Body Jewelry

Instead of wearing conventional jewelry, nowadays you can adorn your body with an exciting variety of body jewelry designed to be worn in body piercings.

Piercings can take anywhere from a month to over a year to heal depending on their location and the individual concerned. While a piercing is still healing, only body jewelry made from a substance which does not cause allergies or chemical reactions should be worn. Body jewelry should not be removed from piercings that have not healed fully. Since even healed piercings can disappear when the jewelry is removed, an acrylic retainer should be inserted to keep the piercing open.

The most common body jewelry types are rings (captive bead rings, which are held closed by the pressure of the metal), straight or curved barbells, surface bars (bar under the skin with just the ending beads showing), labret studs, and flesh tunnels. Some of the most popular sites for piercing are the eyebrow, nose, lip, ears, and navel.

The thickness of body jewelry is measured by gauge, where the lowest gauge number is for the thickest jewelry and the highest is for the thin pieces (2 ga is about 1/4 inch, and 14 gauge is about 1/16 inch). The length of barbells is measured from the inside of the balls, and diameters of rings are given as internal diameters. Threaded jewelry, where there is an end ball which screws into the jewelry, can have the thread on the outside of the jewelry or the inside. Although internal threading is more expensive, it is mandated for jewelry to be used in fresh piercings because of its a smooth exterior.

Materials include stainless steel, titanium, and 18K gold. Implant-grade metals such as titanium and some steels are suitable for new piercings because they do not set up reactions or trigger allergies, although stainless steel does contain some nickel, a well-known allergen. Silver and bronze may be used in healed piercings. Blackline titanium has a coating of black titanium film for a different finish from the usual metal. Zircon gold is produced by a similar process to blackline and is a cheaper and harder alternative to 18K gold. Dental-grade acrylic, glass, and natural substances like amber, ebony and other hardwoods, ivory, horn, or bone can be used in healed piercings. Gemstones can be added to body jewelry, but some of the porous and fragile ones are hard to clean.

Body jewelry should always be cleaned thoroughly before being inserted. If possible, it should be boiled or washed with antibacterial soap; the soap can also be used to lubricate the jewelry for easier insertion. Organics such as wood and bone should be cleaned with soap and water and polished with a cloth; natural oils may be used to keep some of these substances supple. Another effective cleaning method is ultrasonic cleaning. Metal and glass jewelry can be sterilized by autoclaving, but acrylic and organics cannot withstand the combination of heat and pressure. Autoclaving is recommended for jewelry made from substances which can survive the process.

If you take sensible precautions regarding hygiene and safety, your body jewelry will make a fashionable and stylish statement about you for years to come.