Body Piercing Jewellery Gauges Sizes

All body jewellery has a gauge, the gauge refers to the thickness of the bar or shaft that goes through the body piercing. In the USA, the gauge is referred to as 14 gauge, 16 gauge etc – in the UK, gauge is referred to in millimetres.

Gauge is most accurately measured with the use of a specialist piece of equipment – however, this is not the only way, just the easiest and quickest way.  A person experienced with body jewellery, ie a seller or a person with multiple piercings will be able to recognise and differentiate the gauges at a glance.

It is helpful to know the gauge of your body piercing so that once the initial healing period has passed you may purchase another piece of body jewellery of the correct gauge and length to replace it with, in other words, you need to ensure your the new body jewellery item will fit your piercing. You should ask your piercer when the piercing is performed, what the gauge will be, or return to ask if you don’t already know.  However, if this is now not possible or you have forgotten etc – all is not lost. You can measure the gauge of your body jewellery item using a simple millimetre ruler – you will need to look hard and carefully though.
Lay your body jewellery item accross (not along) the ruler. Line up one side of the bar with a mm marker. Then – look closely from above at the opposite side of the bar – if it is closer to the 1mm marker but 2 hairs breadth over, (approximately), then the gauge is 1.2mm – 16 gauge, if the bar is closer to the 2mm marker, then it is most likely 1.6mm – 14 gauge and so on. If you need help with this, consult our gauge conversion chart.

Initial body Piercings have standard gauges, some are rigidly used and some vary by a gauge. If you are having your body, facial or oral piercing with a particular piece of body jewellery in mind to wear after the initial healing period is over, you might want to check the gauge with the seller and request this particular gauge when getting your piercing, otherwise it may be the wrong gauge for your piercing and unless you stretch your piercing to allow for the new size, (stretching a piercing should be looked into carefully and not undertaken lightly due to the risks of performing incorrectly) you will not be able to wear the piece of jewellery. It might also be a good idea to shop around first and see what gauge of that particular type of piercing jewellery is available in as you don’t want to limit yourself later.
Tongue Bars as an initial piercing are sized according to the thickness of your tongue plus room for the swelling which occurs after the piercing , larger gauge piercings are achieved by stretching the piercing later on).  However, once the swelling has subsided, you will need to change to a shorter length tongue bar, it is best to return to your piercer for him/her to do this just incase you are unable to follow the piercing hole through successfully. Any delay in changing the bar may result in partial healing of the tongue piercing.  Tongue Bars are available in several lengths, 10mm – less commonly), 12mm, 14mm and 16mm and 18mm. Labret studs or labrets & Monroe studs are initially pierced with 1.2mm or 1.6mm (subject to piercer or piercee’s preference) bars available in 6mm, 8mm, 10mm and less commonly 12mm. (Labret studs / labrets and Monroe studs can also be worn in the tragus piercing – the shorter lengths are more commonly purchased for this piercing type).

Nipple bars are always 1.6mm, 14 gauge.  The length of the nipple bar will vary according to whether it is sold with a nipple shield or alone.  If the bar is sold with a Nipple shield then the length of the bar will depend on the length of the nipple shield it accompanies.  If the nipple shield is a very wide design, and some are, then the nipple bar can be anything up to 30mm wide. If you are looking to buy a nipple bar on its own and need to know what size to buy, then measuring your present nipple bar along a mm ruler will give you the size in mm you wear now. If you were pierced with a nipple ring and wish to change to a nipple bar, then you can measure the distance between the holes of your piercing by placing a ruler at the appropriate position on the nipple. I would suggest you add 2mm for comfort.
Navel bars / belly bars are always 1.6mm – 14 gauge.  The length can vary from 10mm to 12mm.
Eyebrow bars are usually 1.2mm, but can be 1.6mm, lengths available are 8mm, 10mm and less commonly, 12mm.

The above are the gauges and lengths of the more common body piercing jewellery types.

