Ear Gauges - Gauging Your Ear Piercings

Things to know about gauging your ear piercings...
Comments on article "Ear Gauges - Gauging Your Ear Piercings"
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Name Views and CommentsDate
mike i have twos and i dont have the back rubber band for it, will anything happen if i dont wear them? ,when i had fours i dident have them eather but the back of my ears dont look right .is ther anything rong Today 5:17:00 AM
Sammy A. No problem (Gmoney :D)
Hoped it helpedd.
11/27/2009
gmoney :D thanks dude :] my ears are great now (Sammy.A) 11/23/2009
Sammy A. Gmoney :D.
Your ears are probably still adjusting to the healing process.
Gradually twist them and play with them, but make sure your hands are clean and you cleaned the gauges first.
Do this a couple times a day.
DON'T FORCE IT!
If it's not twisting take them out and clean them and as you put them back in SLOWLY twist them in.(they could be dirty so there not twisting.)
It's a lot easier, and saves a lot of pain and time in the end.
And when you go bigger the gauges slide in way easy.
11/16/2009
gmoney :D g-doll i have the same problem. i went from a ten to a six. yeah i know your not supossed to jump. i really dont care. There not turning with our tremendous force i think it might be because i jumped and its really tight. any one know? 11/16/2009
Melissaaa. Okay so Sammy A. is totally right. no one can tell you how fast you can and cannot go, how many sizes you should or shouldnt skip. some ppl's ears do close, and others dont. i started at a regular sized earring hole, and i jumped to a 6. then i skipped to a 0, then a 00 using tapers. and i guess i'm a genius and decided to go to 1/2 without a taper. i put the plugs in, luckily nothing happened. and then i went to 5/8ths. which is the size i stayed. what hurt was the jump to a 6, other than that it didnt hurt more then a little pinch. i recently took out my gauges just because, and my left ear is still around a 1/2, and my right ear can barely fit a 2. it's been about a month.

i saw my friend have a blowout going from a 2 to a 4.
i did my friends ears from a 2 to a 00.
he's a big guy, and i havent seen someone with that much pain in their face... i dont even know if ive ever seen that before him.

so i highly recommend taking your time and not skipping any size!
oh and did i mention i did all my gauging within a period of TWO WEEKS. yikes!

oh and Honey...
its okay to gauge by yourself, but i highly recommend having an experienced friend do them for you... you wont be able to inflict that much pain onto yourself. but take your time!

(:
11/16/2009
honey so do i need to go to like hottopic and have someone put it in or what? 11/13/2009
Sammy A. Alright, truth be told. There is no correct way for anyone to give advice to a person that is gauging their ears. EVERYONES skin is different, and EVERYONES body heals and works in different ways. I had to be careful when I gauged my ears because A LOT of things irritate my skin (specially earings.) You honestly don't know what's going to happen intill you actually go through the process. I went from a 16(didn't have anything in my ears for about 6+ months) then to a 10 then about 3 weeks later a 8(did this about a month or 2 ago). When I did this, I went EXTREMELY slow. I DID NOT use any lubricant! I would gently push in and if it started to hurt I would stop for a couple mins then start again. I keept a cold and warm paper towel by me and a couple ice cubs. As I would push the tappers(pointy ones) in I would slowly and gently twist them so the hole in my ear was even and healed well when I took them out. I thought I my ears would bleed like a mothhhhheeerrr, but they did not. I will admit it it hurt like no other. The pain laster about 2 days at the most. They will be swallowen and WILL hurt. You're stretching your skin! Do some research before you do this. As in how to clean them. Different types. Healing process ext. Saves A LOT of time in the end. They WILL start to smell if you do not clean them. With ANY type you put in your ears. The longest you should go without cleaning is 1-2 days max. When you first put them in clean them EVERYDAY for about 2 weeks along with your ears(annoying, but it helps them not get infected and makes the pain a bit less.). And as you slide them back in twist them a bit. In the healing process, they get a bit red and itchy. Mine STILL itch sometimes. Alcohol swabs work the best to relive itch. And it does NOT burn what so ever. It will sting for about 2 seconds that's it. Clean your ear an the gauges with that. Wash them in the shower, message your ears. KEEP YOUR HANDS CLEAN! The bestt advice is to keep them CLEAN along with your ears. Do not try skipping large amount of sizes you will end up regretting it. I did about a month or 2 of looking before I went through with it. And if you around the ages of 15-18 if you have not gotten the gauges; and are look for a job MAKE SURE YOU CAN WEAR THEM! Cause you don't want to gauge and be told you have to take them out. 11/12/2009
Greg Everyone's ears are going to be different. You're not going to do any damage if you're "skipping sizes from a 18 to a 14". Just try it if you want, your ears will tell you your limits. It's not a big deal. 11/10/2009
Dook I am currently at 7/8 of an inch.. It took me about 6 months because I took my time.. I went straight from 7/16 to 9/16 and ripped my ears a little bit and they bleed a lot! Not so good.. I let thise heal and weighed them down with wrenches on necklaces.. About a month later my 5/8s went right in.. I continued to clean clean clean and weigh and eventually taped them bigger to where they still felt comfortable. I went up to 3/4 with no problem.. Continued to clean and massage, taped my 3/4 left them in a few weeks and now im at 7/8. I am in the process of making them 1inch but its taking a while.. I will have them in by the end of the month.. Continue weighing cleaing taping to where they're comfortable and WA-LA! 1 inch gold tunnels! 11/6/2009
weezybaby89 its simple on stretching your ears im at 5/8 and that hurt i just use a type of taper that went really quick if u cnt stand the pain numb it with ice or jus use orgel which is used for tooth achs but it works really good,good enough were u dnt fell a thing it numbs that area 11/6/2009
Dylan You don't have to wait. I'd recommend it, but you don't have to. I pierced my ears, and 41 days later i was at 5/8. I tore on the jump to 5/8ths. The day after i pierced my ears, i gauged up to a 6. It hurt, but my ears were fine. The only jump that really screwed me over was the jump from 1/2 to 5/8. Yeah, i skipped 9/16ths. It all depends on your ears. It's been two weeks since i went to 5/8ths, and i'm going up again tomorrow. 11/6/2009
Passerby This is all very bad advice. It's called "stretching", not "gauging". Tapers should not be used in this fashion, they are not plugs. Stretching should never hurt. You should wait more than 1-2 weeks between stretches. Never use acrylic with a fresh piercing or freshly stretched piercing.

