Top 10 Tips for Stretching your Ears
Jan, 7, 2022 / by Alex Peace
Two Feather Plugs wants everyone to be safe while stretching their ears. We have comprised our list of top 10 suggestions we think you should have when going through your ear stretching journey.
We are hoping through our experience you will take these tips and have a safe journey with healthy stretched ears. Our goal with these tips is to keep you from damaging your lobes or having a blowout. We want you to have evenly stretched ears.
Ear Stretching should be done over a long period of time. Be Patient.
1. Take your Time
We feel like this is the number one mistake everyone makes. Patience is the best trait you can have while stretching ears. Time and time again we talk to people who regret stretching their ears quickly while they were young. We get it. For some reason, we seem to be in a rush when we are younger. But the truth is the longer you wait between stretches the healthier your ears will be. So PLEASE TAKE YOUR TIME.
On average we recommend waiting about 6-8 weeks between sizes. This will vary per person, and we always tell people to try to wait longer. Your ears will thank you when you are older.
Keep in mind the bigger your stretch the longer you should wait for your ears to heal between sizes. Below we have listed an estimated wait period between sizes (remember everyone's ears are different)
- 14g to 12g - 4 - 6 weeks
- 12g to 10g - 6-8 weeks
- 10g to 8g - 6-8 weeks
- 8g to 6g - 7-9 weeks
- 6g to 4g - 7-9 weeks
- 4g to 2g - 7-9 weeks
- 2g to 1g - 7-9 weeks
- 1g to 0g - 8-10 weeks
- 0g to 9mm - 8-10 weeks
- 9mm to 00g - 9-11 weeks
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2. Know your size in mm
When talking about ear stretching especially in the USA we refer to our sizes in gauges or inches. But you really should know what size you are in millimeters. The biggest reason is most plugs are made in millimeters. This comes in handy in the later periods of stretching.
If you look at any ear stretching guide there is a big stretch between 6mm (2G) and 8mm (0G). For some reason, this has become a common practice, but in reality, you are going from 6mm up to 8mm. Before this, your ears have been stretching at a pace of 1mm per stretch, and now you want your ears to go up 2mm? Yes, this can be done, but WHY? We suggest slowing down and stretching from 6mm(2G) to 7mm(1G). Your ears will thank you for this. This can be done again from 8mm (0G) to 9mm instead of the tougher 8mm (0G) to 10mm (00G).
Need the 7mm (1G) or 9mm plugs? Here are my favorites Click here for 7mm(1G) or 9mm plugs
One other great reason to know your size in mm is when you hit 1/2". As I said plugs are often made in millimeters. So the conversion of 1/2" to mm can be tricky and is defined differently depending on where they are made. I have seen 12mm, 13mm, and 12.6mm all made and defined as 1/2". So my suggestion is to drop the 1/2" and just buy according to the millimeter. Most all stores should have their sizes listed in millimeters.
Amethyst Tunnels - (Pair) - PH22
Dead Princess Glass Coffin Plugs (Pair)
Alien Stainless Steel Danglers (Pair)
3. STOP if it is Painful or Bleeding
Stretching your ears should not be a PAINFUL experience. You should not be feeling any pain from your previous stretch. If your ears are itchy this is your body telling you there is an issue. Allow your ears to calm down. Allow your ears to heal before continuing to stretch your ears.
Although this should be obvious, I still have to mention if your ears are bleeding you are not ready to stretch to this size. Immediately take your plugs out and let your bleeding ear heal.
When you are stretching your ears you will feel discomfort, but not PAIN. Listen to your body and do not force your ears to stretch. Again, BE PATIENT
4. Stretch Your Ears with Tapers up to 2G
We recommend using a professional piercer to help you stretch your ears. This is the healthiest way to stretch your ears. Find someone that really knows what they are doing. Although this is the recommended way we know that people will go out and try to do this by themselves. I have heard people stretching their ears with paperclips or straws. So I do want to give you a healthy way to stretch your ears. Using stainless steel tapers is a great way to stretch your ears IF DONE PROPERLY.