Preparing For & Caring For A Tongue Piercing

Tongue piercings are now one of the most popular piercings. There is a fantastic range of jewellery for the tongue piercing in many thousands of different styles, designs and materials and this alone is a very inviting factor. However, there is much to be considered before embarking on a tongue piercing, it mustn’t be undertaken lightly. If you are considering getting your tongue pierced then do your homework before hand, the more prepared and knowledgeable you are, the better your chances of having a successful tongue piercing. Look into all aspects of a tongue piercing very carefully before taking the plunge. If possible, talk to people about their tongue piercings, find out what establishment performed the piercing, whether they would recommend the piercer/establishment, how it felt (although everyone’s pain threshold is different, so this may not be the same for you), how well it healed, how quickly it healed – ask as much as you can.

First and foremost – your choice of body piercer / piercing establishment is very important. You need to find an experienced and reputable piercer who operates from a piercing establishment with good hygiene standards. Talk to people who have used body piercers – find out who they would recommend and who they wouldn’t. Another important aspect when choosing a piercer is to check that the proposed piercer uses titanium to pierce and not surgical steel, it is now a requirement that all initial piercings are performed with titanium – any piercers who still pierce with surgical steel may be cutting other corners also.

Paying a personal visit to the body piercing establishment before making your decision is also a good idea, then you can see for yourself whether this is a suitable person / place to have your tongue piercing performed. If you do this you can also ask any unanswered questions you may have – ask their recommended aftercare procedures and also have your tongue assessed for suitability for a tongue piercing. Not all tongues are suitable to be pierced. Some tongues may have unsuitable tongue frenulum or vein placement making the piercing too dangerous to perform. Having this checked beforehand will be less disappointing than finding out on the day you finally plan to have your tongue pierced that it is unsuitable for piercing.

By the time you are ready to pay a pre-piercing visit to your proposed body piercer, you should be armed with all the information you can find – then, you will know if there is anything left unanswered that you can ask the piercer about on the visit.

After piercing, a tongue will swell anything up to twice its usual size. The period of time the tongue stays swollen for will vary from person to person but should only be a few days. Whilst the tongue is swollen and sore, ability to speak / pronounce words will be affected. Eating will also be difficult and in some cases impossible for the days following the piercing, so consider buying a stock of soups and softer food types to have in until your tongue starts to feel normal again.

A major factor that you should consider is the timing of your tongue piercing – with a swollen sore tongue for the following days and the inability to speak or eat properly, is it practical to plan to attend work / school (for older teenagers) or other important commitments. Consider the possibility of having the piercing performed in a holiday period which won’t interfere with commitments or cause unforeseen sick days. Unfortunately, as sore or swollen as a tongue piercing may be, it won’t warrant sick pay for sick days that might have to be taken for improper planning. Also – even if you decide that you will carry on regardless, will you be able to prepare yourself soft foods / liquid lunches etc at your place of work or school? If you are determined to go ahead and have your tongue pierced when there are work or school days to follow – you may consider getting a flask to take soup. I would however recommend that you do have your tongue piercing performed in a holiday period, hopefully nothing will go wrong with the piercing procedure, and fingers crossed you won’t get an infection – but you must consider the possibility carefully and also not underestimate the discomfort factor.

In preparation for the discomfort after the piercing consider preparing some ice, sucking on ice chips will help – firstly with the pain factor – secondly it will help keep the swelling to a minimum. Also, an anti-inflammatory such as Ibuprofen (if you are suited to taking it – you might want to check / discuss this with your pharmacist or gp) will help with the inflammation and reduce the discomfort – buy some beforehand.

Carefully following the aftercare instructions given to you by your piercer is important – it is your main role in achieving the best results for your tongue piercing. Keeping it clean minimizes the risk of infection. Using a mouthwash if recommended in your piercers aftercare instructions is a good way to sanitise your new tongue piercing, although the mouthwash must NOT contain alcohol.

Do ensure you enquire how long your piercer recommends you leave your initial piercing jewellery in – changing it too soon risks infection. If you are having trouble with your tongue piercing then do return and consult your piercer – there could be many reasons why you are experiencing difficulty. If you have an infection, your piercer will be able to identify this – in this case you will need to pay a visit to your gp. If you do have an infection, do not completely remove your tongue jewellery as the piercing will quickly heal and the infection will be trapped inside and it will be unable to drain.

