# Help needed with earrings **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 14, 2009, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726 "2009-06-14T13:39:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2009, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/1 "2009-06-14T13:39:49Z")
I have pierced ears - 1 piercing in my right ear and 3 in my left ear. I wear silver hoop earrings every day in the “main” piercing holes in each ear. I haven’t worn any earrings at all in the two “extra” holes in my left ear for about 15 years, I think. I’d like to put small silver studs in the “extra” holes and just leave them in there. The problem is that normal earring posts can be uncomfortable when sleeping, because they poke me behind the ear. They can be kind of sharp. When I was younger I had a couple of piercing studs that I wore a lot - they had much bigger posts and a very comfortable non-sharp post. I also wore safety [ins in the extra holes, but I’m not going back to that. I’d like to find earrings that are comfortable to sleep in, without the larger post of a piercing stud. Are there any stud earrings out there that don’t have the typical [earring backs](http://www.amazon.com/Sterling-Silver-Earring-Backs-Earnuts/dp/B000SN1620/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1244986624&sr=8-1)? Does anyone make ones that screw together? Or other types of non-standard attachments? I know piercing has come a long way since I was younger. I am curious what kind of hardware changes might have occurred that would benefit me! ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2009, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/2 "2009-06-14T14:07:47Z")
I’ve been on the same search, since my customary danglies and hoops are a no-no for nursing school. There are indeed [screw back](http://www.loveivy.com/scpt/main/item_page.php?code=cacmar-GEW100) styles which are easier on your head. But I’m going to the piercers and getting a couple of [labrets](http://www.bodyempire.com/xcart/product.php?cat=269&page=5&productid=16953). I had one of these in my helix for a while, and it was awesome. Totally painless to sleep on, the back is nice and snug to the back of the ear and very flat. The good labrets are internally threaded, and they shouldn’t cost very much at all. I would suggest having a piercer check the fit though - you want to make sure it’s not too long for the fairly thin tissue of the earlobe. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2009, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/3 "2009-06-14T22:23:01Z")
I used to feel the same way about wearing studs while sleeping, but then one day for some reason I just left them in (I wear diamond studs, a gift from Mr. S., in my second holes) and I got used to it. And I’m usually the biggest fusspot alive when it comes to personal discomfort while trying to sleep. Now I wear the studs 24/7 unless I need to take them out to wear a post earring with a big front, or for cleaning. Have you tried just wearing them for a while? ---
**Author:** ![Moirai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/96bed5/32.png) [@Moirai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moirai)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/4 "2009-06-15T13:19:23Z")
When I wore earrings in every hole in my ears (two in the right, five on the left), I had identical small gold hoops in each hole. I still have the hoop in the top of my left ear, but my husband convinced me to take out my other earrings except for my bottom holes, for professional reasons (very uptight work environment). Then he bought me big diamond studs to seal the deal! 😃 But the hoops were cute, stylish and comfy as hell. I never took them out, except for the last time! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/5 "2009-06-15T14:17:27Z")
> [@EJsGirl](#): > > When I wore earrings in every hole in my ears (two in the right, five on the left), I had identical small gold hoops in each hole. I still have the hoop in the top of my left ear, but my husband convinced me to take out my other earrings except for my bottom holes, for professional reasons (very uptight work environment). Then he bought me big diamond studs to seal the deal! 😃 > > But the hoops were cute, stylish and comfy as hell. I never took them out, except for the last time! 🙂 Hoops are awesome for comfort, as long as they’re not the not-quite-a-hoop with a pokey stick on the top. Right now, I have the world’s tiniest little ball captive hoop (purple!) in my top hole of each ear and a dangly crystal stick style in the bottom hole of each ear. Once I put an earring in, it stays in until I switch to a different earring, which might be months later; I don’t have the patience or energy to take 'em out at night. **Motorgirl** , I was poking around on that site a little more and found [these](http://www.bodyempire.com/xcart/product.php?productid=16916&cat=269&page=5). They’re plastic labret backs that you can slide a post into. They can also be trimmed to length! They are themselves 16 gauge, or just slightly larger than a normal piercing, but it looks to me like they’ll take standard posts. There are converters for 14 and 16 gauge fronts, if you have any. (I went through my jewelry box, and while 18 or 20 is standard piercing size, it looks like some of my stuff from Target and Claire’s is already 16 gauge.) I think I’m going to get these backs so I can still wear my existing stuff. ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/6 "2009-06-15T17:54:45Z")
