Basic Body Piercing Jewelry

Body piercing jewelry has a certain specificity because it needs to penetrate the human body, so the material of this type of jewelry is very particular, and rusted and allergic metals are naturally unusable. There are currently two types of jewelry that are considered the most suitable for body piercing.

The first: G23 (ASTM F136) implant grade titanium, free of nickel, will not cause any rejection and allergic damage to the human body, in line with the EU nickel directive 76/769/EEC.

The second type: is 316L stainless steel (aka surgical steel), hypoallergenic, only 1/5 of the price of G23, and Often used as basic body piercing jewelry.

In contrast, we do not recommend wearing silver jewelry. Silver jewelry will oxidize and turn black after a long time, which is not beautiful. Secondly, silver jewelry is soft in texture, easy to deform, and not friendly to wounds.

1, What is body piercing jewelry?

As the name suggests, it refers to a person’s belly button, lips, tongue, eyebrows or earlobes, and other body parts, by piercing human skin or cartilage, so as to modify the appearance, highlight the personality, and flaunt alternative jewelry.

Body Piercing Jewelry

2, The origin of body piercing jewelry

In many early primitive tribes, the local indigenous people believed that wearing metal jewelry on the ears, nose, lips and other parts can effectively resist the invasion of devils and evil spirits, thus giving birth to the culture of wearing piercing jewelry. The “punk wave” in the United Kingdom in the 1970s and the “hippie movement” in the United States at the same time pushed the alternative culture of wearing piercing jewelry to a climax and swept the world. At that time, punk parties and hippies would have long hair and wear Indian-style headscarves, jeans, and Indian shirts, they are keen on rock, tattoos, and wearing piercing jewelry. They try to show their uniqueness in such a rebellious and non-mainstream way, but also to express their dissatisfaction with the social status quo at that time.

3, Types of Body Piercing Jewelry

Barbell

According to the shape, the barbell can be divided into straight barbells and curved barbells.

Wearing parts: Straight barbells are mostly used on the tongue, bridge of the nose, nipples, etc., while curved barbells can be used more widely, such as the navel, nose, mouth, eyebrows, ear cartilage, etc.

At the same time, according to the way of use, it can be divided into the push-in barbell and threaded barbell. The difference is that a press-fit barbell is pressed one end into the other, while a threaded barbell is like turning a screw.

Among them, the threaded barbell can be subdivided into internal thread and external thread according to the position of the thread. However, for safety reasons, the initial piercer must wear an internally threaded barbell.

Ring Shape Jewelry

Captive Bead Rings: The bead is not attached to the top of the ring, and only the bead portion can be replaced. If you want to replace the whole, you need to use open-ended pliers. Because the surface of the externally threaded barbell is not flat, it is not conducive to the healing of the initial wound, and it is easy to cause secondary injury and increase the risk of wound infection.

Segmented Ring

One segment of the ring is separable. Often used for diaphragm perforations for ease of movement.

Fixed Bead Ring

The bead is fixed on one side and is perfect for ears, nostrils, and other facial piercings. However, it is not recommended for piercings that need to be replaced regularly because they are prone to deformation.

Seam Ring

No beads, just a simple loop that can be closed by pulling. However, it is not recommended for use during healing.

Nail Shape Jewelry

Such nose studs, tongue studs, navel studs, etc. are relatively common nail-shaped jewelry and can be worn on a wide range of parts, the more common ones are on the nose, tongue, navel, and other parts.

Needle Shape Piercing Jewelry — Nail Shape Piercing Jewelry

Surface Bars And Surface Anchors

It is not difficult to see that the other end of some piercing jewelry is buried inside the body, and only one or two small dots are exposed outside the skin. For jewelry like this, a surface rod or surface anchor is used.

Surface Bar: Shaped like a staple, a variation of the straight barbell. It can be used on the neck, eyebrows, or face. It is often more “stable” than surface anchors, but relatively, the healing time is longer, and if it is on the neck, it is difficult to clean.

Because there is no exit point, a needle or dermal hole punch needs to be used first to remove a small piece of flesh, which creates a small hole in the skin. Then, a footed or rounded dermal anchor is inserted into the area(Commonly known as a buried nail). Finally, the jewels are screwed onto the anchors.

Plugs

Plugs(also called Earplugs): divided into the straight ear (or non-trumpet), single-horn, and double-horn three.

Tunnels

The shape of the tunnel （also called Eyelet）is similar to the earplug, but the only difference is that the tunnel is hollow

Tapers

Awl-shaped, but can have various types, such as straight, curved, or spiral.

Labrets

It looks like a magician’s hat and is made of various materials, such as cow bones, gems, or glass. Made for stretch lip piercings.

