We've put together some bits and pieces about body jewelry and their metals based on our most frequent questions and concerns from our online and local customer's.

Nose Rings:  The most common metals used in making these rings are sterling silver, surgical steel and gold.  The least irritating metal for this piercing is gold.  Most people find that sterling silver isn't as irritating as steel.  This is due to sterling silver being a softer metal than surgical steel so it allows for more flexibility.  Cartilage doesn't have any flexibility or give to it so if your using steel it's pretty much solid against solid which creates friction.

The gems in nose rings have a tendancy to fall out easily because they are so tiny and mostly held in by a bit of glue.  Using a few coats of clear nail polish around the setting can help the gems stay in a lot longer.  Of course claw set gems are the best way to go but remember that those are tiny claw sets so they will come out if the claws get caught on clothing or if you scratch your nose and your nail gets caught in the claws.  The same thing applies to your belly rings.  If you have gems in them, use the clear nail polish.

Additional Info On Nose Products:  There's some misinformation going around that we wanted our customer's to be aware of. 

The backings that are being offered on the net, for nose rings, do not work.  Not only do they not work but they are next to impossible to get on the nose ring.  We have had customer's ask if we give these as a free gift.  We will do this but as stated, they do not work and will slide off of the shaft very very easily.  All nose products are called nose rings.  The term "nose ring" does not only apply to the hoops but it is the correct name for the ball end and pin jewelry. 

Sterling Silver:  This is an under rated metal for body jewelry.  The most common complaint is that it turned the skin black when actually that black is simply oils and dirt from your own body and the external elements.  Sterling silver is a very soft metal that has a cling reaction to it when it comes to the oils in your skin.  Then to compound this, the dust and dirt clings to the oils....thus you get black.  Using some toothpaste to clean the jewelry works great....preferably the whitening ones because they have a little bit of grit.  Sterling silver is one of the least rejected metals aside from gold, PTFE. and organics.

Common questions from our customer's

Will my holes bounce back if I stretch them?

Yup, as long and you don't bleed in the stretching process.  This is why it's so important to stretch one gauge at a time.  You may change your mind about those holes later on so try to think ahead in your eagerness to get those big holes NOW.  Bleeding creates scar tissue and scar tissue doesn't have the elasticity that you need to be able to bounce back.

Why did my belly ring piercing reject?

If you have belly stretch marks or have had a section, your nerve endings have been altered and damaged.  We need nerve endings to tell the brain to heal so if they are damaged then they can't send the message.  All the brain knows is that there is something forgien there and it sees it as a threat and works hard to push it out of your body.  Otherwise, it's poor quality jewelry or just a bad piercing job.

How do I know if my body jewelry is poor quality?

If you are use to wearing steel without any problems in that piercing and your new jewelry gives you a burning and itchy sensation, then the quality is questionable.  This can also cause the piercing to reject because the body sees it as an invasion.

What should I use to clean my body jewelry?

Good old fashion dish soap.  It's all antibacterial and that's exactly what you want.  There are many products on the market that you can buy but they won't clean it any better than dishsoap.  Boiling your body jewelry is better than not cleaning it at all because it does kill some bacteria but it doesn't get it all.  If dishsoap will clean your pots and pans made from steel and your cups made from plastic then it'll clean your body jewelry.  An autoclave is the best way but not very practical since it's not likely that you have one.  Alcohol and peroxide do very little to clean it. 

Can I boil acrylics or jewelry with gems in it?

You can but you won't like it.  Acrylics will melt and change shape and most likely your gems will come out because most are held in with glue. 

How do I keep my organic body jewelry looking new?

Tee Tree or Jojoba oil will put the shine back into your wood organics and take the stained look out of your horn and bone products.

How do I know what gauge I am?

Most piercer's use industry standards.  Eyebrow 16 gauge.  Belly 14 gauge.  Below the bottom lip 14 gauge.  Above the top lip 16 gauge.  Nose done with a gun 18 or 20 gauge.  Nose done with a needle 16 gauge but you can use 18 and 20.  Lobes 14 gauge.  Helix 14 gauge.  Conch 14 gauge.  Tragus 16 gauge.  Industrial 14 gauge.  Forward helix 14 gauge.  Daith 14 gauge.  Antihelix 14 gauge.  Antitragus 14 or 16 gauge.  Hood 14 gauge.  Prince Albert 14 gauge.  Surface 14 gauge.  Nipple 14 gauge.  Smilely 18 gauge.  Lobe punching ...any gauge you ask for but be prepared to bleed.  These are the same standards that we use when piercing our client's.

For stretched lobes, please don't go by online charts to figure out your gauge.  The appearance of the size can change from one computer to another.  It's best to measure the wearable area in mm and use a conversion chart to figure out the gauge.

We hope you found something in here helpful.  Please let us know by clicking yes or no at the bottom of this page.