Everything You Need to Know About Helix Piercings

A helix piercing is located at the top of the ear, in the cartilaginous area. It’s a very popular piercing as it gives your ear a beautiful look. When considering getting a helix piercing, it’s important to be well-informed about some of the risks involved. We’ve got your back!

Where should I get a helix piercing?

When you get your piercing done at a professional studio, you can ask for their professional certification and check for adequate hygiene. At a studio, your piercer is in control of hygiene, which means the pliers and tools they use are completely sterile.

Additionally, your piercing will be made with a hollow one-time-use needle that is gentle on the ear. This means your helix piercing will heal quickly and you'll save yourself a lot of unnecessary pain.

Even though being pierced with a needle rather than a gun can feel a bit scarier, it’s the safest option.

The risks of being pierced with a gun

Many people choose to be pierced with a gun because they aren’t fully aware of its consequences. Piercing guns can be disinfected, but they cannot be sterilized. Therefore they might contain blood and bacteria from previous customers. Worst case scenario, piercing guns might carry hepatitis or other life-threatening bacteria.

Besides, the way the earring rod in the gun is shot causes significant trauma to the flesh, which is more likely to cause infection. Unfortunately, there is no legislation on how piercing guns should be cleaned. Nor are there any requirements on the hygiene of the room in which they are used.

When it comes to getting a piercing, go to a professional. You wouldn’t like anyone to mess with your teeth if they weren’t certified dentists either.

What kind of jewelry should I wear on my helix?

Helix piercings allow for a wide variety of jewelry! You may want to wear a ring, a horseshoe, or a barbell - either straight or curved. Labrets are often used to feel more comfortable when sleeping, as we might sleep on our pierced ears. When choosing the jewelry for your helix, you should consider whether your piercing was done with a gun or a needle.

Piercings made with guns have a smaller thread thickness than most of the piercing jewelry sold at Bodymod.

If you've had your piercing done by a professional piercer, the options for piercing jewelry are almost endless. Apart from the size of your jewelry, you may want to consider that horseshoes and piercing rings are very easy to clean, as you can move them around without taking them out. Labrets collect much less dirt, as they don’t have hooks and edges. If you don’t have a helix piercing yet, you may want to look for a clip-on instead!

What size jewelry should I wear on my helix?

Regarding horseshoes and rings, the most common diameter is 8 mm. Labrets are popular from 6 to 8 mm in length.There are no rules when it comes to piercing jewelry size. Find a design that you like and feel comfortable with, and you are good to go.

What are the best materials for helix piercings?

Once you've found the type of jewelry you want for your helix piercing, the next choice concerns the material. Most piercers use titanium for the first piece of jewelry as it is considered one of the safest materials for new piercings. But once your piercing has healed, there are many different materials to choose from, like surgical steel, 14K gold, brass, or PTFE.

How should I take care of a new helix piercing?

Ear piercings might be more exposed to dirt than other kinds of piercings. Think of hair, make-up, and hair products, for example. Try to avoid these coming into contact with your new piercing, especially during the healing period. In addition, you should change your pillowcase often so that your ear is not lying on a dirty cover.

But for the most part, you should take care of helix piercings like any other piercing.