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How to Wear Heavy Earrings | Solutions for Stretched or Damaged Lobes | Girandole Earrings

My mother says she does not wear earrings much these days.  Her ear lobes have been stretched from years of wearing heavy earrings. Some people have also experienced tears.  So earrings just don't sit right any more. They droop. And in some cases, look like they are about to rip through!

There are solutions to help people wear earrings again. These are based on distributing the weight of the earrings over a larger area on the back of the ear rather than concentrate it on the piercing itself.

There are commercial products - one is called  Lobe Wonder which are support adhesive pads for the back of ears.

There is also the DIY version using surgical tape :

Both the solutions require that you use the stud post or ear hook to pierce the adhesive patches.

Heavy earrings are nothing new.  Back in the 18th century, women starting wearing massive girandole earrings inspired by the ornate branched candlesticks and chandeliers of the same name and period.  That is where we get our modern term "chandelier" earrings. Girandole earrings were typically 3 pendants hanging from a large focal.  Many historical paintings show this style.

Queen Charlotte (1744-1818), wife of Britain's King George III (The Mad King")

The women back then struggled with the same weight issue. So special fittings had to be added to designs. JoyJonesJewelry explained :  "Wire was hinged on one side that could be inserted, back to front for pierced ears, or looped up over the top of the ear. An additional loop held a ribbon which was secured in the hair, also taking weight off the ears."

 This rare diamond pair below, posted by fd_gallery  dates back to 1770. Girandole earrings are rare today because these huge designs were often broken up into smaller pieces. No wonder!

Before You Go:

Original Post by THE BEADING GEM
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  1. What a brilliant solution this is! So easy to do as well.

    When I had my ears pierced someone did it in their home using a piercing gun with a huge bore on it. I ended up with huge holes that are just as bad as having stretched ear lobes. As I've aged I'm quite aware of these and have looked for solutions to even the lightest pair of earrings hanging awkwardly. This is the answer!

    Thank you for sharing this Pearl!

    1. Great! Mine were pierced with a regular needle so the holes actually don't run straight. I have to pull my ear lobes to get the ear wire through!

  2. When this happened to my mother she had her ears repierced. The original holes closed up even though they had been there for 50+ years (if you LOOK for them, of course you can still find them but only if you are intentionally looking) and it was a great solution for her. She says best $10 she had spent in a long time.

    1. Are the new holes a little higher than central for her now?

    2. No actually the old holes had dropped with age as her earlobe had stretched so the new holes were right where they should be.

  3. How wonderful someone thought about that! My ears are very sensitive and allergic to non-precious metals but also to heavy 925 silver earrings and heavy gauge ear wires. I'll have to try how this works!

  4. That was really interesting reading, Pearl. I didn't realise the origin of the term "chandelier earring". Thanks for that interesting little tidbit.

    1. I enjoy reading about historical jewelry so I am glad to share what I learned.



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