wiki. bmezine. com / index. php / Stretching
stretched. livejournal. com / profile
11/3/2009
casey so i have these earings and they r glass start off small and end at 7/16 i think i put then in were it did not hury and wore them for a couple days now my one ear is really pusey and bleeding can some one tell me y? my ears r only a 0 11/3/2009
kirsty skipping sizes isnt a good idea i agree, BUT if you want them done then and there go for it, i mean ive just got from a 10mm to 14mm ina day and IT HURT dont get me wrong there, but because i had a birthday to goto i knew i wanted it done and outta the way, my ear swelled like a firestone tire and it still burned about 5 hours later but if your willing to put up with the pain then you should be fine :] 10/31/2009
Buttcock Sp Yeah I Got 1 Inches And I Was Wondering How FAr Down They Would Go If I Left Them Out? 10/31/2009
Troy i just gauged my ears from a 4g to a 0g. MY EARS HURT! i suggest going slow. i got anxious an couldent wait. there is alot of blood but you just gatta have the ballz to stick out the pain. GOD i LUV gauges 10/31/2009
Carmennn does anyone know how to heal gages? i changed my mind after a lot of thought (mind you me buying the gages was spur of the moment), their still small, only at a 12, can i just stick an earing in and it wont fall out (i looked) and it'll heal centered or what? 10/30/2009
Katie So, before asking my question, I think I should explain my ear gauging "history". I've had my ears gauged at 3/4 inch for about two and a half years. I don't remember a lot about doing it, but I skipped a lot of sized. At one point, I went from a 1/2 to a 3/4 in a matter of days and without in-between sizes...bad idea. I don’t know if my ears have ever blown-out, but I assume that they have. They used to bleed a lot, be really swollen, and scab. Now, the skin around my gauges flakes off occasionally and, obviously, they smell horrible.

Anyway, my question: Does it matter how long your ears have been gauged when deciding how to close them? Anyone I've ever talked to says that I'll need plastic surgery one day. Yet, the responses on here tell me differently. Also, what is the best way to start closing them? Should I down-gauge or just take them out completely? As for lotions or vitamins, what would help?

Oh, and one more question. I'm just kind of curious...
I play lacrosse and have to use cotton balls and band-aids in my ears during games [I use two big cotton balls with a band-air wrapped around the bottom to keep them in]. The cotton balls actually hold the shape and size of my plugs until I can put them back in. As for my 6’s [they’re above my 3/4 ‘s in my second holes], I just take the gauges out. What have other people done when handling the "no jewelry" rule in sports?

Thanks for any and all advice :]
10/30/2009
Toast Here's a question for you all:
Why the heck would you make gigantic holes in your ears?
Are you so ignorant to the fact that one day, you will be an old wrinkley person with flabby ears?

Y'all are stupid. And you have stinky ears.
10/29/2009
xhbvhxbv Can anybody tell me how far down 1 inches will go if u leave them out? 10/29/2009
BREE BREE Almost at 1 1/2 inch.

people seem to forget that stretching your ears to a large size also causes FLAT SPOTS, which many people mistake for blowouts.
10/28/2009
kelly. i have 2 tapers in my ears right now, i think they might stopa at 2g

i was an 8 about 4 days ago, and ive been slowly working them in almost to the end, id say im around a 4, so my left ear was swelling about 3 hours ago, so i took them both out, and shortly afterwards both of my ears started to bleed rapidly, so i took wet tissues and squeezed them to release some of the pressure. the bleeding slowed down a little, and i put the tapers back in, but not as far as they were in before, i can still feel a little bit of throbbing, am i doing this right? is there any kind of product i should be putting on to help?
10/26/2009
RayRay ;D I took my time and read all of this, and most of the people are right DONT SKIP SIZES seriously im at 9/16 and i skipped from like nothing to a 6. my ear lobes are not to thin but its on the breaking point. i have to stop for winter.

