Top Piercing Ideas To Try in 2022 For Your Unique Ear Shape
Top Piercing Ideas To Try in 2022 For Your Unique Ear Shape
If you love a good ear party, it’s time to celebrate. The curated ear trend is here to stay for 2022. Stacked ear piercings offer a way to customize and elevate your look – especially if you’re back to wearing sweatpants on Zoom meetings daily. You can stick with your favourite combination(s) or switch them up daily. To build the perfect curated ear, consider your unique placements, proportions and style preferences.
Like knowing your face shape, learning more about which ear piercings best suit your ear shape helps you determine your eligibility for different placements and how to style your earring choices. As a general rule, any pinchable part of your ear is pierceable. Always consult a professional piercer to confirm whether your ears can withstand a particular placement. Learn more about the placement options with our guide to the 12 Top Ear Piercing Types and the ear-piercing chart below:
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While these general categories in the chart below provide a helpful guide, your lobe and ear canal shape or helix definition are the characteristics that determine which piercings are right for you.
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Whether you have larger lobes or a smaller ear canal, there are several flattering ear piercings and curated ear combinations to try out.
Read on to learn more about the best piercing ideas to try out and how to balance your curated ear, depending on your ear shape and size.
Take inventory of your ear piercings, including every lobe and cartilage placement. This evaluation helps you visualize all the potential ear piercing combinations you can make. Aside from the creative aspect, this assessment allows you to better understand your unique ear shape, so you can stack earrings in ways that flatter your features. You can use different ear piercing combinations to balance your proportions and enhance your favourite characteristics. If you only have a couple of earholes or just your lobes pierced, you can always use ear cuffs or clip-on earrings to complete your look.
Best Piercing Ideas For Small Ears
Small ears come in different shapes (and sizes). However, individuals with smaller ears often have less space to work with and have to more carefully consider their placement selection. Dainty earrings tend to be the most flattering on smaller ears. They provide you with more room to experiment with various combinations and don’t overwhelm its natural shape.
Depending on your ear shape, some people with smaller ears do not have enough cartilage for a tragus or a daith piercing. You might have less room for lobe piercings if you have a narrow or sticking-out ear shape. If you’re unsure if you have enough room for a third lobe piercing, consider a high lobe piercing as an alternative or in combination with a regular single or double lobe piercing. This option provides enough space between piercings without having your third lobe piercing end up as a cartilage placement, has a higher pain level and longer recovery time. Alongside lobe piercings, helix, forward helix, rook and conch placements tend to be flattering ear piercing types for small ears.
Rook & Triple Lobe Piercings:
A rook piercing is a flattering choice for many ear shapes and is a great alternative to inner ear piercing for individuals whose daith or tragus is too small to get pierced. This placement is well suited for narrow ear shapes, those with broad ear lobes, ears that stick out or pointy ears. Unlike a conch or a helix piercing, a rook piercing is a cartilage placement that won’t overwhelm your smaller or narrower ear shape. (Before getting this placement, keep in mind that the rook is widely considered one of the most painful piercings.)
If you have ears that stick out or have pointy ears, the rook piercing draws attention inward to balance your ear shape’s proportions and other stacked ear piercings. Combine it with a triple (or double) lobe piercing to keep the focus on your lower ear. If you have broader ear lobes, consider a lobe constellation to maximize the surface area and create the appearance of a more balanced ear shape.
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Double Lobe and Helix Piercing:
For a minimalist curated ear, try out small studs on your lobes and a thin hoop on your helix. Double up this combination with studs in your double lobe piercing with a double helix placement (or an ear cuff if you don’t have this cartilage piercing). These minimal stacked earrings are simple and eye-catching, making this duo a great combination for everyday wear and versatile for many occasions. A chainmail earring (or ear cuff) is a great option for narrow ear or pointy ear shapes to length and add volume to the lower part (or sides) of the ear.
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Lobe, Conch and Helix:
Stacked huggies and dangling earrings make a statem ent without overpowering a small ear shape. Wearing bold longline jewelry on your lobes balances out your ear shape if you have a wider upper top helix (or a pointed ear shape) for a more proportionate look. Try stacked huggies up through the outer helix to add volume for an edgy yet minimal curated ear look.
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For individuals with a narrower ear shape, pair a set of layered matching huggies (in the conch and helix placements) with a bold pendant earring on the lobe to add fullness to the area. Dangling earrings can make the ears look even thinner and narrower than they already are. Complete this curated ear look with a flat placement (or ear cuff). If you have a more rounded ear shape (sticks out on the sides) or a square ear shape, swap the earrings in the helix placements for a daith (if you can), inner conch or flat piercing. These cartilage ear piercings will focus the eye inward to balance out the natural proportions of your ear shape.
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Best Piercing Ideas For Large Ears
Consider yourself lucky if you love heavily stacked ear piercings. Having larger ears gives you more space for styling your curated ear and to layer several earrings (in most sizes) without worrying about overcrowding. Piercings like a daith or tragus likely will work for you (given the extra surface area). However, your eligibility for a snug or industrial piercing depends on your ear anatomy and whether you have defined a cartilage ridge(s).
