A Guide To Curating The Perfect Ear Stack

Piercings are a little bit like tattoos: once you start, it’s hard to stop getting them. But before you dive in and get creative with a piercing gun, it might be worth booking an ear curation service so you don’t end up with overcrowded lobes. Here’s everything you need to know about how to curate the perfect ear stack (and where to go for advice).

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How To Curate An Ear Stack, According To The Experts

What Is An Ear Stack?

‘An ear stack is basically when an ear is adorned with multiple jewels and piercings,’ says Vanessa Chilton, co-founder of British fine jewellery label Robinson Pelham. ‘They’re usually started from the lobe upwards, but can include piercings anywhere along the ear.’

(c) Robinson Pelham

What To Keep In Mind Before Starting An Ear Stack

Plan Ahead

If you know you want to get multiple piercings – either all in one go or gradually built up over time – then it’s best to get an idea of what kind of stack you want. Vanessa tells us that it’s important to have some kind of plan or inspiration (Pinterest is great for sourcing images) before going to the piercer. At Robinson Pelham, you can get up to four piercings at a time (it’s recommended you don’t get more than five in one sitting), and can consult stylists and piercers for this advice.

‘All ears differ,’ reminds Vanessa. ‘Think about what sort of earrings you will want to wear and how they will look with any piercings you already have: hoops, studs, studs with labret fittings (especially for cartilage piercings).’

Check The Size Of Your Ears

It’s also important to take into account the size of your ears, as this will determine how likely you will be able to have multiple piercings. ‘Depending on your ears, some piercings may not work,’ says Vanessa. ‘Piercers can give you advice on what will and won’t work, as can curation services such as ours; we style lots of ears and know what looks great from years of experience.’

Avoid Overloading

The last thing you want are ears laden down with jewellery to the point where it looks messy or feels uncomfortable to wear. By using a curation service, you can get advice directly from piercers and stylists on how best to organise your piercings – as well as find the right size and style of jewellery.

(c) Robinson Pelham

Styling An Ear Stack

Start With The Lobes

Finding the right starting point is crucial when it comes to building up an ear stack – and Vanessa tells us that, when it comes to styling, it’s best to start with the lobes: ‘We usually start with hoops in the lobe and then we work up the ear with smaller earrings to the mid point, where we will introduce a cuff (no piercing required) and then onto studs with labret fittings which can be worn on the flat, forward helix, tragus and more.’

It’s all about being careful with size and volume, but Vanessa does remind us that it’s OK to play around and see which styles work best for you when curating your ear stack.

Symmetry vs Asymmetry

An age-old question in the world of ear piercing: do you need to get the same piercings on both ears for them to look good? ‘Not necessarily,’ says Vanessa. ‘There is nothing wrong with symmetry, but we love non-symmetry and we encourage our customers to curate their ears differently.’ Not only do asymmetrical piercings make your ears differ from others, they also help the piercings that do go solo on each ear stand out all the more.

Mixing Metals

The same approach goes for mixing metals – it’s completely down to you whether you want to stick to one metal or mix and match them across your piercings. ‘You can indeed mix metals across your piercings,’ says Vanessa. ‘Or you can even dress one ear in one metal and the other ear in another for a fun twist.’

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