If you go bigger, take out your spacers for a while so they shrink and get thicker, remember to use vitemin e oil or jajabo oil. Tea tree oil DOES NOT WORK. But remember everybody is different.
Im going up to 5/8ths on friday to my tunnells. Its been about a month since i spaced them. Wish me luck ! (:
10/26/2009
Lauren :] hey guys, i just went to a 0g last night. It hurt like hell and there was a little blood. Most of the night i had a pretty bad headache and wasn't able to sleep. I woke up this morning and the pain is still pretty prevalent. They are red, hard, and incredibly swollen.

I know I should take them out, but I really don't want to.
What's the worst that could happen if I just deal with it?
10/26/2009
JackXh3rer I am at 3/4, but i stretched to quick and did it wrong.
My ears turned out decent but there are many flaws. Do it right and slow you'll be satisfied.
10/25/2009
Ace People who do it for attention and looks are stupid. Im at 3/4 right now and im done stretching. Also, half of the people that stretch their ears dont do it for the right reasons. Its about the artform of body modification. Its about art! Its not about who can have the biggest gauges or who can turn the most heads with their stretched ears! That is what body mod is becoming and it angers me to see how many people are destroying my favorite artform. 10/24/2009
Samantha I started gauging my ears when I was 12. It took about a year and a half to get up to an inch. I had 1 blowout in the proccess of stretching.. I was really stubburn about it and would stretch every few days. Of course, the blowout held me back. I never used tapers at all...yeah, you'd be surprised at the stuff you can make gauges into. I'm 15 and am still at 1 inch. I want to stretch to 1 1/4 now.

Honestly, I do not recomend for anyone to strech the way I did. Most of the time I had a headache because my ears were always in pain.

If you do, please do it the correct way:)

All my luck,
-Samantha
10/22/2009
cee okay soim just starting to gauge my ears ad i have a taper in ; but i dont know what size. but i put it in yesterday and just took it out tonight and when i did it started bleedding. i put alcohol and peroxide in after it stopped bleeding. and then put tha gauge back in. will it get infected and should i take it out ? 10/22/2009
James If anyone is going to take any advice from anyone on here, let it be me.
Stretching your ears is a personal experience..
It is different for EVERYONE.. So you can't let one person tell you exactly how to stretch..
I have had my ears pierced for 10 months now, and am currently stretched to 3/4 of an inch. There has been times when I had to go slow as hell, and times where I could stretch with no problem what so ever.
When I first pierced my ears myself.. I stretched to a 0 from a 14 in a week and a half. Small gauge sizes are stupid to talk about but it was dumb.

I've found the best lubricant/organics/medication that works on my ears is Nivea soft unsented lotion, and it actually has Jajoba oil, and vitamin e oil made into it.

I've blown out my ear once at 1/2 inch just being stupid and trying to shuv my finger through my ear when I was drunk. I just went back down to a 0 in that ear and pushed the steel tunnels I had in backward so that it would push the blowout back into my ear and it healed perfectly.

So I mean.. There are many many techniques out there.. Everyone really needs to find there own..

Big recomendation here, don't go from 5/8 to 3/4, 3/4 to 7/8, or 7/8 to 1in., I know they don't sell 11/16 or other in-between sizes in cool places like hot topic.. Special order them.. You can buy cheap steal tunnels offline.. They work
10/22/2009
cody thrash. go to wallgreens and get this stuff called tea tree oil. its made for gauging its moisturizes your earlobe so it will heal faster and let your ear completely heal befoe you go up to the next size. i have 5/8 10/21/2009
gabrielle Mysticmetalsbodyjewelry organi plugs and awesome stuff

