Lip Labrets @ Jewel Info 4 U
By: RITIKA CHANGRANI
SUMMARY: A style statement
today, the lip labret is becoming
increasing popular and you have a
wide variety of choices when it
comes to selecting a piece of
jewelry for the lip piercing.
The
Dogon and
Nuba tribes of Mali and Ethiopia
come to one's mind while talking
about piercing of the lips for the
insertion of rings but the same art
craft, though with different
objects, is practiced all over the
world. Other forms of lip piercing
involve labrets including the types
like ivory, metal or quartz crystals
etc. There's no restriction on the
size of the labrets and the same is
extended to large proportions. Since
ancient times, even high-caste males
have adorned their bodies with
exotic labrets in a wide variety of
shapes and sizes and metal or
material type.
 A particular kind of lip plates
called 'Pelele' is worn in the upper
lip by the
Makololo tribal of Malawi and
unlike various guesses regarding the
reason behind sporting such a
labret, the actual truth is that the
same is considered a piece of
jewelry for the females.
A RING OR A STUD?
The person interested in the
piercing should decide whether
he/she prefers a ring or a stud
since the piercing will probably
last forever after healing. The
piercing style differs depending on
the selected labret. The labret stud
does not fit beautifully in the
piercing for a ring because of the
fitting angle differences. The wide
range of options available for
labret studs adds to its versatility
and many rate the stud to be far
better than the ring in terms of
aesthetical looks.
While piercing for a ring, the spot
can be chosen along the lip and
depending on the type of look you
need, you can use rings with varying
diameters. A few cases of nesting
have also been reported in case of
thin gauge jewelry though they heal
rapidly. Nesting is the process of
movement of position of the piercing
inside the lip and this tendency is
more regularly seen in case of
rings. The choices available for
ring bodies are in solid gold or
surgical steel or a combination of
both.
In case of studs, the piercing is
done at an angle or else the back
portion of the stud might damage
your gum. It is placed at the center
of the lower lip or in the upper
lip's corner. A distance of about
5-10 mm below the line of lower lip
is the most favored place for the
labret stud. The front plate of the
labret stud sports a small bolt
adorned by a ball whereas the back
flat plate is inside the mouth. The
versatile stud offers you a wide
range of options including the
standard solid gold or surgical
steel and their combination along
with others like Lucite, which glows
in the dark. Each of these options
allow for the person's particular
choice of attachments or gemstones.
The available jewelry options are
jeweled studs, colored acrylic balls
and spikes, UV acrylic shapes, steel
balls with or without gold plating
and different shapes.
God planned it perfectly for
everyone so that the piercing for
the rings or studs does not lead to
any infection in the mouth. The
mouth has enzymes to inhibit growth
of bacteria and the 6-10 weeks of
healing is infection-free though a
swelling with a life span of a week
to a dozen days might be visible
after 2-3 days of piercing. It is
advisable to prefer longer labrets
till swelling lasts and then,
shorter labrets can be regularly
worn as well.
The nesting process due to rings
puts extra stress on the piercing
wound. The wound usually settles
down and you need not panic if the
back plate of the stud embeds in it
because the skin is in the process
of dying off to form a depression so
that the stud can sit fittingly.
DOS AND DON'TS - FEW CARING
TIPS
Once you have got your skin pierced,
you need to be very careful about
the maintenance of the region or
portion of body in/around the
piercing. This requires the use of a
number of aftercare products
available at any chemist's shop.
Unlike misconceptions, avoid using
hydrogen peroxide, betadine,
methylated spirits or alcohol-based
cleansers as they can be styptic and
can damage the cells. Similarly,
creams and ointments should not be
used as they allow for moist wounds
that will hamper the healing.
Useable products include lavender
oil, sea salt, mouthwash, Difflam-G
and B-vitamins with Zinc. Check the
medicinal grades of the chemicals
before using them. Iodine content
should be nil in all the chemicals
especially, salt because it can
affect the healing of the wound.
Besides these, paper towels or
tissues can be used for hot
compressions.
Besides these products, one should
be careful enough not to touch the
piercing except while cleaning it.
Rinse mouth with a suitable
mouthwash and also, suck lozenges
like Difflam-C to reduce swelling
and infection chances. Clean the
front portion of the piercing using
saline-cotton balls. Lavender oil
lubricates the pierced wound to
promote healing but any excess of it
should be removed after placing the
jewelry as it might cause irritation
otherwise. Prefer eating cold things
like ice cream since it promotes
healing and reduces pain and
swelling. Gently remove the crust
formed on the stud.
While chewing food, be careful not
to hit the stud back plate with your
teeth. Check hygienically that the
jewelry is placed tightly. No
kissing or oral sex for the first
month after piercing. Playing with
the jewelry by chewing on it can
damage you teeth. Remove the stud
only after the healing period or
else the closed up hole would cause
you great pain while reinserting the
labret. For the first 2 years,
removing the ring or labret for more
than a day might lead to closing of
the piercing.
A labret stud can be changed
yourself once the healing period is
over but to change the ring, seek a
piercer's help. They can also help
to reinsert in the closed hole using
their taper pins, if such a
situation develops. Studs are
usually very small and therefore,
while changing them, keep a towel in
front of you. Once having developed
a firm grip on the stud's plate,
unscrew the stud's front
counter-clockwise and insert new
stud after removing the older one.
Screw the front finger tightly.
Practice a couple of times and you
would master the art of looking
great with different kind of rings
and lip labrets.
Take care of your piercing and sport
different lip labrets to suit your
style - make heads turn wherever you
go!
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