Other Hanging Piercing Jewelry

Jewelry like this is generally large in size, gorgeous in appearance, and can be made of many materials, such as wood, animal horns, bones, glass, and metals such as copper, steel, and even gold.

Jewelry such as plugs, tunnels, tapers, Labrets, etc., can be used to extend the size of stretch piercings, and their stylish and simple geometric style is very popular among piercing enthusiasts.

4, Pre-, mid-, and post-care care of perforated wounds

Early Stage

A. When the wound is still painful and oozing blood, after cleaning the hands, spray iodine, and use a cotton swab or cotton ball to clean the blood scab around the wound, 1 to 2 times a day.

B. Do not take off the jewelry at this time, and the scabs on the jewelry should also be cleaned up together to prevent secondary damage to the wound caused by sticking to the jewelry.

C. Contact with bacteria is strictly prohibited to prevent wound infection.

D. Do not spray medicine on the skin and mucous membranes (oral cavity, nasal cavity, etc.), if there is a scab, clean it with 0.9% saline.

Mid Term

A. In the absence of signs of infection, the use of disinfectants can be reduced, and 0.9% normal saline can be used for daily care.

B. Once every 1 to 2 days, rinse the wound with normal saline and then dry it with a cotton swab, or soak a sterile cotton ball in normal saline and apply lightly to the puncture site for 5 to 10 minutes.

C. When the wound is no longer painful, the surface is relatively flat, and the secretions are reduced, you can briefly take off the jewelry for more thorough dressing care, and then put it on in time.

D. When there is mild inflammation such as redness, swelling, and pus, apply erythromycin ointment 1 to 2 times a day to reduce inflammation.

Late Stage

After the puncture site is healed, it is still necessary to clean the secretions regularly. The secretions at this time are normal metabolism, but if not cleaned, the piercing may stink or even oxidize and corrode the jewelry.

5, Taboos and precautions before and after perforation

Taboo

A. Patients with skin diseases, heart diseases, blood diseases, and diabetes should not try body punctures.

B. Women should avoid the menstrual period, pregnancy, and lactation for piercing.

C. It is not advisable to pierce after being drunk.

D. The perforation should be delayed if there is strenuous exercise or physical activity recently.

Piercing Notes

A. Within a week after piercing, pay attention to your diet, do not eat spicy food, do not drink alcohol, and eat less seafood and beef, and mutton.

B. Try to avoid touching the puncture site with water. When you want to touch the water, you can stick a waterproof band-aid for protection. If the piercing comes in contact with water, blot it dry as soon as possible, and then spray the disinfectant.

C. Avoid strenuous exercise, and avoid scratching, pulling, and pressing on the puncture site. It can lead to prolonged recovery time and even inflammation.

D. Nursing the wound every day.

6, Recovery period of perforation in various parts

Perforation site	Picture	Recovery period	Remark
Earlobe		In about 15 days, the surface layer returned to normal, no more redness, swelling and pain. 1 to 3 months, the wound is completely healed.	The easiest and most common piercing site. The ear studs can be briefly removed in the first 15 days; after the recovery is complete, the accessories can be changed at will, and the ear holes will not be closed when the jewelry is removed.
Ear bone		The maintenance steps for ear bones and ear lobes are similar, but the recovery period is much slower than the recovery time of ear lobes. It takes about 1 month for initial recovery and 3 to 6 months for full recovery.	Complex areas such as ear bridges are more difficult to recover and take longer.
Lips		The healing time of the lip nail is fast, and the swelling is basically reduced and no more pain in about 1 week. At this time, you can replace the jewelry with the appropriate length, and it will basically heal in 2 to 4 weeks.
Nasal septum		The recovery period is fast, usually 1 to 3 months.	This refers to the recovery time of the mucocutaneous puncture of the nasal septum. If the puncture to the cartilage recovery period will be doubled.
Alar part		The initial recovery period is about 1 month, and the full recovery period is 3 to 6 months.
Eyebrow		The initial recovery is about 1 month, and the complete healing takes 3 to 6 months.	This part is easy to touch and needs to be careful.
Navel		Complete healing takes 6 to 12 months.	Care should be taken for the first 3 months of maintenance, try to avoid bathing and swimming, and avoid scratching.
Tongue		The recovery period only takes 1 to 3 weeks, and the swelling and pain will disappear in 5 to 7 days.	The base is completely buried under the skin. During the first 20 to 30 days of recovery, it is best to apply a Band-aid every day to prevent the base from being scratched.
Surface anchors		The recovery period is 1 to 3 months.	In the first 20 to 30 days of the recovery period, it is best to apply a band-aid protection every day to prevent the base from coming out.
Surface bar		The recovery time is similar to the principle and eyebrow nailing, 3 to 6 months.	The healing itself is not difficult, but due to easy scratching and other reasons, it will increase the healing time.