Minkymonky cheap gauges free shipping over 24$

I think we can all learn something from Aarons post. I'm 25 y/o and I've had my ears stretched since High School. Granted yes I got excited at some points and skipped a size, but in the end I have healthy 9/16. My only problem is my right ear is a bit thin, yet my left is perfectly fine. So the vitamin E has been working well to "plump" my ear up. Also, about the job. I went to college immediately after HS and the amount of young individuals who are just like everyone else is amazing. We are all human. Now my point, I work two amazing jobs. One in the kitchen and the other as a business sales rep. Aka Longhorn and Adidas. Both the companies I work for including adidas, tattoos (which I also have 6 of on my arms) and piercings, are discrimination! Now unless you've got piercings all over your face and eyes and ears, yes that's a problem. But stretched ears, you would be surprised of the amount of people who I get compliments and questions from. "Did that hurt when they did it" is my favourite. Young and older people. But, be yourself. Don't rush. Take care of your skin! Its just like a tattoo. Its addicting. But would you rather take it slow, and have "sick" earlobes, or skip, skip, skip and watch your ears get blown out? Be smart! Moisturize, clean them, and let them breath like Aaron said. Our bodies were given to us for a reason, don't abuse it!
10/21/2009
Rona I love stretched ears but I always tell others to do it sensibly. I It hurt leave it alone, don't ever stretch with plastic, use 7mm and 9mm sizes, don't skip 2mm from 6-8 and 8-10! Leave sizes in for at least 1 -2 months before you even think about stretching again. Vitamin E oil is the shizz and cheap. You should massage those lobes daily! It works wonders on scar tissue :)