**WhyNot** , bioplast is not suitable for long-term wear, despite what websites trying to sell it will tell you. It degrades within a couple weeks and should only be worn for short periods of time, like during sports. Lori St. Leone ( [Lori St.Leone - BME Encyclopedia](http://wiki.bmezine.com/index.php/Lori_St.Leone) ), a very well regarded piercer, had this to say about bioplast on the bodymods livejournal: “Bioplast/PTFE is porous and absorbs fluids from healing piercings, I have pulled yellowish-brown pieces of it out of piercings that weren’t done at my shop that were only a few weeks old! The manufacturers of Bioplast refuse to provide any sort of mill certificates regarding the content or manufacture of the jewellery, and all plastics break down, it’s just a matter of when. Why would anyone choose to wear petroleum products in a healing wound? I know dozens of piercers who have seen hideous reactions to it, there was a huge discussion about it on the pro forum on IAM. The only reason piercers use and recommend it because the wholesale cost is literally pennies per piece, and you can mark it up a million percent - so it’s VERY healthy for your studio’s bottom line!” ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2009, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/7 "2009-06-15T20:51:54Z")
> [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](#): > > **WhyNot** , bioplast is not suitable for long-term wear, despite what websites trying to sell it will tell you. It degrades within a couple weeks and should only be worn for short periods of time, like during sports. > > Lori St. Leone ( [Lori St.Leone - BME Encyclopedia](http://wiki.bmezine.com/index.php/Lori_St.Leone) ), a very well regarded piercer, had this to say about bioplast on the bodymods livejournal: > > “Bioplast/PTFE is porous and absorbs fluids from healing piercings, I have pulled yellowish-brown pieces of it out of piercings that weren’t done at my shop that were only a few weeks old! The manufacturers of Bioplast refuse to provide any sort of mill certificates regarding the content or manufacture of the jewellery, and all plastics break down, it’s just a matter of when. Why would anyone choose to wear petroleum products in a healing wound? I know dozens of piercers who have seen hideous reactions to it, there was a huge discussion about it on the pro forum on IAM. The only reason piercers use and recommend it because the wholesale cost is literally pennies per piece, and you can mark it up a million percent - so it’s VERY healthy for your studio’s bottom line!” Ooh, good to know. Any information on if it’s okay for long healed holes? Like, two decades healed? ---
**Author:** ![Motorgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e36b37/32.png) [@Motorgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Motorgirl)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/8 "2009-06-16T14:35:22Z")
Thanks everyone - I’m going to look for **labrets** , probably from the sites **WhyNot** posted. If the labrets are too big (I am not seeing any smaller than 16g) I might try **EJsGirl** ’s tiny hoop suggestion, though I have an irrational fear that I will rip off an earlobe while leaving hoops in for showering or sleeping. **Scarlett67** - I haven’t tried sleeping for any length of time in earrings, but they are uncomfortable when I nap. I could probably get used to it, but I’m impatient when it comes to anything impinging on my comfort when I’m trying to sleep. Just ask my husband! ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/9 "2009-06-16T15:03:24Z")
> [@Motorgirl](#): > > If the labrets are too big (I am not seeing any smaller than 16g) I might try **EJsGirl** ’s tiny hoop suggestion, though I have an irrational fear that I will rip off an earlobe while leaving hoops in for showering or sleeping. I wear gold hoops in the bottom holes of my ears. I wear them 24/7 and have probably worn them for almost 10 years straight now. [This kind](http://www.simplywhispersstore.com/48042.html), with the continuous loop. I’ve maybe - MAYBE - gotten them yanked out 3 times in all that time, but since they are so flimsy they just open themselves up and come out. It never results in any blood or any pain that lasts longer than 15 minutes. I know you said you have an “irrational” fear, but maybe my experience will help you get over it 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Telperien](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@Telperien](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperien)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/10 "2009-06-16T15:26:36Z")
> [@Motorgirl](#): > > Thanks everyone - I’m going to look for **labrets** , probably from the sites **WhyNot** posted. > > If the labrets are too big (I am not seeing any smaller than 16g) I might try **EJsGirl** ’s tiny hoop suggestion, though I have an irrational fear that I will rip off an earlobe while leaving hoops in for showering or sleeping. > > **Scarlett67** - I haven’t tried sleeping for any length of time in earrings, but they are uncomfortable when I nap. I could probably get used to it, but I’m impatient when it comes to anything impinging on my comfort when I’m trying to sleep. Just ask my husband! I used to wear this kind of [hoop](http://www.earrs.com/cgi-bin/eStore/index.cgi?cart_id=7881535.29797&pid=97&product=Hinged_Hoops) earring constantly, and they never caused any problems. You can’t feel them, and as a bonus, you can freak people out by pulling them through the piercing hole, as they close to make one continuous piece. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/11 "2009-06-16T15:43:03Z")