If you are experiencing problems due to the length of your tongue piercing jewellery after the swelling has subsided, return to your piercer – if he / she thinks you need to change for a shorter bar, then he or she will be able to aid the change with a shorter sterile bar if he or she sees fit. If you are experiencing discomfort due to the metal ball ends of the bar coming into contact with your teeth, your piercer will be able to advise you whether you are able at this point to change to a tongue stud / tongue bar with acrylic ball ends. If the metal shaft of your tongue stud / tongue bar is uncomfortable – you may want to consider a flexible alternative, this is also advisable if you have a metal allergy, although, as before said, your initial tongue piercing should be with titanium – which is suitable for people with a metal allergy. In all cases, do consult your piercer before making a change unless the recommended healing period has passed.

I hope I have been able to provide all the information necessary for you to make an informed decision regarding whether or not you would be suited to a tongue piercing and that you have found this article helpful.

Following all the advice in this article in conjunction with the recommended aftercare instructions provided by your piercer will help ensure as safe and comfortable experience as possible and will enable you to go on and enjoy your new piercing.

Initial Piercing Jewellery – Bar Length

As we are asked the question so often, I thought it would be a good idea to make the information readily available. So – if you already know this, you may think it obvious – however, you may have been told by your body piercer – which many people are not.

Certain types of body piercings, in particular the tongue, labret &  monroe piercing (also referred to as the madonna piercing) swell up when the piercing is performed, so, they are pierced with a longer bar length to allow for the extra space the swelling will take up – hence  the bar in most cases will be longer than necessary.

Once the swelling has gone down, the bar may seem to long and may be changed to a shorter bar once the initial healing period is over. If the bar is changed earlier than this then there is a risk of infection, so, should only be changed earlier if the bar is causing extreme discomfort or in the case of an allergic reaction to the jewellery worn.

Many people are not given the above information by their piercer, so may not be aware that body piercing jewellery is available in different bar lengths, so may struggle along with an uncomfortable or awkward badly fitting bar.

tongue bars are available in 10mm, 12mm, 14mm & 16mm lengths. labret studs & monroe studs are available in 6mm, 8mm, 10mm and 12mm lengths.  Nipple bars are available in many lengths ranging from 8mm to anything upto 30mm depending of the style of nipple jewellery it comes with.  Nipple Shields are often wide designs requiring the nipple bar to protrude out either side of the nipple shields hence the lengths of the Nipple  differeng so widely.

When selecting a new bar length, you will need to ensure that you know the gauge of your piercing (the width of the needle it was pierced with and the width of the bar you are presently wearing) in order to select the correct piercing jewellery for your piercing. If you don’t know, then if you are able to ask your piercer, then this is recomended, however, if not, if you have a friend with the same piercing or with piercings that may be able to identify the bar gauge for you. (As you become used to owning body jewellery – you will learn to tell the gauges by a glance). If none of the above are possible, all is not lost.

Get a ruler with mm on it, lay the bar accross the ruler – not alongside it. You need to set it down so that one side of the bar lines up with a millimetre mark, then – look at the opposite side of the bar. (You will really need to look hard and closely at this, because to an untrained eye, this is a comparatively tiny amount of difference we are looking for). If it is only two hairs breadth away from the 1mm mark – then your bar is 1.2mm – 16 gauge, if the bar is closer to the 2mm mark – the bar is 1.6mm – 14 gauge.

With the gauge sizing covered – all that is left is to try to work out what size bar you need to move down to. Bar sizes go up / down in 2mm. So – what you need to do is to firstly now the length of your bar – which when the time is right and not before – take out the bar to measure the length of it if you are not sure what length it is (get the ruler out again). Then – what you need to do, after replacing the stud /  bar is, push it as far to one end as possible so you can see what area of the bar is then visible. Your practice with the mm ruler will come in handy now. You need to estimate the space in mm of the bar left over to work out how much shorter the new bar should be. Do remember however, the new bar must not be too tight or this will be uncomfortable and restrictive – it may also cause the piercing to swell again. So whatever bar length you decide on, do ensure it won’t be a tight fit and leaves a little bit of room.