The sky's the limit when it comes to ear piercing combinations Yet, heavily embellishing your lobes, helix and flat placements often are the most foolproof choice, regardless of your ear shape. It depends on the placements you want to emphasize.
Monochrome Lobe & Flat Piercings:
Focusing on one colour and texture streamlines your curated ear. You can embrace a minimalist stacked ear piercing style with simple gold and silver hardware or inject colour and eye-catching jewels for a bolder look. A triple or double lobe placement with a coordinating earring in the flat piercing breaks up the surface area and appears relatively subtle compared to your ears’ natural proportions. Try small studs with chainmail pieces or larger gemstones for a versatile everyday option.
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To embrace a more maximalist style, layer up your lobes and add huggies up through your outer helix. Embellish your cartilage with small diamond and charm studs or hoops in your conch, tragus, forward helix, rook and flat placements. For an elegant everyday option, streamline your hardware and stone selection to a single metal, gem type and colour palette. The uniformity and monochrome look will keep your heavily stacked ear subtle enough to wear in casual or work settings (depending on your office or company environment) without minimizing its intrigue.
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While mostly any piercing goes, large hoops in your conch could look a bit overwhelming and might not flatter your profile’s proportions. Unless you have a more square or angular ear shape, this style is often the most flattering on smaller ears to create some playful volume,which is otherwise lacking.
Best Piercing Ideas For Pointy Ears
Show off your rare (and highly desired) pointy ear shape with piercings that highlight and balance out your ears’ natural angularity. Enhance your sought-after pointed helix with layered helix and forward helix piercings. Combine them with double or triple lobe piercings and a daith or tragus piercing to draw the eye inwards. Accentuate your natural point with flat constellation piercings to take your curated ear to the next level.
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Best Piercing Ideas For Ears That Stick Out
If you have an ultra-curved helix or ears that stick out, use your curated ear to create balanced proportions. Draw the eye up, down or inward with a forward helix, stacked lobe piercings and cartilage piercings on the inner ear, such as conch, tragus, daith or rook piercings. Flat piercings draw the eye upwards to create an elongating effect, complementing the width of your natural ear shape. While mostly any piercing goes, large hoops in your conch – unless you have smaller ear, where this look can create some playful volume that is otherwise lacking – this style could look a bit overwhelming and might not flatter your profile’s proportions.
Forward Helix & Triple Lobe:
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Double Lobe, Conch & Rook Piercing:
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Single Flat Piercing:
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Best Piercings For Attached Lobes
Around 50% of people have attached earlobes. So, if you’re wondering which curated ear combinations work well for your ear shape, you’re not alone. Individuals with attached earlobes will typically need to get their lobe piercings a bit higher or lower than those with detached earlobes. A lobe constellation would look great on you and flatter your natural ear shape. If you want a transverse lobe piercing, you will need to wear a curved barbell in this placement.
Your lobe piercings will likely sit higher than a traditional lobe piercing. Enhance this lifting effect and combine a double lobe placement with an upper helix piercing.
Double Lobe & Helix Piercing:
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Lobe Constellation & Flat Piercing:
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Minimalist Forward Helix, Helix & Lobe Piercing:
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Lobe Constellation & Helix Piercing:
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Triple Lobe, Helix & Flat Piercing (Great For Narrow or Square Ear Shapes, Too):
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FAQs: Piercing Types For Your Ear Shape:
Inner vs. Outer Conch For Your Ear Shape
The conch is the shell-shaped cartilage fold in the middle of your inner ear. The anatomy of your ear determines whether an inner or outer conch piercing is best for your ear shape. Inner conch piercings are best-suited for individuals with more space on the higher part of the fold. Outer conch piercings work best for people who have more space below the fold. Inner conch piercings are typically adorned with stud earrings, while hoop earrings are usually worn in outer conch piercings.
Will An Industrial Piercing Work For My Ear Shape?
An industrial piercing requires two holes on the upper ear (on the outer and forward helix) and is connected with a barbell. If you have a defined helix (a prominent ridge that runs from the outer ear to midway), you probably have the right ear anatomy to support an industrial piercing. You also need to have enough space for the barbell to sit unobstructed. A professional piercer will help you determine whether an industrial piercing would suit your ear shape.
Can Everyone Get A Rook Piercing?
With any cartilage piercing, your eligibility for a rook piercing needs to be determined by a professional piercer. However, some individuals cannot get this placement because their rook is too shallow or small for piercing. Similarly, some individuals’ cartilage on their daith, tragus or anti-helix placements because it may be too small to pierce.
Ear Piercing Guides:
12 Top Ear Piercings & You Guide To Each One (Chart Included)
The Best Piercing Ideas For Your Face Shape
The Least To Most Painful Types of Ear Piercings, Ranked
For more curated ear ideas, check out cute ear-piercing combinations HERE, HERE, and HERE.