> [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](#): > > **WhyNot** , bioplast is not suitable for long-term wear, despite what websites trying to sell it will tell you. It degrades within a couple weeks and should only be worn for short periods of time, like during sports. Thanks again for this. I posted this question to the Ask BMEzine site, so maybe Lori herself will answer: > [@](#): > > I’m going into nursing school, where I can only wear studs. (No hoops, no captures, no nothing fancy.) I’m a “stick in in and leave it” kinda girl, and so I need safe, comfortable, sleep-in-able studs for plain vanilla earlobe piercings. My first thought was that labrets would work great, but they’re just slightly too long for the thin tissue of the earlobe. > > Enter Bioplast! Or not. Their labret backs are trimable, I read, and have that comfortable labret back. But I know Lori St. Leone is very much not a fan of Bioplast for long term wear on _healing_ piercings. I respect her opinion immensely, but I notice it’s always given in relation to fresh piercings. Any opinion about Bioplast labrets for earlobes which have been healed a decade or more? > > Or, perhaps, another option for long term comfy earlobe studs? Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/12 "2009-06-16T16:52:32Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Ooh, good to know. Any information on if it’s okay for long healed holes? Like, two decades healed? I wouldn’t. I’m not really down with wearing non-implant grade jewelry in my ears (I have 6mm stretched lobes, so that means pyrex glass, silicone, and surgical stainless steel at the moment). Here, BodyArt Forms is a pretty awesome site, with plenty of labret studs to look at (ignore the bioplast): [http://bodyartforms.com/products.asp?jewelry=labret&dwzPage=1](http://bodyartforms.com/products.asp?jewelry=labret&dwzPage=1) EDIT: If you have a livejournal, you could send Lori a message directly, her username is spikesandstuds. ---
**Author:** ![Belrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed655f/32.png) [@Belrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belrix)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2009, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/13 "2009-06-16T19:04:05Z")
I wear an ear plug in my one ear piercing. Shaped like a little barbell, there’s _no_ gizmo at all on the back of it. [Example](http://www.custommetal.net/158/41090.html) (although mine are stainless steel and hematite). ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2009, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/14 "2009-06-17T14:05:14Z")
Well, stretching your ears will solve all the problems people are having (earring back falls off, end of the post is pointy, etc), but I’m willing to bet that none of them are interested in having stretched lobes. ---
**Author:** ![Belrix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed655f/32.png) [@Belrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Belrix)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2009, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/15 "2009-06-17T14:57:56Z")
> [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](#): > > Well, stretching your ears will solve all the problems people are having (earring back falls off, end of the post is pointy, etc), but I’m willing to bet that none of them are interested in having stretched lobes. Mine is merely an 8G (maybe 6?) plug. Hardly any stretch. ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2009, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/16 "2009-06-18T01:40:39Z")
> [@Belrix](#): > > Mine is merely an 8G (maybe 6?) plug. Hardly any stretch. It would take over a year to get from an unstretched (18g) piercing to being able to wear an 8g double flared plug, if you do it right. Anyway, I was mainly saying that the preference for earring in this thread seems to tend to the tiny/dainty. An 8g plug is tiny as plugs go, but compared to the tiny silver hoops people have been linking to, it’s huge. ---
**Author:** ![TroubleAgain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e480ec/32.png) [@TroubleAgain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroubleAgain)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2009, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/17 "2009-06-18T16:35:56Z")
I wear a round stud in my upper piercing, because I can’t leave them out without them trying to glow closed yet (still, after a year!) and I prefer [bullet-style](http://www.firemountaingems.com/details.asp?PN=H202680FY) earring backs to the earnuts in the OP. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2018, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/19 "2018-03-02T15:59:31Z")
Not sure how this thread got bumped (welcome, **ann07cor**!) but I might as well take this opportunity to share my newfound love, [Comfy Earrings](https://comfyearrings.com/). They are exactly what the OP is looking for! Studs with flat screw-on backs. ---
**Author:** ![Dung\_Beetle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dung_beetle/32/7945_2.png) [@Dung\_Beetle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dung_Beetle)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2018, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/20 "2018-03-02T16:32:13Z")
> [@Moirai](#): > > When I wore earrings in every hole in my ears (two in the right, five on the left), I had identical small gold hoops in each hole. I still have the hoop in the top of my left ear, but my husband convinced me to take out my other earrings except for my bottom holes, for professional reasons (very uptight work environment). Then he bought me big diamond studs to seal the deal! 😃 > > But the hoops were cute, stylish and comfy as hell. I never took them out, except for the last time! 🙂 > [@ann07cor](#): > > When I wore earrings in every hole in my ears (two in the right, five on the left), I had identical small gold hoops in each hole. I still have the hoop in the top of my left ear, but my husband convinced me to take out my other earrings except for my bottom holes, for professional reasons (very uptight work environment). Then he bought me big diamond studs to seal the deal! But the hoops were cute, stylish and comfy as hell. I never took them out, except for the last time! :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2018, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-needed-with-earrings/499726/21 "2018-03-02T16:41:20Z")
Copying someone else’s post is not a legitimate reason for reopening a thread. This one is closed.