Sure they look cool  but when your see a store filled with hundreds of styles and designs, how do you know which one is right for you or for the friend or family member that has belly rings as the only item on their wish list?

What are the basics?

#1 - Material.  Belly rings should be 316L surgical steel.   Stainless steel belongs in your kitchen, not in your body.  Titanium is also great however be careful with the annonized types.  These days you will often see sterling silver belly rings being sold.  Nothing wrong with that, as long as it is design piece and not the insertion bar that is sterling.   Another material that is being seen more often today is PTFE and Bioplast.  These are synthetic materials that are non allergenic and especially useful for pregnant women who wish to keep their piercing thru thier pregnancy.   I think the scariest piercing pic I have ever seen was a very preganant woman whose body had "absorbed" her  belly ring.  The outline of the ring could clearly be seen under her skin.

#2 - Size.  The standard production size for "fashion" belly rings is 14 gauge.  A 14 gauge belly ring has a diameter of 1.64 mm or .064 inches.  Some wearers occasionally stretch them but to do so is to know that you are sacrificing most "fashion" looks as I have not encountered a single manufacturer that produces them in any size other than 14 gauge. 

#3 - Length.  The standard length belly bar is 5/8.  The great thing is that with most bars this can easily be switched out.  If you have fallen for a bar with a 5/8" bar but require a longer or shorter one, simply ask your seller if the bar is "double threaded".   Basically this means that both sides of the insertion bar are threaded and that the existing one can simply be unscrewed from the design piece and replaced with a different length bar (or a different matieral if you prefer the PTFE or Bioplast bars).  Although double threaded bars are more common, be sure to check and make sure as some manufacturers solder the design piece to the insertion bar (nothing wrong with that - it insures against the design piece becoming unscrewed during long term wear and being lost).

#4 - Style.   there are a number of different styles of belly rings - here is a quick guide to each.

• CBR or BCR - depending on whether you seller is from the US or UK this simply ring with a captured ball may be called by different names.  The US version is the CBR (captured ball ring) the UK version is the BCR (ball captured ring).  This used to be the most commonly used beginner piece.  Although banana bars have now become more popular, the some of the design addions to the ball have kept the CBR popular
• Spiral - Plain and simple and most frequently seen in titanium these days, the spirals are not seen as frequently these days but are still a good holder bar when you want something clean and simple but not quite plain.
• Standard Curved - a Standard curved belly bar can be anything from a plain banana bar to a jeweled bar to a much fancier bar.  The onydefining factor is that the design piece is on the bottom of the bar  and does not dangle or swing.
• Standard Dangle - just like what it sounds like.  It is a standard banana bar with a design that hangs or dangles from the base.
• Reverse Curved - a Reverse curved bar is a banana bar with the design at the top of the bar rather than the bottom.  These are especialy popular with people whose piercing is at the top of the belly button rather than the bottom  but also with bottom pierced persons that want to "hide" their belly button.
• Reverse Dangle - same as a standard reverse but the dangle design hangs from the top rather than the bottom.  The other advantage of these bars is that they cover the not so interesting botton ball.
• Reverse Hinged - These are not as frequently seen but are beginning to increase in popularity as more are seen.  They are generally a "shield" type design which hides all of the hardware and the belly buttom itself but thanks to the hinge at the top of the insertion bar on the back, helps the wearer avoid the ackwardness of trying to screw the bottom ball on when it sits between the bar and your body.  Simply flip the design piece up, insert and close the bar and then flip the design piece down. 
  
• Interchangable - Interchangable deisgns are purhaps the most fun and "fashion versitile".  An interchangable design is not actually connected to a belly ring.  It is a shield type design with an insertion slot wihich allows you to wear it with any standard jeweled banana bar.  The popularity of these lies with the fact that you can change the color anytime you want simply by changing to a different color jewelled banana bar.   It can be pink one day, blue the next.  You are limited only by your imagination and on hand selection of jewel colors.

Hopefully you now know something about your belly ring choices that you did not know before.  the most important thing to remeber though is that you should only buy from knowledgable sellers. 

With the rapid increase in popularity of body piercing came with it people with more dollar signs in their eyes than knowledge in their brain.  Don't be afraid to ask questions.  If your selller is not able to answer them, don't be afraid to pass that oh so adorable belly ring up this time.  Chances are that there is someone else out there that not only knows their product, but also has something just as cute, if not cuter.