Dear Baby Ear...


This might sound like a weird title... Dear Baby Ear... okay, on second though, that IS a weird title... but hear me out! (Baby Ear is a term of endearment that Mike and I have grown fond of using when referring to my right ear.) I've had stretched ears for a very very long time. Around the bend comes the new year of 2009. My ears are sitting pretty at 5/8" and I'm ready to size up to 3/4"... Well, the stretch goes great and all is fine and well... then a nice little tug happens the next day on freshly stretched lobes with tunnels... and my ear is bleeding. I took my jewelry out completely as to let it heal properly, but it's version of healing was closing up completely. Several years of work down the drain. For 13 months I had a 3/4" (and shortly thereafter it became a 1") plug and a nothing... Not even a little hole. I gave it plenty of time to heal up nice and to let the scar tissue do what it needed to do, and then upon discovering a tiny 18g hole remaining, I decided to stretch once more. Stretching scar tissue is a very tricky process, but luckily there was little to none on my ear! Brilliant! My ear managed to retain it's elasticity (and then some!) and everything just wanted to slide right through. Half a year later, my baby ear is twins with my big ear at 1"! This is a day of celebration! 

While I never minded rocking one large lobe, it's nice to have two that match again. I do NOT recommend, under any circumstances, stretching from 18g to 1" in just 6 months! My ear practically stretched on its own. Please note that my ear did amazing things and I can't even explain it, but I NEVER pushed my ear past a certain point! I was safe with taping and I never stretched if it "hurt" and NEVER EVER did it ever bleed! Please research how to stretch properly before ruining your pretty little ears! Feel free to ask questions below or in my FormSpring if you have any!

My left ear (the "big" ear) can easily fit a 1 and 1/8" or 1 1/4" plug in it, but I'll buy those once my baby ear decides it'll like to go larger.

It's a bit ridiculous to devote an entire post to my silly little baby ear, but you cannot imagine the amount of joy I had when my little white plug (with 1 1/8" flares!) went in perfectly. 

Baby ear, you are very special.

top: big ear. bottom: baby ear.

Discussion: Stretched piercings (like tattoos) aren't for everyone, I know. But for those of you who fancy them, Do you have any stretched piercings? If so, what and what size? Do you plan to go bigger? Do you feel like there is a certain point when it's no longer attractive? And, do you plan on having them sewn up at any time?

I guess it's only fair for me to answer as well. The only piercings I have that are stretched are my ears, though I plan to stretch to at least 1 1/4" or  1 1/2". I love stretched ears, and when done properly, I think ones exceeding 2 inches can look great, though they're not for me. As a body modification fan, I can appreciate and respect those who decide to stretch other piercings (such as nostrils, labrets, medusas, etc) and I can appreciate the cultural context and history that those piercings have, but they're also just not for me. I will probably have my ears sewn up at some point, though I am unsure of when that time will be. It hopefully won't be for a very very long time (if ever) so I'm not too concerned with it at this point. :)

xoxo

PS; No rude or hateful comments will be tolerated here. Please do not pick fights with any of the commenters or with me. If you do not agree with stretching or body modification, we respect your opinion but malicious comments are not welcome. (This hasn't happened, don't worry! I'm just trying to be proactive rather than reactive!)

30 comments:

  1. Something I've been wondering for a while. What is your favorite body modification that you have?

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  2. YAY for baby ear matching big ear!

    I've been stretching my lobes for years. Unfortunately, I have the sort of ears that do not take well to it. I've been stuck at a 6g forever. If I have my plugs out for more than a few minutes, I run the risk of my holes starting to close up. I'm also allergic to most tape suggested for stretching your lobes. Nonetheless, I love mine and will continue attempting to go bigger until I'm either tired of them or cannot go any farther due to my stubborn ears.

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  3. I love that you post so much, it makes my heart happy!

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  4. Yay baby ear!!!!

