Plugs and Tunnels 101
Plugs and tunnels are for stretched piercings- typically ears and septum , but not limited to. A plug is what it sounds like- a solid piece that "plugs" your piercing. A tunnel is basically a hollowed out plug.
Plugs and tunnels can come in a variety of metals, woods, stones, plastic, and silicone. We use 316LVM surgical steel and implant grade titanium for their hypoallergenic properties. We also use Lucite (a high grade acrylic) because it won't leech harmful chemicals into your skin.
Styles of Plugs and Tunnels
There's a few different styles of plugs and tunnels, broken down by how they fit in your ear.
- No Flare : This style is a barrel with no lip. It's held in place by o-rings - often with little grooves at either end to hold them in place.
- Single Flare : This style is a barrel with a lip at the end that shows at the front of your ear. The back held in place by an o-ring - often held in place with a groove.
- Double Flare : This style is a barrel with lips at either end. You fit the piercing over the lip and then it's held in place by the flared ends. These can be tricky to get in - we recommend StretchAide to help it glide in.
- Machine Head : Also known as a screw-on or eyelet, this style unscrews at one end. It mixes security with ease. Machine heads are more secure than no flares and single flares, but easier to put in and take out than a double flare.
- Internally Threaded : This style mixes the double flare with the machine head. One of the flares unscrews, making it as easy as a single flare to put in and as secure as a machine head.
Beyond flares, there's two other notable styles of plugs.
Stash Plugs are plugs that are hollow inside, but have ends you can unscrew. This creates a small space that you can put tiny treasures in. Check out these ones with windows we carry - they come with tiny jewels.
Bling Plugs are plugs with a bezel-set or a claw-set jewel on the front. The jewels are set in 316LVM stainless steel. For the most bling, the jewel is bigger than the barrel of the plug. We make ours with Austrian crystal, because unlike CZ they don't cloud up. Your bling will never lose their sparkle.