I downsized from 8mm in both ears to 1.6mm and 3mm in my ears and have been massaging daily and I can't believe the difference downsizing and oils make!
10/19/2009
Pat I went from 14 to 4 to 00 with no blowouts, ripped ears or anything, just a whole lot of pain. I don't recommend it. 10/17/2009
drew p my ears r up to 38 mm it took a long time but my ears r blown out cuz i ripped them at first so dont skip sizes and if ur ears are swollen take ur gauges out cuz it will mess ur ears up and if people talk ish bout yo0ur ears let them cuz u have them you have to like them to put them in if you dont want them u should have not done them so be smart and think first befor u do ur ears if u need any thing hit me up on myspace andrew parker 10/16/2009
Stephanie I had my ears at 3/4 of an inch, and I took them out for a year, because of work, and they only got down to a 2. Now I'm stretching them back out and I have my right ear at a 00 and the other I just put a 0 taper in half way cuz I didn't want to force it. Well my ear is swollen and the taper just slid right through is that normal? Do you think since my lobe is masively huge right now it will give me more lobe to hopefully go to an inch? 10/16/2009
Brittney My ears are stretched to one inch and an eighth and my advice is GO SLOW no matter how much you want to skip sizes DON'T! Trust me I know from experience. You can severly damage your ears or cause scar tissue or blowouts. I am 18 and have been gauging my ears since I was 15 be patient, it is definetly a process!
Also to Kristin Hope how big you go is completly a personal decison. But if you dont want to have them for an extended period of time. Do not go to extreme sizes. Also about controversy if you are letting it get to you now don't go bigger because it just gets worse. In my opinion I love having my ears stretched it is my individuality and I truely think they are beautiful same as any kind of body modification. It's a form of self expression and I do not care what ignorant close minded people have to say. It is my body and I will chose to do with it what I want (:
So to everyone out there DO NOT LET SOCIETY SHAPE YOU BE YOURSELF AND LIVE THE WAY YOU WANT.
10/15/2009
kenny s i had my ears at a 6 and they were healed so i put a 2 a little while ago. my ears were bleeding and there soar. my friend said if you go too fast then your ears would mutate or get really fcked up. did i go too fast or am i ok. they were really numb a while ago but now i can at least feel them...im 14 is this bad 10/14/2009
dick what can you put in your gauged ears? 10/14/2009
chelsea this is really helpful 10/10/2009
Ryo I think mine may have a small infection. But it's proabaly because I went from having normal sized piercing holes to 10 gauge in less than 20min lol 10/5/2009
Kristin Hope At first I skipped from a 10g to a 6g, and I had a horrible blowout and blah it was a bloody disgusting mess. Eventually I took it out and let it completely heal and began re-gauging. I'm now at a 4g, and am contemplating whether or not to stretch bigger. Personally I want to go to a 0g, but there's a lot of controversy that I have to deal with. After doing some research, it finally hit me that if I stretch my ears to a certain size for long enough, it will not close up. I know I won't have my gauges forever, and I don't want to have to deal with the aftermath of having loose and gross lobes and with coming up with the money to pay for surgery. It's around $2,000 (a little more than that) to repair gauged lobes, depending on the situation. So with this and also some other aspects considered, I'm still not sure whether or not to gauge my ears any larger. I really want to, and I know, I'm young and should just enjoy life how it is now, but I really don't want to deal with having to pay for surgery and la la la lalal. Any feedback on this? 10/5/2009
arron i went from a regualar stud to a 00 in a bout three weeks it hurt but the thing that helped me was neosporine.( i used tapers btw) like the other dude said dont rush it peoples ears differ mine might be fine but yours could blowout, getinfected, or get keloids and thats bad so. just be paitent
xXnightmarearronXx at gmail hit me up with any questions
10/2/2009
KiKu so ive stretched my ears to a size 2 no problem and im trying to stretch to size 0 and its like my ears are stuck at 2...or im just not strong enough to push them through. i have tapers in but dont think ill ever geth them stretched all the way to a 0. any ideas? 10/1/2009
david ok i got size 2 gauge tapers on and im trying to put a 0 in. but it won't go through and im afraid of blowing my ear or tearing it. plz help thx 9/30/2009
S.L.R yehh id say it is ok to do it like that. but obviously using metal is alot better as its less likely to get infected. mine are only 5mm as i carnt go any better because of work but ive never had no trouble when tappering mine. there is a good website i get all of my stretchers off and they are alot cheaper than goign to shops to buy them... but they are a uk site 9/26/2009
marla I wanted to start stretching my ears but I knew I had to be very careful and I am allergic to metal so i bought a plastic gauge. I also didn't want to spend a lot of money so I picked one with a size 18 opening at one side that gradually got larger to a 12 (or 10?) I am going at it slowly with my ear at only the 16 right now. I wash my ears twice a day, have them covered with polysporin, and plan to leave them like this for two weeks. Am I doing it right? I read somewhere that you should use the decorative plastic gauges but am i okay with this? Any advice would be awesome! 9/26/2009
s.l.r my ears have swollen a little but never bled. im only 5mm but im ears are very healthy. no probs. you should only make your ears to a size you feel right with 9/25/2009
Ally Why would you use rubbing alcohol? it dries your ears out terribly.. Ergh.. 9/24/2009
Nik acrylic taper and gauges cause cancer 9/21/2009
Steph. I want to go up to 5'8 but i think my ear lobe might rip? How do i know if it's okay to still stretch it? 9/18/2009
Mistyy. If your ears swell and they're gauged is that bad? 9/14/2009
Rachel I was at a 2g for about 4 months, I've been gaugeing for about a year and a half, and I only skipped once so my ears have been perfectly fine. Everyone tells me they also have a tighter ear, mine happens to be the left lobe. I just guaged up to a 0g two days ago, and my right ear is alright, and doesnt even hurt. It is like it wasn't even guaged up, but my left ear is somewhat bloody, and swollen two times bigger than my usual lobe would be. It is also crusty, and feels miserable. I've taken ibprolfen to help it but the swelling hasn't gone down, and it still hurts. I'm going to wait it out a few days, I've not taken the tapers out because I know they aren't ready. 9/11/2009
griffin i skipped from a 14 to a 4 the day after peircing in two hours. it hurt like a b*tch and bled alot. it didnt blow out though. gauge them in a hot shower, it sorta helps 9/9/2009
CannibalJevin i pierced my ear and immediately got an 18g through it. i waited a day and a half and put in an 8g. waited another day, and at this point the ear wasn't fully healed, but it was pretty close. after the 8g i put in a 6g. after the 6g was in for a day or two, i tried to size to a 2g today. the ear was refusing, so i took it out and it started to bleed alot. how long does anyone ESTIMATE for it to heal and i can start to size up again? 9/3/2009
cogan stretch yours ears like crazy skip like 5 sizes everytime...blow out looks good...everybody wants it to look like they have 3 lobes because they have so much blow out lmao... 9/3/2009
Jennifer METAL ones are a better idea than ones made of METAL or other materials...
please change this sentence
8/25/2009
jaknife im at 1 inch and proud of my gauges...i done mine at home but my ear keeps growin out... idk what to do 8/24/2009
dilbob21d ive had my gauges for about 3 months now..i went from a reg. earing to a size 2 gauge doing it in school one day using hand lotion yea it was painful but now 3 weeks later i went right to a 00 gauge.. 8/18/2009
sarah Using petroleum jelly is a bad idea as it creates a breeding ground for bacteria. Using petroleum jelly will make you more prone to an infection.
It's better to use a lubricant that will wash off easily.
Also, if you have a natural material in your ear (which, by the way, you shouldn't be using on a new stretch because most naturals are porous and can also house bacteria) Alcohol will dry it out and make it more likely to break and become brittle.
Also, there's a better alternative to alcohol to care for your ears and piercings. A mixture of two tablespoons of sea salt in one gallon of distilled water will help keep you piercing healthy. Just heat up some in a small bowl or cup and soak your new piercing or stretch daily.
8/17/2009
BrittanyCHAOS Ok, it doesn't matter what u call it. I call it gauging. I know what i'm doing is all that matters. Ok i am at 3 inches now. :) And i love them. And yes when i take them out for too long it shrinks. And i have no thinnning problems. SO, Never skip sizes! Ever! And use oil and sea salt everyday because "ear cheese" is actually dead skin cells which you have to get rid of sometime. And if ur ear is getting thin you should take out ur gauges while you shower and when u get out oil them up real good. It should heal ur ears and make the skin thicker. So, if you have ne questions. My email is whenkissescollide at gmail . Thanks! 8/17/2009
amberleigh hey i have mine stretched to an inch...i want them to skrink a lil bit, will they? 8/11/2009
gi i shoved 8 plugs in and one of my ears kind of ripped but not exactly. it like popped. . . but i want to get to 0, so what do i do to help my ear heal ? 8/6/2009
Jerome Meghann: This may sound a bit weird but try using rubbing alcohol on your ears everyday, it may dry them out a bit but it will shrink the holes.

