Remember back in the day, when we were young , and had our lobes pierced with piercing guns (I was six when I had my ears pierced), and we got simple gold earrings that we kept in for years and years.

Nowadays, there are specialist piercers, and we’re moving beyond the lobe and piercing almost every possible part of the ear.

Just before lockdown, I had some helix piercings done at Black Betty (the holes have subsequently closed because I was too impatient and changed them too soon, and they were too sore so I let them close on their own).

Then, I began finding incredible Instagram pictures of “curated ears”, which essentially refers to ears with multiple piercings, that have been thoughtfully stacked with hoops, huggies and/or studs. Some like the sparkle, and anything goes – from real gold and diamonds to plated gold and cubic zirconia. Have a look at Instagram’s hashtag #curatedear and you’ll find thousands and thousands of images and inspiration.

During lockdown, I came across a local supplier, My Peach Jewels, and what started as a “How much are your studs?” became like a love affair with ALL their things – from little diamond studs to huggies.

Here’s what I’ve gathered/read about ear curation:

• You can mix and match, and play with different lengths, jewels and colours – it’s usually up to personal choice, and what your ear looks like. Maria Tash, a piercer and jewellery designer, says this: “Each piece of jewelry should look balanced within the anatomy in which it lives, and be in balance with the pieces they live next to”.
• You don’t need to have identical left and right ears, but there should be a little resemblance.
• The most common way to curate is to go up the lobe with earrings that are smaller, but with curation, you can mix it up completely and go from small to big.

Perhaps the only rule when curating is that there are no hard rules, and the beauty of it is playing around, and figuring out what you love, and what looks good for you.

Something I’ve learnt is that you need to allow your ears to heal after piercing. I’ve been impatient in the past and have changed earrings before my ears have healed, which has caused pain. It’s worth it to let it heal, and if in doubt, go to the person who pierced your ear who can advise you, and change the earring WHEN the hole is ready.

Let me know if you have any questions. I’m loving building up my collection, and just had another helix piercing, which I’m determined to let heal for a few months. I also have a two-month-old targus piercing which I’m also leaving for the next few months.

Feature image via Zohreh