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!


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Original Post by THE BEADING GEM
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