Another suggestion, a more painful one, if you really really want them to go away have a trained professional "scalpel" the holes, this is where they cut the skin from the inside of you lobes. As it heals it will shrink and use hydrogen peroxide on it. It will forsure shrink them to nothing or you can have them scalpel them and stitch them back together. Not much you can do for closing once you past 0.
8/2/2009
Meghann hi i got my ears to a 00 about a year or so ago and now i took them out and they will not close! i started stretching them over 5 years ago! now, i need a job. so can anyone suggest some products or anything to help them close fast? please help me! 8/2/2009
Jerome I don't see why everyone says 2g-0g is the most painful. Going from 7/8 to 1 1/16 is painful. but Once you get past "bullrings" use bondage tape to stretch your ears with less pain ;) 8/1/2009
Donnie 4 years ago I was at a 2ga and my ex-wife didn't like them so I took them out and they completely closed up. Now I'm divorced and have had them repierced about 2 months ago, starting with my local piercer using a 14ga then a 10ga taper to reopen the old holes.

I took my time and only skipped 8ga because my piercer said my ears were ready to skip. Now I just went to a 0ga 2 days ago. Every stretch after 6ga I had my local piercer do for me (which she does for free for buying my jewelry there.)

The best way that I've found to stretch is once you get past about 4ga you can loop together your curved barbells (bullrings) or captive bead rings to add extra weight. It took only about 2 weeks for me to naturally stretch from 4ga to 2ga and then about 3 weeks to go from 2ga to 0ga, however that last stretch was VERY painful compared to all the previous ones, which my piercer said was more than likely due to scar tissue from where I had stopped at 2ga previously.

I'm now going to wait about a month before my final stretch to 00ga, where I -plan- on stopping, but as many previous posters have stated its very addicting.

If anyone wants to chat about piercings and/or tattoos or have any questions I might be able to help with just hit me up on myspace as repoman07xbl or dnewton3110 on yahoo messenger.

Good luck and avoid skipping sizes and rushing. Preventing damage to your ear should be your first priority.
8/1/2009
beast i used nails toi gage my ears and i had them perced for 1 day and i skipskipped to a 000 and i had to have my ear cut off awesome right but now im getting surgery and im gunna do it again yay 8/1/2009
Jerome Never stretch with electrical tape. Always use non adhesivebondage tape. I know it sounds weird but it is the best way to safely tape your jewelry to increase the size. I started using it at 1/2 in. and now im at 1 1/4.

Another tip would be to use vitamin E oil massages twice a day to keep your ears healthy. Use EMU OIL to slowly plump your lobes when yo uare not stretching, it can really pay off.

I had a thin spot at about 7/8, I used emu oil and in about 1 month the thin spot was gone. ONLY use it when you are not stretching, it will make your life easier.

:)
7/31/2009
ladysedna in reply to bree: IT IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND A 1g, unless you size it out and make them hand made, the 2g-0g isn't that bad, just use flaxseed oil. 7/31/2009
bree i've had 2g's in for almost 4 months now. i bought 0's a while ago because i wanted to make sure i had them when i stretched bigger and i cannot get them in for ANYTHING. this is probably the most painful stretch i've ever had to do. i pull on my plugs every once in a while so hopefully my 2's will stretch a little but it's doing no good. my advice is trying a 1g before a 0 unless you have balls and can deal with the pain. i have a low pain tolerance so it's harder for me. defnitely the WORST stretch. ugh. 7/31/2009
Mandi I've been gauging my ears now for a few months, and finally got to to a 2. i didn't wanna go to fast because my friend's at 11/16ths i think and they're freaking huge lol. so i decided i'd stop at a 0. when i went to the 0, it hurt the most out of all my gauges, and my ear lobe felt hard for like 2 or 3 days. so this morning i took them out because the "big boss" is coming in at work and since i had the spikes, i was going to change them into the plugs..

well, when i took out the spikes, my ears started oozing puss and blood and i freaked out when i felt what i believe is the beginning of a blow out. (my friend has blow outs and they're really bad) so i said screw it and i'm leaving them out to heal. yes i loved them, but i think i went too big too fast and my ears just couldn't take it.

