Layla’s First ESJ Earrings!

Hi!

Layla Meadow is officially wearing her first pair of earrings made by her mama!

I first mentioned piercing Layla’s ears when she was around 4 months old. My husband, Austin, said, “Of course! I’m surprised it took this long!” Austin and I joked that of course she’d have her ears pierced at a youngish age so she could wear her mama’s work. In all seriousness, though, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to proceed in the baby stage or wait a few years. I started reading all sorts of online blogs and articles about piercing baby ears. I reached out to many of my favorite mamas who have pierced their little ladies’ ears. I also contacted Layla’s pediatrician. I decided, for many reasons, that Layla would get her ears pierced when she turned 6 months old (the minimum age requirement at our pediatrician’s office) by her doctor.

A few of the reasons behind my decision to have her ears pierced at 6 months old:

  1. As a baby, there was less likelihood that she’d be playing with the pierces as they healed.
  2. There is important maintenance after piercing.  The holes must be sterilized and earrings turned twice a day.  I knew this care would be a simple addition to our morning and evening routine.
  3. While the piercing would likely pinch when it was happening, she would most likely not remember this moment.
  4. The cuteness factor.  I couldn’t wait to see my sweet girl with her darling little earrings!

Layla’s ears were pierced around 9:30am. I read sometimes people give their babies Tylenol, use a numbing cream, or rub ice on the ears before piercing to ease discomfort. My pediatrician said no to all of these. When we arrived at the doctor’s office, there was happiness in the air.  The nurses and pediatrician were so excited and made the experience fun and memorable.  The doctor drew a tiny blue dot on each ear to mark the spot for the piercing.  Then, one at a time, she used a piercing gun to insert each gold ball earring.  Layla let out a 20 second cry after each pierce and then was her happy smiley self!  Her ears were flushed looking for about 15 minutes and then went right back to normal.

The follow up care was simple and straightforward. For the first two weeks, I used an alcohol swab around each piercing and rotated the studs morning and night. The doctor said this actually only needed to be done the first week, but I wanted to be extra careful! I continued to clean the ears at night with an alcohol swab and rotation until it was time to remove the gold ball studs. I kept the original studs in for about 6 weeks total.

I am thrilled to share that Layla’s first earrings are my 14 karat yellow gold teeny tiny heart studs with white diamonds! I made them with a slightly different screw style short post and earring back that I prefer for babies. (You can always request this style post and back for your earrings!) The hearts are classic and she can wear them now and as a grown woman! It makes me emotional to think about building her jewelry collection.  These are really special to me and I hope she always looks at them and remembers this time.

Peace and love,
Elisa