    Sarah
    theantiquepearl.blogspot.com

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  5. brenie: good question! maybe my chest piece?! they all mean so much for many different reasons, so its hard to choose!

    m: kudos to you for being patient though! i know how hard it is to wait when you just wanna do it! have you tried electrical tape? its actually what i use because other tapes make my ears itch!

    justinee: aw thanks! i'm always so worried that i bog peoples dashboards down, but when i get in the mood, i realllllyyy get in the mood! haha

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  6. I have 1" plugs and yes I plan to go bigger. I'm not sure what i think is too big. I think it's person to person. I have had my nostrils and septum stretched but at a certain time I didn't see the point in continuing and now am back at a normal size.
    Yay for stretching. Down with unhealthy ears.

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  7. your tweet that said "baby ear you are special" reminded me of the mika song "big girl (you are beautiful) http://bit.ly/alSi11

    baby ear (you are special) haha.

    as for your ear question! mine are currently rocking at a healthy 3/4" and i plan on gradually (of course) getting to 1" or so. i say "or so" because my original goal was 3/4" but now i think i want to go bigger. :) i think the attraction level definitely depends on the person. some people look better with larger lobes and some people don't. however, that's just my standard of beauty. when i get piercings i definitely think about the long term with them and think of heavier ones (cheeks, stretching, etc) as permanent as a tattoo. i waited until i was 18 or 19 before i started stretching my ears and don't plan on going back! so no i don't see sewing them up, but to each their own.

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  8. I love that you posted about this! I've spent the last 2 and a half years stretching my ears and they're currently at 3/4". I think I would be happy if I could get them to 1" but I doubt it will happen for me :( My earlobes are so little! I massage them with emu oil every day and leave my jewelry out for at least an hour to let the tissue relax, which keeps them healthy but unfortunately does nothing to thicken them. Do you do anything special to your ears or were you just born with beautiful lobes? Haha.

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  9. this made me smile, especially how you referred to it as a baby ear. Im glad you were able to make them match! I think that would feel a bit uneven. I don't have any stretched piercings, it's just not for me. I don't think it looks bad when they are in but when people take out very stretched earrings it really grosses me out (nothing personal, it's just my own preference) and well, I'd rather not have one of my own body parts gross me out! so I don't ever see myself stretching my ears. Plus I have had a history of getting easily infected, so risking something like that seems like a bad idea :)

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  10. I started stretching my ears a long time ago with plans to go big. After getting to a 2g I lost interest. My ears are stubborn and heal super fast so its extremely hard to get plugs out if they have flared edges. I may continue to stretch them later on, but I'm lazy about stuff like that.

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  11. I have no tattoos, piercings (aside from ears, or gages -- though I used to have my nose and libret (sp?) pierced. I think you look divine with your ears stretched! Your profile in that baby ear photo is very, very lovely. (considering a small anchor tattoo though...as my sisters and i grew up on the sea).

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  12. adorable! i just started stretching about half a year ago, and i'm now at a 4g. i never thought i would want to go larger (4 is my lucky number!) but now i'm thinking i will because i LOVE the way it looks! thanks for posting inspiring stuff to read every day! <3

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  13. haha, love it - completely work a whole post to celebrate matching ears! :)

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  14. I've got my earlobes stretched to a 0g. I'd love to go bigger, but I'm concerned about what it will look like later in life. I've been at a 0 for about two years and have recently been thinking about going bigger but I'm not sure! I love how yours look, that's kinda what's inspired me to go bigger!

    xoxo,
    susannahbean

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  15. I have stretched my septum for about 3 years now. It sits happily at 1/2" and will NEVER be stretched again. I plan on stretching my ears soon, but with work I do not find time at the moment.

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  16. I have stretched ears, there at a 0g right now but I have been given tons of crap about it, from jobs to "friends" to random people making stupid remarks but I love mine! And yours are cool! :)

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  17. This is my first time reading your blog and I think I'm already hooked!

    My ears are at 20mm and have been for about 3-4 years now, it took me about a year to get up to that size. I don't think I'll be going any bigger as it seems to be quite difficult to find nice looking jewelry for 22mm+ in the UK.

    I am now concentrating more on my tattoo collection, although that probably has a lot to do with the fact that I have been apprenticing part time for the last few years so they are more in my everyday agenda!

    Congratulations on having such a beautiful blog! xxx

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  18. I don't have streched ears... I am already having trouble with my regular earrings. But I like my boyfrind's streched ears. He is probably at 2g which I think is the perfect size - for my taste. And I am glad he doesn't plan on going bigger.

