Body piercing – the act of puncturing the skin with a sharp device in order to wear jewelry – has been practice by people all over the world since ancient times. In the Western world body piercing became unpopular, but regained its popularity after the 1960s. Today women and even men use body piercing as a means for being fashionable or expressing their sense of self. Piercing steel jewelry is one of the most popular forms of body piercing jewelry. If you are considering body modification through body piercing, then be sure to take the proper precautions to ensure that the skin will not become infected or scarred. Proper precautions will also enable your piercing to heal as quickly as possible so that you can begin to where the body piercing steel jewelry of your liking.
Body piercing, the act of putting a hole through the skin of a body part or segment of the body for the purpose of wearing jewelry, has been practiced by people all over the world since ancient times. It is a form of body modification – changing some portion of the body, either permanently or semi-permanently, for religious, cultural, spiritual, ornamental, or sexual reasons.
Ear piercing has existed constantly since ancient times. However, from the 1920s until the 1960s, it fell out of favor with many cultures within the United States. In the 1960s, it regained popularity among American women. Men in the hippie and gay communities as well as the punk subculture have adopted the practice as well. Today single and multiple piercing of either or both ears are quite common among Western women, and fairly common among men. The popularity of ear piercing has made it more acceptable to pierce other parts of the body. People now pierce their navels, noses, tongues, eyebrows, nipples, genitals, etc.
Body piercing steel jewelry is jewelry that is manufactured specifically for body piercing. In the beginning, circular earrings was the predominate jewelry used in modern Western body piercing. However, as body piercing has continued to gain popularity an abundance of crafted jewelry is now available. The materials that are used to craft this jewelry have grown from gold and silver to include surgical steel, titanium, plastic, wood, horn, amber, stone, bamboo, silicone, fossilized ivories, tusks and other bones, and even glass.
Body piercing steel jewelry is very popular in the United States. Examples of piercing steel jewelry include tunnels, tubs, nose studs, circular barbells, bannabells, and body spirals. Before purchasing piercing steel jewelry, it is important to determine the size of your piercing. You can accomplish this by:
1. Determining the gauge (thickness of the wire that is used to make the jewelry) of the piercing steel jewelry. The gauge for navel jewelry should be 1.6 mm unless it is enlarged. The gauge for nipple jewelry is usually 1.6 mm but it can also be 1.2 mm. Gauges for eyebrow and above the neck jewelry are generally 1.2 mm but may be 1.6. The gauge for tongue jewelry should measure 1.6 mm unless it is enlarged.
2. Determine the distance of your piercing. While you are wearing a piece of piercing steel jewelry, measure the distance between the piercing holes. Bear in mind that if you have removed jewelry and reinserted it with no problem, then the jewelry is no doubt the correct size. On the other hand, if your jewelry feels tight, is hard to reinsert, or you would like a more relaxed fit, then you should consider increasing the size of your jewelry.
Body piercing has become popular and acceptable in the Western world. It started with ear piercing, but it is now more acceptable to pierce other parts of the body. It is a way for people to be fashionable or express their individual styles and tastes. Whatever your reason for piercing your body, practice safety at all times.