so i advise being careful. when jumping sizes, atleast wait like 2 weeks minimum for your ears to heal. the only reason i waited so long is because of work. but good luck fellow gaugers :)
7/30/2009
Alex I just got my holes sewed up today do to them ripping apart from stretching too fast. The surgery was extremely expensive and I felt terrible afterwords do to the medicine they gave me. Be careful kids! 7/29/2009
Nate D Yeah i went from a piercing hole to 0 in 17 days, i'm at 5/8's in about 2 and half months, i love to not love them... i wrestle so they are a pain. i had to take them out a bunch of times at like 00 so i had a pretty nasty blow out in my right ear. i went from 00 to 1/2in to 5/8's i the same week... i would advise it i had another blow out in my left ear. i love them too much to let them heal completely i'll let them heal when i'm safe at 3/4's that's my goal. beware to those who gauge their ears it's addicting and once you start it's hard to stop. my first goal was a 0 then a 1/2 finally i said whatever i'm going to 3/4's so don't have any size in mind because you'll probably go bigger 7/29/2009
john O well im at an inch now, but id like to go bigger however i dont wanna do any damage to my ears.. my lobes are a bit thin, but not tooo thin.. so i was wondering if its possible to like "run out of earlobe" and have them tear or if i'd be okay... 7/27/2009
Mee Its def. not a cool or good thing to go up sizes so fast. Ur ears will get "blown out" (sag) when u take ur plugs out, and look like craap. Take your time. 7/26/2009
kimmy oh hahah its so kool to see my comment up here haha it really is..chow.. oh comment something about i wana feel kool like if people are acually reading my comment 7/24/2009
kimmy i have 5/8 gauges i dont know why people here are lying that they dont hurt thats bull they hurted so bad. and besides they smells so bad. they smell like ukk. oh wow the smell makes my eyes water hahaha im just kidding not that bad
i recommend people not to get them. there really annoying. they smell nasty, they itch if you dont clean them and well alot more annoying stuff im not really gonna give advice just because im just 16 so i dont really know much about stretching although i have been having them for the longest like 4 years i think. since 7th grade. i can tell you guys to clean with scope leaves your ear minty fresh.
7/24/2009
Ken I would say take it slow,I have done some crazy methods of stretching,like shoving a bunch of 10 gauges,8 gauges and 14 gauge hoops in one hole to stretch it out.My holes look fine with no earrings,actually they close up quite a bit just over night.I have 7/16" in both ears and a 2 gauge above the 7/16" in my left ear and Ive been able to get management positions with them out,the trick for me is to take them out about an hr or two before your interview and its not too bad but im sure it depends on the person. 7/23/2009
Ken Allie - ever hear of taping? youtube taping up earrings lol 7/21/2009
Ken RAHBEE - im at 1 1/4 in 3 1/2 months. 7/21/2009
ALLIE i repierced my ears(they shut) with a 10 gauge needle, with 0 being my goal in mind. I was at a 2 gauge the other night. Didnt skip sizes in this whole "Journey" at all. POSSIBLY didnt wait long enough.. I got to a zero in maybe a month in a half. way way not right i dont think. But im rlly ADD with them. If i have the next size available within reach, I WILL try to get it in everynight until it finally goes in lol.
I have zeros now, jus t put em in two nights ago, and the left one if red and swollen as hellllll.
I took it out rly quick to clean it, and it started bleeding a little bit:(

I rly hope i didnt mess up my ears. lol
7/21/2009
RaHBee DO NOT SKIP GAUGES. im at 1' and 1/8 and screwed. i skipped from a 10g - 4g then 4g - 0g then from 0g to 7/16 and so on. in just six months i am already at 1' 1/8 and my ears are screwed up, take it slow and follow the correct tutorials 7/20/2009
karissssaa hey so i have a problem. i have had my lobes stretched to a double zero for about a yrar now and am currently using plastic screw in plugs. i went to clean tthem the other day and the left one unscrwewed and popped out easily but the right one i cant get to un screw. and the flare on it is way too big to pop out that way so idk what to do. any ideas? 7/18/2009
Andrew Abel...Of course it didn't hurt. You only made the hole in your ear 1/16" bigger. That's nothing.

I have mine gauged to 3/8(00). It was an interesting process. I skipped a couple of gauges a few times. Hell, at one point, I used a straw...A straw I made a slit in so it would taper...And gauged my ear from ~6 or 8 to a 2. Yeah, it hurt. Nothing too unbearable though. In my opinion, it's all a matter of pain tolerance. I personally think the pain of gauging is absolutely nothing compared to other pains. I've pierced my own nipples twice, without a clamp, and without a receiving tube. Talk about pain...Hah.

