Nostril Piercing Jewelry

This section covers the choice of jewelry that is best for Nostril Piercings. Which, due to its placement, can be somewhat limited in the selection of style, gauge, and size of jewelry. 

Jewelry Style:

When it comes to Nostril piercings, it's essential to consider that the jewelry and piercing will be in contact with clothing and bedding during and after the healing process. Therefore, the jewelry needs to be simple, without sharp points or edges that could get caught on things, yet still allow room for swelling, discharge, and cleaning. Since the jewelry can tend to hang, it's essential, especially during the healing process, that there's no additional weight that might add stress to the piercing during this time. 

In my experience, the piercing should be done with post-style jewelry. My first choice is a threadless labret stud. It should never be pierced with a ring or circular jewelry. If you wish to wear circular jewelry, you need to wait six months to a year to allow the piercing time to become seasoned and loosen up. 

• Threadless or Threaded Labret Stud
  • The Advantages:
    1. Lower profile and easier to isolate.
    2. Jewelry is a great deal more secure than other types of post jewelry like Nostril Screws and L Bends.
    3. A vast variety of different styles, colors, gems, and materials.
  • The Disadvantages:
    1. The jewelry will need to be longer than necessary to accommodate swelling. You will need to return to the piercing studio to have the jewelry downsized to a shorter post.
    2. Without the proper tools, removing and reinserting the jewelry can be challenging. This is especially the case with Threaded jewelry.
    3. With Threadless Jewelry, if the end is snagged and pulled with enough force, it can come off. However, not as easily as L Bends and Nostril Screws.
• Nostril Screw, L Bends and post style jewelry:
  • ​​The Advantages:
  1. Lower profile may reduce abuse from contact with clothing, bedding and etc.. and less noticeable.
  2. The jewelry is easier to remove.
  • The Disadvantages:
  1. ​​Jewelry should be longer than necessary to accommodate swelling, discharge, and cleaning. This often means the piercing is much longer than is needed. Thus making the jewelry less secure.
  2. If the jewelry is too tight, there is no extra room at all, and it can cause the jewelry to become impacted.
  3. The jewelry is not as secure as a Labret or a ring would be. Therefore, added precautions must be taken to avoid contact with bedding, clothing, towels, etc., to prevent the jewelry from falling out and losing the piercing.
• Jewelry that should be avoided during Healing and after:
  • Nostril Bones:
    • ​​Since the piercing will conform to or shrink around the thickness of the jewelry, removing the jewelry will involve either forcing the larger ball through the piercing or cutting the jewelry to remove it.
    • The jewelry is often too short, which doesn't allow for swelling and the collection and removal of discharge. Additionally, it can cause the body to swell beyond the length of the jewelry, potentially impacting the piercing.
  • Ear Piercing Studs and other traditional jewelry:
    • ​​The jewelry is often too short to accommodate the thickness of the piercing area, which prevents swelling and can cause the jewelry to become impacted in the piercing. Additionally, if the jewelry is too tight, it can block both the discharge and the flow of oxygen, which can prolong healing time and/or increase the risk of infection or other complications.
    • The backs or locks are loose and can be tightened with normal wear.
    • Often, the jewelry material is not body-friendly. Even those marketed to individuals with metal sensitivity are only plated.
    • In most cases, they cannot be sterilized correctly.
• Jewelry that should not be pierced or worn during healing:
  • Rings and  Circular style jewelry such as Captive Bead or Beaded Rings and Circular Barbells:
    • The ring, due to its higher profile, will cause additional contact and trauma to the piercing.
    • The ring will spin through the piercing and move significantly more than post-style jewelry would.
    • If the ring is too small, it will cause pressure on the piercing holes, potentially leading to permanent indentations and bumps.
    • The ring will need to be oversized to make the area of the jewelry inside the piercing flatter. This will increase movement and contact.

If you wish to wear a ring in the future, mention it when the piercing is being marked, especially if your end goal is to have a smaller ring. You will need to wait six months to a year before inserting a ring. This allows the piercing time to strengthen and widen. If you put the ring in too soon, it will cause issues even with a healed piercing.

​Size of the Jewelry and Weight:

• ​Gauge:​

As a refresher, gauge refers to the thickness of the wire used to make the jewelry. Body piercing jewelry typically ranges from 18-gauge to 0000-gauge. The smaller the number, the thicker the jewelry will be. As I'm sure you know, the thicker the jewelry is, the more weight it carries and thus the more stress it puts on the piercing during the healing period. Also, the thicker the jewelry, the more tissue that needs to be produced, and hence the longer the healing period. Although in most cases, an 18-gauge piercing will heal in about the same time as a 12-gauge piercing.

When choosing the gauge of the jewelry, the jewelry needs to be thick enough to reduce rejection or migration and have resistance to tearing, but light enough that it will not cause added stress during healing. With Nostril piercings, you are only really limited by the available jewelry and the shape and size of the piercing area. Although weight is a factor that should be considered, there is no reason that the piercing cannot be done with larger gauges. However, I do not suggest piercing with gauges thinner than 18g.

• Width:

​The jewelry needs to be large enough to allow extra room for swelling, discharge, and cleaning. Suppose the piercing is done with a Labret Stud or Nostril Screw. In that case, this usually means that the jewelry must be made with a much longer piece than is needed, thus adding additional weight and increased risks, including the jewelry falling out. For this reason, I suggest returning to the studio to have the jewelry downsized to a shorter length within 4-8 weeks.

Once the piercing is well healed and seasoned, you can wear a ring. However, please note that the jewelry should be wide enough to hang freely at the bottom of the nostril to prevent pressure on the piercing. Additionally, tighter rings have been known to cause issues with healed piercings, including bumps, tearing, and permanent indentations. To avoid this, it is best to start with a larger ring and work down to a smaller one over time.

Regardless of the type of jewelry worn, there should always be a small amount of play, even in a healed piercing.  

In conclusion, nothing replaces the first-hand knowledge of a professional piercer when it comes to choosing the correct jewelry. There are vast differences in shape and size, and often, what works for 99.99% of the public is not the best choice for you. The goal of this is to provide you with a working understanding of jewelry selection, so that you can have an informed discussion with your piercer about what will work best. Every piercer understands that one of the motivations for getting a piercing is fashion, but jewelry that will produce the best outcome should always be considered a secondary consideration. Think of the jewelry used for the piercing as temporary, or trainer jewelry, that will be replaced with your preferred choice once the piercing is healed.