I genuinely enjoy working beautifully colored rare materials like chrysoprase, sugilite, and lapis lazuli. Still, there's something to be said for the idea of affordability and accessibility to color, and ceramic is the ideal material for that conversation.
Early this year, I set out to give independent makers and small businesses in the body jewelry industry a way to make smarter business decisions with analytics. We can look at our past sales and infer trends like our most popular sizes and styles, but I wanted to provide a broader look at the current size and buying patterns industry wide. After 16 years of business, I have enough sales records to see a general picture of my customers, but my data set is still limited. The goal of this survey is to create connections between size, style, and cost that allow us to make smart decisions based on what consumers are actively looking to purchase.
I am currently working hard to get all pending orders for standard made-to-order (non-custom) jewelry that have come in through the website finished and shipped in the days leading up to my holiday closure on Friday 12/21.
After 12/17 I can guarantee shipment of orders for in stock and ready to ship jewelry until the afternoon of 12/21 when the last mail shipment goes out.
I strongly suggest Priority or Express mail service to ensure any orders that are gifts or otherwise needed for Christmas to be delivered on time. I guarantee that we'll get it in the mail, but I can't control the shipping time.
My workshop will be closed from 12/22 to Tuesday 1/1 so I can rest my hands and spend time with my family. I may be in the workshop cleaning or prototyping but nothing will ship during this time. Correspondence will happen periodically, just be patient.
I'll be back in the workshop making jewelry and getting on with business as usual the week of 1/1/19. Thanks to you this business is now 16 years old. I appreciate your support. Have a safe and happy holiday!
Jared Karnes, Owner/Jeweler
I've been experimenting with a new process that allows me to create unique, one of a kind gemstones with a modern aesthetic that embraces the distinctive color and light play characteristics of each stone. These gems are combinations of multiple stones laminated together and are named for the number of layers of stone in the completed piece. Two layers is a doublet, and three is called a triplet.
A first of its kind, SOMA is a creative body jewelry experiment inviting customer participation and challenging me to write more. I've created this new original ear weight style with a fictional backstory that customers will have the opportunity to help complete.
I am excited about these ear weights because I like heavy jewelry and the spool is one of my favorite styles. I define the spool style as having a smaller than necessary wearing surface and massive flares on both sides. The flares balance the piece front to back and prevent it from falling out. Halfway between a plug an and ear weight, the result is a comfortable and very stable piece of jewelry.
As I design and produce new innovative styles and continue exploring my favorite materials, I find myself creating more one-offs and high end pieces as stock for the website. This has me wanting to expand how we take payments so the initial up-front cost is not a barrier to wearing the materials and styles you love. I'm pleased to say that I have settled on a solution that streamlines the payment process and gives you some flexibility in scheduling payments to fit your lifestyle.
I've been hard at work on some new ear weight styles to debut at this year's Association of Professional Piercers conference, and I am pleased to introduce Iona (E-Oh-Nah).
Jewelry Size | Flare Size | Wearing Length |
1.0mm (18g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
1.3mm (16g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
1.5mm (14g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
2.0mm (12g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
2.5mm (10g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
3.0mm (8g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
4.0mm (6g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
5.0mm (4g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
6.0mm | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
6.5mm (2g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
7.0mm (1g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
8.0mm (0g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
9.0mm (00g) | 1-1.5mm | 9mm |
10mm | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
11mm (7/16") | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
12mm | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
13mm (1/2") | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
14mm (9/16") | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
15mm | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
16mm (5/8") | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
17mm (11/16") | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
18mm | 1-1.5mm | 10mm |
19mm (3/4") | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
20mm (13/16") | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
21mm | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
22mm (7/8") | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
23mm | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
24mm (15/16") | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
25mm | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
26mm (1") | 1-1.5mm | 11mm |
27mm (1 1/16") | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
28mm | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
29mm (1 1/8") | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
30mm (1 3/16") | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
31mm | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
32mm (1 1/4") | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
33mm (1 5/16") | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
34mm | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
35mm (1 3/8") | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
36mm | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
37mm (1 7/16") | 1-1.5mm | 12mm |
38mm (1 1/2") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
39mm | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
40mm (1 9/16") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
41mm (1 5/8") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
42mm | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
43mm (1 11/16") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
44mm (1 3/4") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
45mm | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
46mm (1 13/16") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
47mm | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
48mm (1 7/8") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
49mm (1 15/16") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
50mm | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
51mm (2") | 1.5-2mm | 13mm |
Wearing length is the area of the jewelry that fits inside your piercing.
Overall length (sometimes confused with wearing length) is the total measurement of the jewelry from face to face, including any additional flare or face area.
Diagram of jewelry styles with wearing length marked in green and overall length marked in red.
1. Flat face double flared plug. Wearing length is measured from the inside of the flare edges. Overall length is measured from face to face.
2. Convex face double flared plug. Wearing length is measured from the inside of the flare edges. Overal length is measured from face to face.
3. Flat face double flared plug with flat flares. Wearing length is measured from inside the flare edges (the piercing cannot rest on the flat flare areas). Overall length is measured face to face.
4. Trumpet flare style plug. The dotted line denotes where the wearing surface ends on the front, because the larger portion of the slope cannot fit inside the piercing. Wearing surface is measured from inside the rear flare edge to the area on the front flare with the same diameter measurement. Overall length is measured from face to face.
5. Sloped single flare plug. Wearing length is measured from where the slope of the flare ends to the end of the plug. Overall length is measured from face to face.
6. Top-hat style single flare with convex face. Wearing length is measured from the inside flare corner to the end of the plug. Overall length is measured from face to face.
7. Top-hat style single flare with curved rear. Wearing length is measured from the inside flare corner to the beginning of the curve (the piercing cannot rest on the slope). Overall length is measured from face to face.
8. Top-hat style single flare with groove for an o-ring. Wearing length is measured from the inside flare corner to the groove (the piercing cannot rest on the groove). Overall length is measured from face to face.
9. Labret (round or oval) with a standard concave t-back. Wearing length is measured from where the wearing shaft meets the wing to the end of the flat portion (the piercing cannot rest on the slope).
Overall length is always longer than the wearing surface because it includes other sections of the jewelry that do not rest inside the piercing. If you are ordering a piece of jewerly and you specify an overall length instead of a wearing length, your jewelry will not fit properly. Order using "overall length" at your own risk. Knowing your ideal wearing length, which can change as you stretch your piercings, ensures you're able to order jewelry that will fit well from every vendor, every time.