With so many unique varieties of ear piercings out there, it's important to do your homework before you get pierced so that you know what you want, where you want it, how to style it, and, notably, how painful it will be. You can find those answers here.

Using this questionnaire will help you determine what you want out of your curated ear.

1. What jewelry do you wear now?
2. What is your jewelry style? 
3. Is your style sort of minimalist? Or is it more avant garde? Is it boho?
4. Do you prefer dainty jewelry or statement jewelry? 
5. How many piercings would you like? 
6. What is your pain threshold? 
7. Would you like to curate one ear or both ears? 
8. Do you prefer symmetry or asymmetry?
9. Is the anatomy of your ears conducive to the types of piercings you would like to get?
10. What types of piercings are you open to? Are cartilage piercings on the table? Or just lobe piercings? 
11. Are you allergic to any metals?
12. What color metals do you prefer?
13. Would you mix & match metals?
14. Would you consider gemstones?
15. Should they have meaning?
16. Would you like to add color?
17. Color coordinated or colorful?
18. How do you plan on wearing your earrings?

Keeping in mind that you should only have three piercings done at a time, and the time it takes for each pricing to heal is also important. Many ear piercings, especially cartilage piercings, take several months to heal.

Next up: The Guide to Creating the Ultimate Ear Stack