I've been gauging my ears since I was 16. I'm 18 now, and they're 00. Going to go up to a 1". Excited :)
7/17/2009
Mee About cleaning them, it says to dislodge the crusty formation daily while cleaning them. Its best not to. It might smell horrible but it helps your ears heal to that new size. 7/15/2009
Kdizzle Im at a 00 right now, it hurt like a mofo, and whoever says it doesnt is lieing. They look sweet though :] 7/15/2009
caleb alex wat ever size u are at now i would stay there and not go no bigger ur to young to gauge right now and ur still growing u need to wait till u get older ur ear lobes may not be big enofe to gauge im 14 and im a 00ga i wish i hadnt done it now its hard for me to get a job 7/15/2009
Rooster I dont even know where to start... no one can judge how far they can stretch and think it will close. i was in jail for a month and had to take my 7/8 out and when i got out i could only fit a 0 and a 4 in my ears. When it comes to actually gauging your ears i went at a pretty moderate pace the best idea is to not waste money on different sizes but find yourself a diagram of the sizes and make your own thats what i did in high school. from pen caps to markers to cuting up sharpies. also electrical tape is thye easiest way to gradually stretch without killing yourself jumping from one size to another. u can take an entire week and just add a layer every other day worked great for me and now im at 1 1/8 and lovin it. no blow outs, no cuts, no rips, no pain, saved lots of money and now ive got a sick size 7/15/2009
Naomi I started guages at 12 yrs old. I started with a 12 gauge and almost started crying becuz it hurt so bad. But gauges get addicting, I am still 12 yrs. old and i now have a size 2 guage. I just slip them in no problem once you get used to having gauges. Every week I get a new size but i set my limit to a size 0 gauge. Make sure to set your limit, becuz gauges are addicting. 7/12/2009
dalton that is how i did mine there great 7/10/2009
lukas how do you make your lobe skin thicker?, like if you wanna go real big? 7/2/2009
abel I had 00 and just popped in 7/16 no pain what so ever. I had the 00 in for a couple of months and when i knew i wanted to gauge up I started slowly pulling on my ears to strech them out so wouldnt have a hard time putting them in which i didnt. also lubed my ears with soap and water to help slide in. So if you want some good advice about gauging here you go: no rushing to get to bigger sizes, my friend tried to skip sizes all the way from like a 6 to a 0 in like less then a month and he had to end up taking them out because of the pain and they closed now he has little balls in his ears. lol i started with 12s and a year later i have 7/16. do not skip sizes! jeez i cant tell you how much pain that is. i went from a 4 to a 0 and it was hell lol just go size by size and if you want your ears to eventually close back up...try not and go past a 0. But i got to warn you gauging up gets addicting so make sure you set your limit. 6/28/2009
sup yes i do it for looks and no i dont rush it for the same reason.. chillin in the shower and stretching them helped me a lot. I feel less pain when i do it that way. 6/24/2009
sup Its been 2 weeks since i started to gauge my ears and right now I'm at 2g... I'm about to start with my 0g and i havent had any problems with it hurting really bad. I'm not rushing it, i just heal a lot faster then most. Sounds weird but it does. You should go with your feeling about how fast you should gauge your ears. My friend goes a lot slower cuz it takes a longer time for the swelling to go down. I'm planning on stopping at 00g cuz i still want my ears to close in the future 6/24/2009
Tattoo Jay to the "Caring Parent", it all depends on the job you're searching for. there are many "open-minded" establishments that are more than accepting to hire those that dare to be different. for example, Hard Rock Corp. their motto: "Love All, Serve All..."

in reality, those that choose to practice such arts are our future. some will go to school and earn degrees. they will start new businesses.

"Caring Parent"- it's a shame that you still live in the past. you segregate those that choose this kind of lifestyle. you judge by outer appearance. you think it's stupid. but it's people like these that will change our future. just as the blacks did. just as the gays are doing.

we should all have equal rights. no matter how different we are and try to be. please, go back to your boring life and stop envying those that are doing what you wished to do.
6/22/2009
Caring Parent You may think it is the cool thing to do and all of the pain is worth it, but it will be more painful when time comes for job interviews and you need to make an impression. Then who is going to pick up the tab when Mom and Dad are not there and you are an adult in the working world trying to earn a living? 6/21/2009
andrew b gday, im andrew, 20, from australia...

mine are about 1inch diametre...
and i wear double flared stainless tunnels, can fit your fingers straight through lol...
had them for 4 or 5 years now... did them myself ...

sure they smell...
what were you expecting?
fresh skin + stainless steel is always going to smell...

you can combat some of the smell with bone and tusk plugs...
iv never tried... i see bone and tusk as a good way to introduce bad sh*t to your ears ;)

alcohol wipes are a bit strong for cleaning your lobes...
but i use them, just because its what works...

i also take my tunnels out mid shower and give them and my lobes a bit of a wash...

they are still going to smell whether you wash them or not...

i was once told that it is good to moisturise them...
but the blokes that told me that specifed an exact moisteriser which i have forgotten the name of (theres chemicals you need to look out for) but that was years ago...

the guys were from a body modification shop called polymorph, here in sydney...
they know their stuff...
i might go back and have another chat about the smell and see if theres any new methods to combat it...
6/21/2009
Andrew I started gauging mine when I was 16. Now I'm 20 and I wish I had never done it. Its so embarrassing to try to get a job, there's no way to hide them. They are 1/2 inch and they won't go back to normal. Please listen to me. I wouldn't listen to my mother and father when they tried to tell me. Now I'm screwed. Don't do it! 6/21/2009
alex im 11 and i started gauging my ears 3 yrs ago it doesnt hurt 6/13/2009
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