After piercing your earlobes and the outer rim, or helix, of your cartilage, you may be interested in piercing other parts of your ear. Professional body piercers offer piercings of other parts of your ear cartilage. During a consultation at the piercing shop, a professional piercer will advise you as to which ear cartilage piercings are appropriate for your anatomy.
Snug
A snug ear piercing is located in the antihelix of the ear. On the ear, the antihelix is across from the ear canal. The antihelix is a cartilage part of the ear that protrudes to form a vertical ledge; the jewelry sits horizontally on the antihelix. You may not be a candidate for a snug piercing if the ledge of your antihelix is flat or thin, for your body may reject the jewelry. The weight of the jewelry on the flat or thin skin of the antihelix can cause rejection.
Appropriate jewelry for a snug piercing is a 16-gauge curved barbell. The piercer may pierce your snug at the larger size of 14 gauge if your antihelix is large enough to accommodate the jewelry.
Daith
Located directly above the ear canal, a daith is a vertical ear piercing. A piercer places a daith piercing in the ridge of cartilage where your ear meets your scalp, called the helix crus. When a daith is pierced correctly, the jewelry provides the illusion of emerging from the ear canal. Most commonly pierced with a captive bead ring, your daith piercing also has the option of a barbell for jewelry.
Even though pressure, from sleeping or using the telephone, is not recommended during the healing period of any ear cartilage piercing, the daith fares the best out of all the ear cartilage piercings when exposed to pressure. This is due to the other protruding cartilage in your ear that surrounds and protects your daith piercing.
Rook
The technical name for the anatomy where a rook piercing is located is the inferior crus of the antihelix. The location of the rook piercing is in the upper portion of the ear, close to the scalp, where the longest, horizontal ridge of cartilage begins. The jewelry sits vertically on the ridge of the cartilage. Depending on your anatomy, it may sit completely straight or at a slight angle. Curved barbells and captive bead rings, at the size of 16 gauge, are acceptable jewelry for the rook piercing.
While healing your rook piercing, a curved barbell has a lower risk of irritation than a ring. A captive bead sticks out forward from your ear and is more likely to catch on clothing and combs than a barbell.
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