Where to start?

Stainless Steel, Titanium and Niobium are some of the safest metals you can wear. If you have any issues with these metals, medical plastic or bioplast jewellery are a great option or while your new piercings settles down.

What does hypoallergenic mean?

The word hypoallergenic means: unlikely to cause an allergic reaction. 95% of our customers are able to wear our jewellery, but we cannot guarantee that no one will react to an item of jewellery as it is possible to be allergic to anything.

Medical Plastic

Medical plastic is made from a hardened version of the material used in surgical sutures.

Titanium

Titanium is strong, lightweight and highly biocompatible (non-toxic and not rejected by the body).

Titanium is an excellent choice for anyone with sensitive skin, especially for those allergic to nickel, silver or gold. Allergic reactions to titanium are extremely rare even in people sensitive to other metals.

Titanium can be anodised to create a range of colours. Anodising creates a thin oxide layer which is just as biocompatible as polished titanium. The colour produced depends on the thickness of the oxide layer. There are no other materials added and there is no plating or painting.

Titanium is suitable for both initial and healed body piercings.

Titanium grades
It is important to remember that the main difference between these grades of titanium is mostly in the manufacturing. All are suitable for initial and healed piercings.

Grades 1 - 4 (CP/commercially pure titanium) are slightly softer so are best for making earring hooks and other shapes. Mostly used for earrings.
Grade 5 (Ti-6AL-4V) is stronger and less malleable and is used for most body jewellery.
Ti-6AL-4V ELI ASTM F-136 is a refined version of grade 23 used in Industrial Strength (brand name, not a description of the titanium grade) body jewellery. Also known as implant grade titanium.

Surgical Steel and Stainless Steel

316L Stainless Steel, also known as surgical steel is a great metal for people with sensitive skin. It is commonly known to be hypoallergenic, tarnish free and very strong.

Stainless steel can contain small amounts of nickel, however it is the rate of release of nickel (rather than nickel content) that really matters. The specific composition of 316L steel (also known as implant grade steel and surgical stainless steel) allows for very little exposure to the nickel molecules which reduces the risk of allergic reactions.

Nickel Release Rates
316L surgical steel (used in earrings and body jewellery) - around 0.02μg/cm2/week
304 stainless steel (used in earring hooks) - around 0.08μg/cm2/week
430 stainless steel (used in earring hooks) - less than 0.5μg/cm2/week

Surgical steel is suitable for use in healed piercings but is not recommended for initial piercings.

Black PVD Titanium, Niobium and Surgical Steel

Black PVD titanium, niobium and surgical steel have a coating of Titanium Aluminum Nitride (TiAlN) applied using physical vapour deposition (PVD) to create a hypoallergenic, long-lasting black colour.

Gold and Rose Gold PVD Titanium, Niobium and Surgical Steel

Gold and rose gold PVD titanium, niobium and surgical steel have a coating of Zirconium Nitride (ZrN) applied using physical vapour deposition (PVD) to create a hypoallergenic, long-lasting gold or rose gold colour without using any actual gold.

Niobium

Niobium looks very similar to titanium but is an element rather than an alloy (a mix of metals), it is ideal if you are allergic to nickel, silver or gold.

Like titanium it can be anodised, changing the surface colour of the metal to create a range of colours. Niobium used in a jewellery has to be as pure as possible and is sometimes know as 999 Niobium or 99.9% niobium.

Gold

24 carat gold is the purest form available. Gold that is less than 24 carat is an alloy and it is the other metals in the alloy that usually cause allergic reactions to gold jewellery. 24ct gold is too soft to use on it's own so it is alloyed (mixed) with other metals to make it stronger or used as a plating.

The higher the number of carats the purer the gold is. Dividing the number of carats by 24 gives you the purity percentage of gold.

24ct/24 = 100% (or 99.9%) pure gold

18ct/24 = 75% pure gold with approximately 15% silver and 10% copper

We only have 18ct and 24ct gold jewellery but for comparison
9ct/24 = 37.5% pure gold with approximately 42.5% silver and 20% copper

Carat or karat? Carat (ct) is the UK spelling of karat (kt). So in this case it's the same thing.

PVD gold coated jewellery does not contain any gold.

Delivery

Please note: we do our best to get orders out within 1-2 working days and the delivery times below are provided by Royal Mail - they are not guaranteed.

UK delivery

Economy - Royal Mail 48 (like 2nd class)
Usually delivered in 2-5 working days
Orders under £20: £1.50
Orders over £20: FREE

Standard - Royal Mail 24 (like 1st class)
Usually delivered in 1-3 working days. This service is scanned on delivery but cannot be tracked and the delivery time is not guaranteed.
Orders under £75: £1.99
Orders over £75: FREE

International Orders - Tax and Import Charges

Orders leaving the UK are sent exclusive of VAT (tax). You may be charged tax, customs and/or other import duties and handling fees by the postal service/courier before delivery. Please check your local rules before ordering.

