Honestly? There's no wrong answer. Unless you have a diagnosed metal allergy confirmed by a doctor, this decision comes down to two things: aesthetics and cost. That's genuinely it.
Before we go any further though, I want to be clear about what I'm talking about here. I am only ever referring to high-grade implant-grade ASTM F-136 titanium and high-grade solid 14ct gold, sourced from verified wholesalers who have gone through the APP (Association of Professional Piercers) process. This matters enormously. Whatever goes in your body needs to be biocompatible and safe, and not all jewellery marketed as body jewellery actually is. More on that in a bit.
The honest answer
If you're a gold person, get gold. If you like the look of titanium, get titanium. If you want that gold warmth but prefer silver tones, white gold exists and it's beautiful. Really, that's the whole decision for most people.
There's a lot of noise online about one being better than the other from a healing perspective, and for the vast majority of people, with properly sourced high-grade materials, both heal just as well. If your doctor has confirmed an allergy to a specific metal, that changes things and we'll talk through your options. But in the absence of a confirmed allergy, please don't choose your jewellery based on internet forums telling you that gold is safer or titanium heals faster. With quality materials, both are excellent.
Left: a full yellow gold curation. Right: a titanium curation. Both beautiful, both body-safe, completely different aesthetics.
Where titanium has its limits
Titanium is fantastic for all the basics: labrets, bars, curves, balls. It's what all your backing pieces will be made from regardless of what front you choose. However, if you want tiny, dainty, intricate pieces with fine detail, titanium isn't really going to get you there. It's an incredibly hard metal to work with at small scale, which limits how delicate and detailed the designs can be.
Gold, on the other hand, is malleable and strong once formed. This is what allows the industry to produce those impossibly tiny floral pieces, the little insects, the fine-set gemstone ends, the details that make a curation feel genuinely bespoke. If you want the cute minimalist stuff, you're looking at gold.
The range of what's possible with gold — from tiny delicate pieces to statement drops. This is what makes gold so special for ear curations.
On the cost of gold pieces
This is where the conversation gets honest. If you want a tiny piece with a real emerald in 14ct gold that is fully body safe and will genuinely outlast a cockroach in the apocalypse, yes, it will cost you. Sometimes a lot.
But here's the reframe I want to offer: this is not a purchase, it's an investment. These pieces can become family heirlooms. They don't tarnish, they don't degrade, they don't need replacing. The cost of gold has risen significantly over the last few years, which directly affects what wholesalers charge us and therefore what we charge you. Nobody in this chain is sitting on a huge margin. What you're paying for is quality, longevity, and safety.
Nobody is saying you need to spend $500 on a single piece. But if that's what's required to get the specific thing you want in a metal that's going to be in your body safely for the rest of your life, it's worth thinking about differently than you'd think about, say, getting a snack.
Titanium pieces from Junipurr — the range is extensive. Spikes, gems, textured balls, everything you need for the basics and beyond.
What's included and what's not
All of my standard labrets, bars and curves are implant-grade ASTM F-136 titanium. You also get a 2.5mm or 3mm ball (depending on the location and your anatomy) included in the piercing fee. Every titanium upgrade available in my studio is also ASTM F-136. Even if you choose a gold front, the backing piece it sits on will be titanium unless we've specifically discussed otherwise.
A quick note on threading
This matters more than most people realise, and it goes hand in hand with the quality of jewellery you're buying. There are three types of threading in piercing jewellery.
A guide to the three threading types — internally threaded and threadless are both safe, externally threaded should be avoided entirely.
Internally threaded means the thread is on the front piece itself, which screws into the backing. This is a safe and widely used system, particularly common for curved bars, straight bars and larger front pieces that benefit from that extra stability and secure connection. It works really well alongside threadless systems and you'll find a mix of both in any good quality jewellery collection. Different gauges use different thread sizes, which is another reason why sourcing from reputable wholesalers matters.
Threadless means the front has a small straight pin (0.25 gauge) that slides into the backing. At the halfway point a slight bend is put into the pin, and the tension from that bend keeps it in place. (It sounds precarious. It isn't, I promise.) This is the most common system for gold fronts and honestly one of the most elegant solutions once you're used to it.
Externally threaded is the one you want to avoid. (If someone offers you this, hiss at them until they reconsider.) With external threading, the thread is on the end of the bar and the top screws onto it. This means that every time that bar is inserted through a piercing channel, sharp, uncleanable threading is being dragged through living tissue causing micro tears. It's uncomfortable, it causes irritation, and in more serious cases, infection. External threading is cheap to produce, which is why it's everywhere in low-quality "body jewellery" sold to the public. It is not something I will ever put in your body.
An honourable mention: the butterfly back
Almost all of us have had one of these stuck in a lobe at some point. (I have personally had to cut them out of people's ears, mostly children who got pierced at Claire's, and that is a whole separate post I will write one day.) Butterfly backs are problematic for a few reasons: the materials are typically mystery metals, the gauge is often inconsistent, and the backing mechanism creates too much pressure on the piercing itself causing inflammation, irritation, and in some cases, the back embedding into the skin.
If you have children whose ears were pierced somewhere like this, please come in and let me assess them. It's not about judgment, it's about making sure they're comfortable and healing properly.
"These pieces can become family heirlooms. They don't tarnish, they don't degrade, they don't need replacing."
The short version
Gold or titanium, both are excellent with proper quality materials. Gold gives you more design options at smaller scales. Titanium is your workhorse for backings and basics. Whatever you choose, make sure it's coming from a piercer who sources properly, because the most important factor in safe jewellery isn't the metal, it's who is selling it to you and where they're getting it from. 🖤
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