Cartilage Piercing: How To Properly Pierce Your Ear

It's official! Piercing is an important new trend of the year. And photos of stars and bloggers on Instagram are the surest confirmation of this. Back in November 2019, the popular New York piercing studio Studs published a snapshot of Kaia Gerber with fresh piercings in her ear cartilage. Chiara Ferragni has five punctures in his left ear and four in his right. Zoe Kravitz, Charlize Theron, Scarlett Johansson regularly appear on the red carpet with new earrings. And now (after self-isolation and opening salons), our influencers began to upload more and more photos with piercings.

From the outside, the piercing looks great, more punctures - more cool unusual combinations every day! But in fact, girls who have made at least one puncture in the cartilage know that everything is not so simple. Looking at the photos of bloggers, it's easy to forget that piercing is a long-term story that requires a lot of attention (and it's not always painless). The situation is complicated by the fact that not everyone gets to the conscientious specialists who tell what can and cannot be done and what earrings should be worn in fresh punctures. To understand how to properly care for your piercing, BeautyHack asked Ekaterina Vashchenko, an expert of the LAV'Z Jewelery brand, to answer the most popular questions.

Ekaterina Vaschenko

LAV'Z Jewelery

What are the most common mistakes people make when getting pierced?

You can talk about this endlessly. When we presented the Piercing collection in Russia, we realized that there is a lot of interest in piercing. But at the same time, they began to receive direct messages like: “Why can't your sterling silver earrings be inserted into fresh piercings?”, “Why is a cartilage puncture with a gun bad?”, “How do piercing earrings differ from ordinary studs (that is,“carnations ")?" etc. So we have identified a number of the most common mistakes that people make when doing piercing for the first time or when they get to an unscrupulous master: earrings are inserted into fresh punctures, which only complicate the healing process; change earrings when the puncture has not completely healed; if the healing is poor, they do not go to their piercer, preferring to somehow cope at home.

How to make a puncture correctly?

It all depends on what tool the master is working with. But a real specialist will always suggest you get pierced with a needle. This frightens many, but in fact, a qualified master will do everything quickly and almost painlessly (real pain sensations will appear after). The needle has several advantages: it passes between tissues without tearing them (healing is faster); you have no risk of contracting any disease (the gun cannot be disassembled and completely sterilized), the needle puncture will be smoother.

Piercers recommend making no more than three punctures at a time.

Painful sensations after a puncture - is it normal?

In fact, piercing is a very complicated story. You may feel pain in the cartilage when replacing the earring even after a year and a half. And that's okay. This is because punctures in cartilage can behave unpredictably. But yes, painful sensations after a puncture are more than normal. As well as redness. As long as you don't have a discharge of an unusual hue or odor, healing is going well. The main thing is not to touch the puncture with your hands again.

Which earring should be inserted into a fresh puncture?

It's great if the piercer inserts a surgical steel or titanium earring into the puncture. You need to walk with it until the puncture is completely healed.

The main thing is to pay attention that the metal from which the earring is made is hypoallergenic and does not contain nickel. This is a very important point!

When can I change my earring?

Everything here is very individual. I understand girls who want to put on other earrings a month after the piercing - they get bored very quickly. But here it is very important to wait for complete healing. The lobe heals faster - in 3-4 months. Cartilage is more painful and takes longer, in 8 or even 12 months. And even if it seems to you that the puncture has healed, it may be a deceiving sensation, inside the wound may not heal. Therefore, wait a little, or rather show the puncture to the master. And do not twist the earring in the puncture - this only injures it and can lead to infection inside.

How do I care for my puncture during healing?

You can wash the wound with regular baby soap every time you wash your hair. And also process it periodically with chlorhexidine. Naturally, all this must be done with clean hands.

How are piercing earrings different from regular studs? Can ordinary “carnations” be inserted into a healed puncture?

They are more comfortable to wear on a daily basis, as they consist of two parts: a pin and a wrap. The pin is the back of the product and is inserted into the ear from the back. Wrap is the front part that is screwed into the pin from the outside of the ear. The pin must be sterile and packed in an airtight bag, as it contacts the inside of the puncture.

The pin is flat on the back, which means it does not cause discomfort during sleep and does not injure the puncture. Of course, if the puncture allows, you can insert a regular stud, but it will not be so comfortable to wear.