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  19. I'm for most body mods but stretching is just a little off putting lol. I guess it's cos like tattoos it's near enough permanent - You can take the jewellry out and see if it'll heal and stuff like that but from what I've read you'll end up with saggy earlobes (the only way to describe hehe)

    I did a presentation/talk at our youth group about piercing and stuff like that and explained about stretching - it was really funny especially when some of the adults looked positively green lol.

    One of the lads my brother works with has both his lobes stretched - they are big enough to fit a biro through them so he always has a spare pen with him lol.

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  20. i have half my back tattooed. love tattoos. they are a gorgeous expression of art. ear stretching is def. not for me but i don't mind it on others, along with facial peircings. to each their own!!

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  21. Kaelah,

    I've tried ever sort of tape! I last about 20 minutes before my ears are on fire. My piercer has been the most amazing girl ever for trying ever trick in the book to speed along the process but I really do just have stubborn ears.

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  22. hi there! i'm mariah (meeses) & my lobes are currently at 1 1/2", i have my philtrum pierced (18g) & my nose pierced on both sides (16g). I've had my ears this size for two years & it was my goal size, my nose for two years & my philtrum for two months. i'm rather petite, so if i went any larger (ears), i would look a little silly! & to each their own. if someone can look at their modifications & be happy about them then there really isn't anything unattractive about that! & i don't think i will ever close my ears. unless there was an emergency need to.

    thanks for having such a cute blog & posting this! i don't know of many bloggers with modifications that actually talk about them!

    xox - meeses

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  23. You look pretty with your hair up!

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  24. Hi Kaelah! I've been reading your blog forever, and I think you're such an amazing person! My ears are actually stretched to 1 1/2". This lasted until I was at a show and someone ripped my left ear. YES, completely in half! I got it stitched up, but since then I've been wearing 1" plugs instead. I don't think I'll go any bigger, because having a shaved head tends to draw more attention to my face, and it just looks awkward. Haha.
    YAY and congrats to Baby Ear!!

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  25. Oh man, this makes me miss my stretched ears! Mine were only starting to get to a good size when I landed an office job and decided it wasn't appropriate. 3 years later and I regret jumping to that decision. I'm considering redoing it and would love any advice that you'd care to share. Thanks and congrats! They look awesome :)
    Courtney

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  26. Hi sweet dear. I love this post and i just read all the feedback. Im from Denmark and i have no clue what the "tape" that a lot of you are writing about is. I kindof figured out that i helps you stretch easier?? ive had 6 mm for 4 years and i feel like my lobes just wont get any bigger and i would love them tp be 10mm.
    Any advice to get your ears more elastic? and please tell me what "tape" does? ^^

    Love
    Frederikke Therese

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  27. LOVE this post! your ears are simply beautiful! my ears are currently at a zero gauge. I have hopes of going to 5/3 of an inch, but I'll see how my skin cooperates. my septum isnt gauged large (it's just a 16 gauge) and all the other piercings ive ever had are all gone. i am however considering dermal anchors on my chest once my chest piece is completed. thats about all i have on gauging and piercings.:)

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  28. Both my lobes are stretched to 14 mm, and I've got an industrial, that's all...I want another industrial crossed over my first & lots more ear piercings, but I can only get my ears pierced at specific dates in a year (I can't practice kendo with freshly pierced ears...), and I've been broke on those for 2 years now! :(
    I wanted to go bigger on my lobes but I'm remaining at 14 mm for a while, friends all going 'eeeewwww' & 'they're big enough, stooop!' also kind of hold me back...sigh!

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  29. Omg I was stretched to a 0g on my right ear and a 2g on my left. For some reason the left just wouldn't stretch. Well when I gave birth to my daughter I lost one plug in the operation room when I had my c-section and the other somewhere in the hospital room. Lol now my ears have shrunk down and I have no clue what size they are. I was so disappointed because I had been stretching them for a while. Mine were a bit hard to stretch because I have attached lobes and they are really small. Oh well...

    Little Sugar Monster

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  30. I love you like seriously lets get married

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HEY! Thanks for dropping by. xo KB