Tapers should be used to help get your single flare plug into your ears. It is a great tool to use to get your ear stretched, but it should not be worn as jewelry. Also, stainless steel tapers are the preferred method to use while stretching.
The taper method is good up to 2G. What we have found is that once you get past 2G there is a greater risk for blowouts using this method. The first reason is most kits jump from 2 gauge to 0 gauge. This is forcing your ears to go up 2mm in size. Most ears do not like this jump with tapers. If you can find a 1G taper you can still use this method up until 0g or 00g. We just do not like using tapers for stretching your ears over 2mm.
Once you stretch past 00g it is recommended to stop using this taper method. Again the biggest reason is you are forcing the ears to stretch too quickly and you will more likely to produce a blowout in your ear. You can start using the taping method after you reach this size.
5. Use the Taping method
Once you hit the 2 gauge size in your ears we recommend using the taping method to help stretch your ears. This is a pretty simple method, but you need to make sure you use safe tape. You should use PTFE or bondage tape. To increase your ear size wrap your tape around your plug or tunnel once or twice. This is a great way when you are in between sizes. You will know when you are ready to go up in size when you have a little wiggle or looseness with your plugs in your ears. The tape will help fill this space and allow you to get closer to the next stretch size.
Amethyst Wand Danglers (Pair)
Abalone Teardrop Plugs (Pair)
Single Flare Opalite Plugs for stretched ears (Pair) - PH129
6. Safe Materials
Plugs are made in hundreds of types of materials. It is important to know that you should only be stretching your ears with a safe and sterile pair of plugs. Once your ears are healed it is ok to start using other types of materials in your stretched and healed ears.
While stretching we recommend using stainless steel. From the data collected this is the safest material to use to stretch your ears. Other materials you could use while stretching are titanium or glass.
Stay away from silicone and acrylic if you are in the stretching process. Both of these are porous materials that have a tendency to easily trap bacteria which will ultimately cause infections in your ears. Also, it is not a good idea to stretch with organic material like wood or horn. While we love these plugs after you are done stretching and fully healed they are also porous and if worn too long the skin in your ears can actually heal into the organic material causing the plug to get stuck in your ear.
7. Keep your ears clean
This seems obvious, but for some people, they just can't seem to keep this point through their heads. You need to keep your ears clean. While your ears are stretching they technically are an open wound. You need to keep bacteria both off your plugs and out of your ears. So keeping your ears and plugs clean is a must. We also recommend doing salt soaks
For more information on salt soaks click here
We also have some great recommendations on keeping your plugs and tunnels clean. For more information click here
8. Use Jojoba Oil
Jojoba oil is one of the best natural oils to use for your ears. There are other natural oils you can use, but Jojoba oil is one of our favorites. Jojoba oil will easily be absorbed into your ears and is anti-microbial. It will help keep the funk and bacteria out of both your ears and also your plugs. We suggest using them on your ears while stretching and also to clean your plugs and tunnels. A couple of drops go a long way. Jojoba oil is a key ingredient to keeping your ears and plugs clean.
Aqua Tree of Life Plugs (Pair)
Titanium Triple Septum Clicker - Black
Blue Cyclone Glass Plugs (Pair)
9. Need help use ear weights
Ear weights not only look great, but they are also a great tool to help you stretch to your next size. Most ear weights start when you are above 8mm (0g). If your ears are being stubborn and you are having issues getting to that next size ear weights can help out. The added weight will help stretch your ears and get you to that next size. Click here to see our ear weights
10. DO NOT RUSH!
I know this is number one, but we cannot stress this enough. TAKE YOUR TIME. The number one reason issues occur while stretching your ears is they move too fast. So slow down, be patient, and take your time. Your ears will thank you in the long haul.