European & Worldwide delivery

Royal Mail International Tracked
Gives you a tracking number and priority handling through airports. Usually delivered in 5-7 working days.
Orders under £30: £5.99
Orders over £30: FREE

We want you to love your purchase. If you have a reaction, order the wrong size or you simply don't like it then you can return it to us for a refund or exchange (even if worn!)

Returns

Ordering

Can I combine orders?
As long as your first order hasn’t been despatched you can just send us an email and we’ll combine the orders and refund the delivery cost on your second order.

I've forgotten my password
You can reset your password here.

How long will it take to process my order?
Orders received are usually sent within 2 working days, during busy sale periods please allow a little longer.

Can I pay over the phone?
Unfortunately we cannot accept payment over the phone. This ensures the highest level of security and fraud prevention.

Delivery

How much is delivery?
See the full list of delivery options here.

How long will my order take to arrive?
Orders sent using Royal Mail 24, whilst not guaranteed, usually take 1-3 working days to arrive. Orders using Royal Mail 48 typically take 2-5 working days.
If you haven't received your order please allow at least 5 working days before contacting us.

How will my order be packed?
Most orders are packed in cardboard postal box which will fit through a letterbox. Larger orders may be sent in a small parcel box which will require someone to be at the delivery address to receive

What's written on the package?
Our return address is written on the package. Our logo does not appear on the package.

What is my order status?
You will be sent an email when your order is dispatched. You can email us to check the progress if you feel your order is taking longer than expected (please allow 5 days for delivery.)

Can I track my order?
Once your order is despatched you will receive a tracking number. Please note that this is only updated when the item is scanned for delivery.

International orders

Why does the price change on the basket page?
The prices shown on the product pages include VAT (value added tax) which has to be charged on orders delivered within the UK. If you select any other country for your order to be delivered to the VAT is removed from the price.

How long will my order take to arrive?
Delivery within Europe usually takes 4-8 working days. Delivery to the rest of the world usually takes 6-10 working days.

How much is delivery/shipping?
See the full list of delivery options here.

 Will I have to pay customs duty?
Please check your local import rules as each country is different. There may well be an import duty charge which the customer is responsible for

Jewellery

Are your Studex earrings genuine?
Yes, they are. However Studex have two different butterfly back styles which can cause some confusion.

Do you have earrings with long posts?
We have earrings with posts ranging from 10mm to 12mm. The post length is listed on each page but if you are looking for earrings with longer posts the Ti2 Titanium range is the best place to start.

How do I know if I'm ordering a pair?
Any singular item will be clearly stated in the title that it is a "single".

Why aren't all earrings sold in pairs?
If we receive jewellery from our suppliers as single items then we sell it that way since not everyone has an even number of piercings.

How long are Blomdahl posts?
The Blomdahl medical plastic studs have 10.5mm long posts. Blomdahl titanium studs have 10mm long posts.

What does gauge mean?
The gauge is the thickness of the post or bar. You can find out more about the difference gauges available here.

How do I put the ball in a BCR?
BCRs can take a bit of practice. Line one dimple on the ball up with one side of the ring, holding it firmly push so that the other dimple clips into place.

Allergies

I'm allergic to nickel, what can I wear?
95% of our customers are absolutely fine with 316L Stainless Steel. If you have a severe allergy then Titanium might be a more suitable option

Could I be allergic to titanium?
It is extremely rare but you can be allergic to anything. If you've had a reaction after wearing titanium jewellery then make sure it really is the jewellery and not something it has come into contact with such as soap, shampoo, etc.

What does hypoallergenic mean?
The word hypoallergenic means having a decreased tendency to provoke an allergic reaction. It should not be considered a guarantee that no one will react to an item of jewellery since it is possible to be allergic to anything.

We would recommend that you allow the piercing time to heal and slowly build up the time worn to allow your ear to get used to it. If this doesn't work then you can return any items (even if worn) within 60 days for a refund or exchange.

Order problems

I didn't receive an order/despatch confirmation email
The first thing to check is that the emails didn't go into your junk mail (spam) folder. Occasionally emails do go astray so if would like to be sent another copy just email us. 

I've only received part of my order
If you are missing part of your order then let us know as soon as possible.

Do you offer returns/exchanges?
You can return any part of your order to us within 60 days of purchase for a refund or exchange. Please download our returns form and send the items back to us clearly marking whether you would like a refund or exchange.

I've received a broken/faulty item
We are really sorry to hear this has happened, if you have received something broken or faulty let us know and we will sort it out.