Ear tapers how long

Tapers are often used for the smaller size stretches, generally under 2g 6mm. The first few stretches 14g — 8g , depending on your elasticity , you might be able to just put in the earring. Treat a stretched piercing as a new piercing. Go To Tapers. Tape Wrapping - Once you get to a larger size, generally around 0 gauge then using the tape wrapping method is a good option to use for stretching.

It's the method almost everyone uses over 1 inch. To stretch with the tape wrapping method, take a set of plugs in your current size and do wraps of tape around them to slowly increase the size of your piercing. Only use PTFE or bondage tape. Remove the tape and clean the jewelry and your ears. Apply new tape daily. It is also recommended to apply jojoba or another skin conditioning oil daily to keep your skin moisturized and more elastic.

Every week or two, do an additional wraps to continue increasing the size of the plug. After about months, you should be at your next size. It's highly recommended to use a set of single flare plugs or tunnels, so you can easily trim the excess tape.

What's good about the tape wrapping method is you can really take your time and slowly increase the size of your piercing without the healing issues of tapers.

It's a lot slower than using tapers, but it is a really efficient and gradual way to stretch with minimal risk. Go To Tape. So once you have decided on what size of taper you need to use, the next part is getting the stretch done. The first thing you will need is a lubricant to use on your taper. Lubricant will make the taper super slick, so it will slide through easy. Lubricants make a stretch easier.

Lube up your ears and also the taper. Slowly insert the taper all the way up to the base of the bigger side. Once it is through, take your plugs and follow through after the taper. When stretching, one stretch should start by pushing the taper in from the front, and the next stretch should be pushed in from the back. Repeat that process a few times.

This helps to keep scar tissue from forming and stretching easier. Some people say taking a hot shower before stretching helps to make your ear a bit more stretchy. Get the details on stick poke tattoos, including why you may want to skip the DIY versions. It can take as long as 2 years for a belly button piercing to heal completely. During that time, you're at risk for infection. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect.

Mental Health. Medically reviewed by Debra Rose Wilson, Ph. What is ear stretching? What you need for ear stretching. Share on Pinterest.

Share on Pinterest Illustration by Monica Pardo. How perform ear stretching. How to care for your ears during and after stretching. What precautions or side effects should you be aware of? What if you change your mind? Read this next. Top 10 Tips for Cleaning an Ear Piercing.

Thinking About a Tongue Tattoo? Medically reviewed by Debra Sullivan, Ph. You will also need a lubricant too. If you have recently stretched your ears you should wait around four to eight weeks before trying to wear double flared plugs. Note: Never, ever try to force plugs and tunnel in, or you could tear your earlobes, resulting in scarring, blowouts, and improper healing. Tapers are specialised tools used to stretch ears that most of the time look like very long cones.

Slowly insert the pointy side first and then try to slide it through. If there is resistance or pain, you should wait to stretch your ears further. If there is no resistance and it feels comfortable, simply line up the next gauge of tunnels or plugs and push them through.

Your earlobe may feel warm, tingly, or sting slightly but if you have any pain or discomfort, remove the jewelry and wait at least one or two more weeks. Just as it sounds, taping bondage or PTFE tape specifically is used to increase your stretch size by wrapping tape around your plugs and tunnels a couple of times to help increase the stretch size with your own jewellery.

The main rule here is the longer you wait between the stretches, the healthier your lobes will remain and the more viable they will be for the bigger gauges.

It will also avoid the build up of scar tissue. Following this process it would take roughly two years to get to 00 gauge this way. Remember, you can do it faster too, but your earlobes will thank you if you take it nice and slow. Oil massages are the best practice after stretching your earlobes and this is best done after a shower because they need to stay moisturised.

Use natural or water-based products to massage your earlobes, for at least five minutes each which helps get rid of any scar tissue, dead cells, and remaining sebum.

If you get any tears or injuries you should treat your newly stretched ears like any new piercing and soak them in sterile saline wound wash, not saltwater for at least 10 minutes a day to speed up healing and avoid infection. We'd recommend using Neilmed sterile saline wound wash in the fine mist. Try to avoid alcohol, peroxide, and similar chemical products because they are quite harsh on the skin and will dehydrate it or aggravate your stretched ears further.

First and foremost, use antibacterial soap to clean your hands and the area, or you risk getting bacteria all over your plugs. Care instructions vary depending on the material the plugs are made of — i. Plugs and tunnels made of porous materials like organic plugs require substantially different care from those made with non-porous materials.

Instead of washing them, only clean them with a damp cloth mixed with antibacterial soap, and pat them dry afterwards. For non-porous materials antibacterial water soaking is the best and easiest option! The terms plugs , tunnels and gauges , are often used interchangeably, which leads to so much confusion when first starting with ear stretching.

The most prominent difference is between plugs and tunnels : Plugs are solid, and tunnels are hollow. When wearing them, plugs will fill the stretched earlobe, and tunnels will only give it shape while enabling anyone to see through the actual piercing.

There are also plugs that are fully see-through, which might cause confusion because it seems like they are tunnels at first glance. Other tunnels , however, have decorative shapes inside the actual hole, making them appear like plugs at first, but since the decoration is still inside a hole, they are still considered tunnels. Gauges are something different altogether and even though many people tend to use it to refer to plugs or tunnels , gauges are actually a type of measurement.

The smaller the gauge size, the larger the tunnel or plug will be. Gauges go from 20G the smallest all the way to 00G, which is the largest gauge size.

After that, larger tunnels and plugs are referred to in inches.