Body Jewelry Buying Guide
from Overstock.comYou don't follow the crowd and your fashion doesn't either. Conventional jewelry designs won't show off your great abs or draw attention to your stunning smile. That's why every free spirit needs body jewelry for self expression. To maintain good hygiene as well as great style, you'll want to take extra care when deciding how to buy body jewelry. This body jewelry buying guide is designed to help you make an informed decision.
Body jewelry features multiple designs constructed just for body piercings and are crafted of the best materials. Everyone wants to be stylish, but safety should always be a consideration. Follow the advice and care instructions of your professional piercing technician in regards to any new piercing.
Body jewelry for piercings
The art of body piercing truly lets you be creative with your jewelry -- people pierce, well, anything and everything on the human body. Here are a few of the more common types:
Navel: A belly button piercing is cute on girls, sexy on girls and guys and offers a great stage for expressing your personality. Navel jewelry ranges from simple steel barbells and captive bead rings to colorful belly rings with jewels and a dangling pendant. Getting a navel piercing is often the first choice for body art novices.
Nose: Many cultures have a tradition of nose piercing (even if your boyfriend's or girlfriend's mother has never seen one). For comfort's sake, nostril piercings tend to be small and accommodate studs that twist into place. Other nasal body jewelry includes nose bones and rings. A twinkling crystal or diamond often decorates these pieces.
Eyebrows: Most place this body piercing at the outer edge of the brow. Small straight and curved barbells fit the delicate flesh of eyebrow piercings and some include dangling charms or gems. Choose simple grey or black barbells for a grittier look. With all eyes on your eyes, well-groomed brows are a must.
Mouth: The one that really has the old ladies wagging their tongues is the piercing in the tongue. The body jewellery worn here is called a tongue ring. The middle section below the lower lip (called a labret) and the right corner above the upper lip (called a Marilyn) are also popular places for spiked barbells.
Ears: If you haven't had new ear piercings since you were six, it is time to put your hair up and add some more. In addition to the many earrings you can wear on the lobes, body jewelry offers designs for the outer rim and even on the inner cartilage. A setting of two holes on the outer cartilage is called the industrial piercing; a tragus piercing is on the triangle at the front.
No needles required
If you want some non-traditional jewelry that doesn't require anxiety and needles, look to these fun options:
Ankles: These ankle bracelets are just as pretty and varied as bracelets for your wrists. Gold or silver anklets shine with cute charms and glittering gemstones.
Abs: After hours of physical strain at the gym, you've earned the right to display your sleek tummy. Add some style with a belly chain slung around the hips.
Toes: Decorate perfect pedicures and flirty summer sandals with toe rings. Usually sold in matching sets, toe rings adjust to fit and feature many designs.
Body jewelry terminology
- Barbells: Any specialized body jewelry with a threaded ball or bead at each end of a straight or curved bar. Almost all body jewelry is some kind of barbell.
- Belly rings: barbells designed specifically as navel jewelry.
- Bones: Also called nose bones; straight bars for nose piercings.
- Foot jewelry: Another term for anklets and toe rings.
- Labret stud: A flat-backed stud worn in a piercing on the lip, chin or cheek. The flat back reduces damage to teeth from the metal.
- Plug: A piece of jewelry for larger piercings, it resembles a stud earring and keeps a piercing open. Plugs can either be solid or hollow. A rubber ring often keeps the plug in place.
What are the safest materials for new piercings?
Piercings are sensitive, and it is important to protect them with the most hygienic material. Don't settle for cheap body jewelry. Choose bodyjewelry made of surgical stainless steel, surgical titanium and 18-karat or 14-karat gold. Surgical stainless steel of 316 LVM implant grade is especially scratch resistant and resists corrosion, even after multiple cleanings. Both surgical stainless steel and surgical titanium are used for medical implant devices. If your bodyjewelry is made of these high-quality materials, it won't ever set off metal detectors, so you can relax in the airport security line.
Try to avoid using barbells made of sterling silver and base metals, which can oxidize and cause irritation, until the wound is completely healed. This also applies to goldplated jewelry as the gold layer will rub off over time.
How does "gauge" relate to body jewelry?
Piercings are not all the same size and body jewelry must be available in sizes to accommodate the differences. The gauge is the thickness of a piece of body jewelry and relates particularly to the size of the bar that threads through a piercing. The thickness of the jewelry decreases as the gauge number increases; thus, 16 gauge is thinner than 10 gauge. The average barbell for a belly or tongue piercing has a 14 to 16 gauge.
| Gauge | 20 | 18 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 00 |
| Millimeters | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 6.0 | 7.0 | 8.0 | 10.0 |
Most body piercings are meant to stay the size they started as, but many people like to stretch their ear piercings to a larger size. If you want to do this, choose body jewelry in the next gauge up, insert it carefully and expect a little bit of soreness as you adjust to the new size. Wait until this new size has healed--it's no longer sore and it stays the same size when you remove your body jewelry -- before attempting a larger gauge.
How is the length of a barbell measured?
Body jewelry manufacturers give the length of their products in fractions of an inch, sometimes in millimeters. This measurement indicates the length of the bar from one threaded ball to the other, measuring to the interior point of each screwed-on ball. The measurement does not include the extra length that the balls add to the bar.
Is body jewelry returnable?
For your health and safety, body jewelry is not returnable or exchangeable.
Inspiration
Putting together a look that is all your own takes more than just a great nose bone, and Overstock.com has all the jewellery and clothing you need to maintain your individual style. Try on some of the new stainless steel bracelets and rings now available. Whether you prefer retro or cutting-edge fashion, our clothes store has the designs.
Are you a seasoned body art veteran or a nervous novice? Either way, you'll find books and DVDs in our media department on body jewelry, jewelry design and tattoos. Let one inspire you to try something new. Of course, you'll always find a great price on everything, including the best body jewelry, at Overstock.com.