Spring Break
The Daily OrangeStretched out
By Kelly Outram
Posted: 10/14/08, 4:03 AM EST Section: Feature
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"I saw a girl at the mall with a big quarter-inch glass gauge earring," the now 20-year-old stylist for Studio FX on South Crouse Avenue said. "And she had a star tattoo behind her ear, and you could see the tattoo through the earring and I just thought that was the coolest thing ever."
After seeing the glass earring, Makai decided she wanted holes that big in her ear and was inspired to get a piercing similar to what showcased the star tattoo. Makai wanted to stretch her earlobes.
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Ear-piercing sizes are measured in gauges. The smallest size is a 16 gauge, comparable to the size of a pin, and the largest size is a zero gauge, which is about the size of a pencil. People can wear larger sizes, but once the ear passes the zero gauge, the likeliness of the piercing closing up is slim.
Stretching, more commonly known as gauging, is a time-sensitive process where gauge users slowly increase the size of an earlobe. A typical ear-piercing receives a 16- or 14-gauge sized hole, said Colleen Tabolt, the resident Halo piercing artist.
In order to lessen the risk of injury during the process, gauge users are encouraged to increase the size of their piercings by one millimeter every six to eight weeks after the initial piercing heals.
"It sucks, it's painful," Makai said. "It's like getting your ear pierced all over again and it hurts every part of the way. But if you want it, do it."
Tapers, small cone-shaped metal bars where one end is a small size and gradually gets larger as the bar extends, are the standard tool used to stretch piercings, Tabolt said.
Tabolt said not everyone stretches safely. Tapers can be tedious for people who desire a very large gauge. Those who get impatient tend to skip sizes, often forcing too large sizes into their ear.
"I did a lot myself," Makai said. "I used dowels and wore pen caps in my ears because the tapers got expensive."
Tabolt said the most common mistake people make stretching is going too big too quickly.
If a piercing is stretched too far, it can get dangerous, Tabolt said. When that occurs, people often have to consult surgeons to get the piercing closed up again. Usually people who aim to get larger piercings have intentions of keeping them, but the option to repair the hole is always there. The price for repair surgery runs between $300 and $400.
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 4
gobigpelf
posted 10/14/08 @ 11:07 AM EST
Kelly, did you do ANY research at all about this topic?
1) Stretching is NOT the same as gauging. If you were to gauge your earlobes, you would be measuring the size of your lobes. (Continued…)
angel
posted 11/24/08 @ 3:15 PM EST
I am using toothpicks though,
and it isn't to bad.
But it does hurt, and bleed, and shit... it's infected but at least im not a baby!
richard
posted 7/18/09 @ 1:11 AM EST
i almost shit when you said 00 was the biggest size. my ears are at 2 inches right now. and why worry that it wont close up. isnt the point of going through the process of stretching to have them to not let them close up?
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