes
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Posted by Lori St.Leone | Permalink | 1 Comment
Saturday March 15th, 2008 @ 7:21 PM
Filed under: Ear
I got my tragus pierced last August and I loved it… it was my moment of experimentation… I made the decision to remove it last week because I gained a teaching position at a local school and I felt it had become unprofessional because the student began to take notice to it (caused disruptions)… My question is will the hole shrink or close up or at least become less noticeable… right now it has gotten pink and stings every now and then… which makes me think it’s either trying to heal or getting infected… I need another opinion… thanks…
Have a piercer check your tragus out for you in person. They will be able to help figure out exactly what is causing the irritation. I could list possible reasons, but the list would get long and it’s definitely best to have a professional check it out in person.
As for taking out your jewelry for work, you can have it removed permanently without a problem. An alternative to this would be to have some clear jewelry installed that will make your piercing less noticeable or even not noticeable at all. If your piercing is well healed, this should not be a problem.
0 / 0 votes
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Posted by Russ Foxx | Permalink | Comments
Sunday March 9th, 2008 @ 1:06 AM
Filed under: Ear
Hey,
Back in the day my dad was a piercer and had his ear stretched to about 28mm. This was nearly seven year ago and for the last 3 years it has been barely noticable (just looks like a normal piercing hole).
I want to scalpel my ears (professionally, obviously), but was worried about the permancy of it. Will it ever close up like a regualr stretch or is it more permanent, if you know what i mean?
Cheers
Chris
Any lobes beond 2 gauge should be considered permanent. However, in most cases lobes several sizes larger that were stretched will eventually return to there unstretched state. If you remove tissue, either by punching or scalpelling there is almost no chance of your ears returning to there unstretched state without the aid of surgery.
0 / 2 votes
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Posted by Sean Philips | Permalink | Comments
Monday February 25th, 2008 @ 9:53 AM
My industrial got a little irritated from the barbell being too long, and little lymph bumps formed (they are definitely not keloids or hypertrophic scarring). I got a custom fit stainless steel barbell a few months ago and it has helped immensely. I was wondering if I got a custom fit titanium barbell, would it be even better for my piercing? or would it not make much of a difference at all?
Eh, six of one, half-dozen of the other. Titanium is more biocompatible than steel, as a rule, but that being said, some people demonstrate allergic reactions to titanium alloys and have no dramas whatsoever with steel. So, as with many things in the world of body mods, there are no hard and fast rules. I think the polish of the jewellery has at least as much to do with it as the metal - I’d take a mirror-polished piece of Anatometal steel jewellery over a lesser-quality, less-shiny piece of titanium from another company any day of the week.
If you’re going well with your steel barbell, I wouldn’t bother changing it out, personally. If the piercing is still healing, changing the jewellery will just tend to irritate it and should be avoided unless completely necessary.
0 / 0 votes
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Posted by Lori St.Leone | Permalink | Comments
Thursday February 14th, 2008 @ 11:03 PM
Filed under: Ear
I have had my ears pierced since forever. My right ear is pierced twice in my lobe & My left ear three times… i really want to stretch the second one in both ears… bad idea?? All of my holes are at 14ga .. but i’m weird and don’t want to stretch the bottom one.
There should be no problem stretching whichever holes in your ear you want. the only issue would be if the piercings are close together and the tissue between them becomes thin as you stretch them. Other than that, have fun with the stretching process. Remember to be smart about it and go slow.
+1 / 1 votes
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Posted by Derek Lowe | Permalink | 1 Comment
Wednesday February 13th, 2008 @ 5:51 PM
Filed under: Ear
Hi!
About a month ago I got my inner conch punched at a 4g and immediately stretched to a 2. I’d like to be able to take out the jewelry, but I’m scared the hole will start to close. How do I make sure the hole doesn’t close on me overnight?
Dermal punches take quite awhile to fully heal and settle enough to hold their size and shape without the need for jewelry. This is not always the case, as every person can heal differently.In any case it is very unlikely that your punch will hold its size at one month.
If you keep your jewelry in place for a year or more, there will be a much greater chance that it will hold it’s size and shape without the need for jewelry. When you feel that it’s fully healed and settled, you can try taking it out for short periods of time to see if it tightens up much. This way if it closes beyond your desired size you can quickly change your mind and replace your jewelry.
0 / 0 votes
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Posted by Russ Foxx | Permalink | Comments
Sunday February 10th, 2008 @ 9:31 PM
Filed under: Ear
I have several helix piercings which I currently wear 18g 3/8 and 5/16 barbells in. I feel these are too long for my ears and would like to wear labret studs. do labret studs come any smaller than 5/16? I can’t find anything smaller. I would like them to be snug and flush against my ear. also, 18g is too small for my piercings, 12g or 14g is more suitable. any suggestions? thanks!
Have a professional piercer measure your ear to find which wearing length you will need your jewelry to be, then simply shop around for that specific size or have it made for you. Your piercer should be happy to order in any jewelry that you may need from a reputable source. It is easy to have high quality labret studs custom-made at any length for your specific needs.
+1 / 1 votes
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Posted by Russ Foxx | Permalink | Comments
Sunday February 10th, 2008 @ 8:55 PM
Filed under: Ear
I’m going to be stretching my lobes to a 0g in the near future.
What (healed) size is generally conducive to putting in and taking out double flared jewelry relatively easily? I’ve heard it’s tough with smaller sizes, as the flare is basically the next size up … is a 0g too small to be thinking about double flares?
Double-flared jewelry can be worn at almost any size, but is not commonly seen below 6g or so. Flare sizes also vary between different jewelry makers and manufacturers, so there isn’t a uniformed lobe size to “be able” to wear double-flared jewelry.
It is important that your lobes are fully healed and comfortable at whatever given size before attempting to wear jewelry that has two flares. This will save you from stretching a piece into your ear and having your lobe tighten up and lock it in. This would make for an ugly removal.
Measuring the wearing diameter of your lobes before buying new jewelry is a safe bet to avoid acquiring a piece that doesn’t fit properly. You can go to a professional piercer to have this done. Your lobe size can be found by carefully running a taper through your ear until a snug fitting one is found. The taper can then be measured with a caliper to give the specific measurement of your lobe. This measurement can then be applied to any double-flared jewelry by measuring the jewelry flares. The diameter of the widest part of the flare should be very close to your actual lobe size. This will allow a controlled amount of tension on the jewelry to hold it in place without damaging your lobes upon insertion and removal.
In conclusion, yes you can wear double-flared jewelry if your lobes are 0g (8mm). Either buy your own caliper for use during jewelry shopping or have the jewelry retailer measure the jewelry flares for you to ensure that you get the right size.
0 / 0 votes
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Posted by Russ Foxx | Permalink | Comments
