The joy of an ear piercing is soon dulled when you come across the harsh reality of the school regulation, the company you work for, or your parents' conservative attitude. You cannot remove and put on the earrings as you please, as you must keep them for at least six weeks before the wound heals completely. Luckily, there are some temporary "tricks" to hide the piercing and other solutions to take after the first six weeks have passed.
Steps
Part 1 of 2: Hide a Freshly Made Piercing
Step 1. Keep the earring in the hole for six weeks
If you have just pierced your ear, you shouldn't take the jewelry out for any reason, otherwise you risk bruising, bleeding the wound, closing the hole and developing an infection.
- This detail will never be emphasized enough! If you feel you can't stick to this healing period, consider waiting for the piercing until your life circumstances allow. Snap earrings can be a viable alternative that do not require any commitment, as well as magnetic ones that allow you to experiment with a "cartilage piercing" without actually piercing it.
- Remember that holes in the cartilage require a longer healing period ranging from three to twelve months.
Step 2. Cut off the head of an inexpensive small earring
If you have decided to make a piercing with a minimum gauge earring, you can remove the back clip and push the bar forward as far as possible without removing the jewelry. At this point, you can cleanly cut the head of the jewel with a wire cutter, return it to its original position and re-apply the back clip; by doing so, the stump of the finger will no longer look like a small mole.
For this operation it is advisable to ask for the help of a parent and be very careful when using the nippers near the ear
Step 3. Hide the jewelry with a flesh-colored patch
It is a remedy that obviously does not hide the fact that you have pierced your ear, but at least it covers the jewel. Use this method only if hiding the jewelry from view is more important than keeping the piercing a secret.
- It is a useful remedy for athletes or sportsmen; however, carefully check the rules of the championship you take part in before undergoing the piercing.
- You can use various combinations of kinesiology tape and patches to achieve the same effect.
Step 4. Let your hair grow and wear it loose
Long hair (which at least exceeds the level in which the jewel is located) is a great advantage; if you feel you need to hide the piercing, consider letting it grow before you get the piercing.
- Wait for the hair to extend at least 5 cm beyond the area you intend to pierce, to ensure good coverage even when you move.
- This method is effective for concealing jewelry from cartilage, as even relatively short cuts can cover this part of the ear.
- On occasions when an updo is needed, make a ponytail letting the strands cover the ears.
Step 5. Wear a hat and scarf when appropriate
While not an effective solution for every situation (you have to be very skilled or lucky to explain why you wear a scarf wrapped around your head while you are at dinner), it does come in handy when doing cold work or on the commute to school.. Hats, headbands, and hats resting on your ears are perfect for solving the problem.
Baseball caps are effective because they can push voluminous hair down while hiding the ears
Step 6. Take care of the piercing you just made
In the days following the puncture you should gently clean the earlobe and the jewel by applying denatured alcohol with a cotton swab or a cotton swab twice a day; if the ear becomes inflamed, the piercing becomes quite noticeable!
- Always wash your hands before taking care of the earring and the hole.
- There are conflicting opinions regarding the usefulness of rotating the jewel or not; although some recommend doing it before bed, others say it is best avoided. Respect the instructions of the piercer you turned to, but be aware that some sources agree that you shouldn't touch and rotate it constantly.
Part 2 of 2: Keeping a Low Profile
Step 1. Remove the earring when needed
Maybe it's a trivia, but once the first six weeks have passed, you can simply remove the piercing when needed. Tissues can heal at an unpredictable rate, but the risk of the hole closing within a day or a weekend is minimal.
- Most piercings close when there is no jewelry for a period ranging from a few days to several weeks.
- A thin membrane develops above the hole which, however, does not completely occlude it; in general, it is possible to tear it with the earring without great pain. If you are having difficulty, try lubricating the area with an antibiotic ointment.
- If you are left without an earring for a long time, it is also possible to reopen the hole.
- Unlike lobe piercings, cartilage piercings can remain without jewelry for a long time without scarring; however, this type of hole takes a long time to heal than the others, as previously described.
Step 2. Use a quartz retainer
There are some transparent jewels that you can insert into the hole to keep it open with good results; although they are not perfectly invisible, careful inspection is required to notice them.
- Those in clear acrylic material are the least recommended because they have quality problems, but they are not the only solution.
- You shouldn't use them as the very first piece of jewelry; in this case, you should opt for a 14 karat gold or stainless steel product, as these are metals that minimize the risk of infection or swelling. Other materials can also trigger an allergic reaction.
Step 3. Choose jewelry whose color is similar to your skin tone
The small flesh-colored bars offer a similar result to clear retainers and may be even less noticeable. Dilated lobe holes (which are obviously more difficult to conceal) can benefit from plugs of the same skin tone.
They are available in many different materials, including acrylic and various types of silicone
Step 4. Apply a concealer
If you wish to keep the fact that you pierced your ear a secret, remove the jewelry and apply a drop of concealer or foundation to the hole. Check that the cosmetic is suitable for your complexion.
Step 5. Take advantage of the presence of other piercings
For example, if you want to divert attention from a second hole, choose a larger bar, jewelry or ring for the first. Thanks to the first piercing that "occupies the scene", the second goes completely unnoticed.
Step 6. Choose your battles
As much as you want to wear a certain type of earring or take something more particular, such as a rook, conch, industrial or daith, always take into consideration the environment around you. If you decide to wear minimalist or more traditional jewelry, you may not have to waste a lot of energy hiding it from your boss or arguing with him.
However, it is about your ears and you should always be aware that during your life you may run into situations that may prove less manageable due to bold choices in terms of earrings
Advice
- Don't fiddle with the earrings while talking to your parents or your supervisor, or you're just drawing attention to the piercing.
- If you're wearing a pair of earrings, don't tilt your head.
