All about Lip Piercings
Table of contents
- What different types of lip piercings are there?
- The History of Lip Piercing
- What should I pay attention to when choosing a piercing?
- The right care for the newly pierced piercing
- Do I have to pay attention to anything special after piercing
- How long does it take for a lip piercing to heal properly
What different types of lip piercings are there?
There are hardly any other places on the body where you can find as many piercing variations as on the lips.
The Medusa piercing is placed centrally above the upper lip, more precisely in the groove between the upper lip and nose. Labret piercings placed laterally above the upper lip are called Madonna piercings or Monroe piercings.
Labret piercings
Various labret piercings are placed directly in the vermilion part of the lip. For example, the Eskimo piercing, where the piercing channel begins below the vermilion part of the lower lip and exits into the vermilion part. In contrast, there is the Jestrum piercing, where the jewelry is placed on the vermilion part of the upper lip.
With the Ashley piercing (also known as the Racoon piercing), the piercing channel runs from the outer vermilion part of the lip into the mouth. The Lane piercing is a surface piercing through the vermilion part of the lip.
Depending on the arrangement of the piercings, a distinction is made between:
• Angelbites/Whiskers (two piercings symmetrically distributed on the upper lip)
• Cyberbites (Medusa piercing combined with labret piercing of the lower lip)
• Spiderbites (two piercings placed next to each other on one side of the lower lip)
• Sharkbites (two piercings placed next to each other on both sides of the lower lip)
• Dolphinbites (two piercings placed next to each other in the middle of the lower lip)
• Snakebites (two piercings symmetrically distributed on both sides of the lower lip)
• Viperbites (two piercings with a larger distance on one side of the lower lip)
• Canine bites (four piercings as a combination of Snakebites and Angelbites)
There are of course other ways to combine lip piercings. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to come to the studio. We’ll be happy to advise you.
The History of Lip Piercing
Lip piercings have a long tradition and are widespread all over the world. Many indigenous peoples in Africa, South America, and along the Pacific have had so-called labrets for many centuries. The term “labret” is derived from the Latin labrum, which means lip. Some indigenous peoples had lip piercings for ethnic or religious reasons. Sudanese men, for example, put particularly large rings on their wives’ lips to make them appear unattractive to men of other people. Among various North Pacific peoples, lip piercings were, among other things, a wedding ritual.
In the Western world, labret piercings (which nowadays only refer to piercing variants of the lower lip) only became established in the 1990s and even then only in certain sections of the population, such as the punk or techno scene. There are now many fans of labret piercings across all population groups and age groups.
What should I pay attention to when choosing a piercing?
The human anatomy is crucial for which piercings you can and should choose. A piercer can give you good advice here. Immediately after piercing, a so-called labeled stud is inserted as the first piece of jewelry, which is ideally made of titanium or PTFE. PTFE has the advantage of being particularly gentle on the gums and being available in individual lengths. After the healing process, ball closure rings can be used in addition to circular barbells (horseshoes). It is important to be aware of possible allergies and to consider the size of the respective pieces of jewelry.
The right care for newly pierced lip piercings
Hygiene and caution are important tips for a newly pierced lip piercing. Ideally, you should not touch the piece of jewelry at all for the first few days, and if you do, only with disinfected hands. The fresh piercing should be cleaned twice a day with a suitable care product. Alcoholic drinks and nicotine should be avoided completely, at least in the first few days after piercing. To protect the piercing channel, we shorten the bar after about 2 weeks.
Do I have to pay attention to anything special after the piercing?
Alcohol and nicotine are taboo after piercing. Nicotine initially constricts the blood vessels, but soon afterward it expands, which can lead to unwanted bleeding. Alcohol consumption causes the blood vessels to expand and can lead to bleeding into the tissue (bruises). However, even without alcohol, small bleeding and so-called subdural hematomas can occur.
In the first few days after piercing, it is advisable to avoid dairy products.
