How and where you start your ear decoration journey depends on the type of piercing you’re looking for. High street jewelers can often do a bog-standard lobe piercing. But as you move up the ear – to where it no longer feels fleshy – it turns to cartilage, and the piercing gun will no longer cut it. Instead, you’ll need someone to pierce you with a needle.
Don’t, whatever you do, just wander into the nearest back-alley tattoo parlor you see. Ask pierced and tatted friends for trusted recommendations, and if that doesn’t help, you’ll have to sift your way through Google reviews, we’re afraid.
Age
Age ain’t nothing but a number, wrote R.Kelly for a then underage Aaliyah to sing. Grim. But when it comes to long earrings, people, unlike hummus, do not have a best before date.
Granted, there are cases when anything other than a simple stud past a certain age can come across a bit try-hard. But if you have enough swagger, you can pull anything off. Check out the hoops on London-based architect and artist Abe Odedina, who’s approaching his sixth decade, if you don’t believe us.
Personal Style
While a sharks tooth dangling from your ear might sit a little uneasily at a black-tie event, there aren’t really any hard and fast rules when it comes to picking an earring. “It completely depends on the customer, as they all have different styles. Some might want something subtle, whereas others want something dramatic.”
Think of picking earrings as being similar to shopping for a suit or sneakers. There are styles that you’re naturally drawn to, and it’s usually wise to go with your gut. There’s nothing stopping you from wearing a dangly earring if you want to, but you’ll probably instinctively know whether it will suit your look.
