How to Choose the Right Placement for Your Eyebrow Piercing
Once attributed to the punks and the rebels, the eyebrow piercing is now something that can fit anyone’s style. Whether you’re looking for that alternative punk style or you’re looking for something more elegant, there’s jewelry and placement options to match anyone’s style. But placement doesn’t just come down to your style; it also comes down to your anatomy—in other words, can your body support the placement of the piercing in a way that will lead to a fully healed, healthy piercing?
Like many piercings, the eyebrow piercing is also one that has a variety of placement options. Read on and we’ll go into depth about each placement option so you can make the best decision for your body and style.
What Are the Different Types of Eyebrow Piercings?
While they’ve only been around since the 1970s, there are already multiple variations of the standard eyebrow piercing (vertical).
These variations include:
- horizontal
- bridge
- anti-eyebrow
- vertical bridge
Vertical Eyebrow Piercing Placement
According to Elayne Angel, famed pioneer of piercing and the author of The Piercing Bible, “the standard spot” for an eyebrow piercing is “toward the outer third or quarter of the brow.” Although this placement is known as vertical, the piercing is often the most aesthetically pleasing on the face if it is placed in such a way that it is perpendicular to the eyebrow, with the slant of the piercing reflecting the slant from the outer corner of the eye to the outside edge of the eyebrow. This is because placement that is too vertical will make the jewelry look awkward, especially if a ring is worn because the ring will stick straight out instead of rest against the eyebrow in a more natural looking way.
While the standard placement is toward the outer third or quarter of the brow, it is important to note that the piercing can go anywhere along the brow. However, the area must have enough pliable tissue to support the piercing.
It is best to wear a ring or curved barbell in this placement.
Horizontal Eyebrow Piercing
This piercing placement has been gaining popularity over the years. Like a “standard” or “vertical” eyebrow piercing, this placement is also a surface piercing. However, the placement is either above, below, or within the brow. Another similarity this placement has to the vertical placement is the fact that it’s common for this placement to be at a slight angle to better suit and enhance your natural anatomy. In fact, you’ll want to test a few different placement options in the mirror because it can affect the expression of your natural resting face.
For this piercing placement, you will want to stick with a surface bar. While a curved barbell is doable, the rejection rate is a little bit higher than if you stick with a surface bar.
Bridge Piercing
Also known as the mid-brow piercing, the bridge piercing’s placement can start as high as the top of the eyebrows and go as low as the bridge of the nose. It is really dependent on your anatomy because the goal is to pierce wherever you have the most tissue to grab. This is because the piercing needs to be done perpendicular to the issue. If it is done too shallow, it has a high chance of rejection.
This piercing should be done with a straight barbell. If it is done with a curved barbell, it could mean there’s not enough tissue there to support it and it will have a high chance of rejection.
Additionally, this might not be the easiest piercing to heal if you wear glasses or sunglasses. This is due to the high likelihood that the piercing will become irritated when you put on or take off your glasses.
Anti-Eyebrow
Take a traditional eyebrow piercing and flip it below the eye instead of above; what results is the anti-eyebrow (also known as teardrop) piercing. Its placement is through the tissue at the highest point of your cheekbone near the outer edge of your eye. Depending on your anatomy, you may have more angular options than with other eyebrow piercings; meaning you can select from diagonal, horizontal, or any orientation where there’s enough tissue to be pinched.
You also want to think about which way is more comfortable and natural for your skin to be pinched as well as make sure that the piercing isn’t located within any wrinkle lines that occur when you close your eyes.
One negative to this placement is the fact that it’s near capillaries that can cause black eyes if they’re punctured. Another is that you have to be careful about ensuring you don’t lay on the side of the new piercing in your sleep so as to not irritate it. As for the jewelry options, you can do either a surface bar or a curved barbell.
Vertical Bridge
Also known as a third eye piercing, this is located slightly below the center of your forehead with the ability to be pierced lower or higher depending on whether your anatomy permits it.
You can wear either a dermal anchor or a flat surface bar for the piercing. With the dermal anchor, there will be more pain involved because a dermal punch is a more painful piercing than if you were to use a surface bar. However, both are considered surface piercings.
It’s actually pretty easy to heal because of its placement; you typically don’t bang your head on anything so it’s hard for something to irritate the piercing while it heals.
So, How Do You Pick the Right Eyebrow Piercing Placement?
It really all comes down to two things. Most importantly, you should ask yourself what placement you’d like most. Then, go to a professional piercer to see if your anatomy supports it; if it doesn’t your piercer will be able to suggest an alternative option.
In the meantime, start daydreaming about all the possible jewelry combinations you could create on your face and check out our eyebrow piercing jewelry collection today!
Written by Jackie Rachel
