How to Select the Right Piercing That Will Most Accentuate Your Lip Shape

Everyone’s lips are unique, which is partly why the beauty industry pays so much attention to them. Lately, thin lips seem to be so out of vogue with the popularity of lip fillers.

But what about those who want to embrace what they have? Sure, you can use makeup to enhance your features. But that seems so boring when you can do it with lip piercings.

Below, we explore the different lip shapes and which piercings work best to accentuate them.

Heart-Shaped Lips

If you have heart-shaped lips, it means that you have a pronounced cupid’s bow on top. While some people with heart-shaped lips also have sharper bottom lips, the cupid’s bow is the focal point.

If you’re lucky enough to have a pronounced cupid’s bow, there are two piercings that would best accentuate it. The first would be the obvious choice—the philtrum! Did you know that the proper anatomical terminology for your cupid’s bow is philtrum? Well, you do now!

One of the things that makes having a prominent cupid’s bow perfect for a philtrum piercing is the fact that it perfectly frames the jewelry of the piercing. The jewelry will sit nicely in the little dip of the cupid’s bow, and the points of the lips frame it and draw attention to the prominence of the cupid’s bow.

Another piercing that works well to accentuate heart-shaped lips is a vertical philtrum piercing, also known as a jestrum piercing. A vertical philtrum piercing is just like the regular one, except it goes vertically through the philtrum and exits from the lip rather than going horizontally through the tissue.

This piercing is for those who have sharper bottom lips too. Because jestrum piercings require curved barbells as jewelry, the top end accentuates the cupid’s bow, and the bottom end accentuates the sharp bottom lip.

Full Lips

If you have full lips, it makes sense that you’d want to accentuate the fullness. One easy way to do this is with two piercings. The combination of a philtrum piercing and a center labret piercing, also known by the slang term cyber bites, is an easy way to enhance your already full lips.

Wide Lips

If you have wide lips and want to accentuate their length, there are two types of piercings you can opt for.

The first is actually not a specific type of piercing but a grouping of piercings. The slang term snake bites refer to a lower lip piercing on either side of the lip.

The other option is to get the upper lip version of snake bites, also known by the slang name angel bites. Essentially, it is having both a Monroe and a Madonna piercing, or an upper lip piercing on each side of the lip.

Having piercings at the sides of the lips will accentuate their width.

Small Lips

If you have small lips, there’s no need to be ashamed. Rock what you’ve got!

To accentuate small lips, we’ve got the perfect tip: try dolphin bites. We don’t mean getting bit by a dolphin, either.

Dolphin bites are perfect for smaller lips because they don’t have too much distance between the piercings. Essentially dolphin bites involve two lower lip piercings that are closer together and sort of frame the center of your bottom lip. They are unlike snake bites, where the piercings are on each side of the lower lip. Instead, they’re just a bit off-center on each side of the lip.

Because of the smaller distance between them, they accentuate the smaller width of your lips.

Round Lips

Because round lips lack a well-defined cupid’s bow, a philtrum or jestrum isn’t going to be the best choice to accentuate your lip shape.

However, because round lips often look like they’re always pouting, a centrally placed labret would be perfect for this lip shape. The labret helps elongate the lips, accentuating the natural pout.

Bottom-Heavy Lips

If you have bottom-heavy lips, the way to accentuate the shape is to get either a labret or a vertical labret.

A labret is an oral piercing that goes through the bottom of the lip (often the center). If you have a bottom-heavy lip shape, it makes sense to opt for the center placement of the labret because it will help accentuate the fullness of your bottom lips and give you that nice pout look. Where Kylie Jenner uses makeup to get the look, you can use a simple piercing!

Like the labret, a vertical labret goes vertically through the bottom lip. This will accentuate your lip shape, making your lower lip look even fuller.

Top-Heavy Lips

If you have top-heavy lips, your top lip is fuller than your bottom. To accentuate this, you’re going to want to draw attention to the upper lip.

Piercings that work great for fuller top lips include:

• Philtrum/medusa
• Vertical philtrum/jestrum
• Monroe
• Madonna

Bow-Shaped Lips

If you have bow-shaped lips, then dahlia piercings are the perfect way to accentuate their shape.

There is a defined cupid’s bow with bow-shaped lips, but the bottom lip doesn’t come to as defined a point as with heart-shaped lips. Due to this, they look fuller at the center. Dahlia piercings are the perfect way to frame this. They are unique in that they are placed at the corners of the mouth, with one on each side.

Thin Lips

Not everyone needs plump lips to look amazing. If you’ve got thin lips, flaunt what you’ve got!

We happen to think snake bites look fantastic with thin lips. You could wear studs or hoops in them, and they’d accentuate your lip shape well.

Downturned Lips

Do you have a lower lip that’s ever so slightly smaller than your top lip? This means your corners dip in a bit, giving your lips a downturned look.

This is the perfect lip shape for sporting a vertical labret or a vertical philtrum. Both piercings mean you’ll have jewelry resting in the center of your lips, accentuating your lips’ downturned even more.

The Main Point

If you want to draw attention to your features, piercings are a great way to do that. Plus, you can have just as much fun picking out jewelry as you would picking out makeup colors.