{"id":39623,"date":"2026-07-28T11:26:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-28T09:26:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/octopus-studio.eu\/piercingpedija-pupak\/"},"modified":"2026-07-31T17:38:49","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T15:38:49","slug":"piercingpedija-pupak","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/octopus-studio.eu\/en\/piercingpedija-pupak\/","title":{"rendered":"Piercingpedia – Navel"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

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The navel is one of the most popular piercing placements,
but at the same time one of the most anatomically complex<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is located on a natural fold of the body, so everyday activities such as sitting, lying down, sleeping on your stomach, wearing high-waisted trousers, or accidentally catching the jewellery can lead to jewellery migration or rejection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Individual anatomy is particularly important for this piercing, as the jewellery is placed through a pronounced fold of skin on either the upper or lower edge of the navel. It can also be pierced on the sides or, for example, with two piercings positioned at a 45-degree angle, although very few people choose these more unconventional options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The shape of your navel depends on how your umbilical cord healed after birth. Until around the early 2000s, deeper and wider navels were much more common, making them ideal for navel piercings. As medical practices have evolved over time, modern navels have generally become smaller, narrower, and shallower. As a result, the fold of skin needed to securely support the jewellery is often minimal or even absent – especially when lying down, as the upper abdomen stretches and the skin around the navel flattens.
To be clear, almost any piece of skin can technically be pierced. However, for the jewellery to remain stable and viable in the long term, certain anatomical requirements must be met, and the piercing requires proper long-term care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Anatomy<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Navels come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and depths – each one is almost as unique as a fingerprint. In most cases, the jewellery is placed through the centre of the pronounced fold of skin along the upper edge of the navel.
Sometimes, however, the jewellery needs to be positioned slightly to the left or right rather than exactly in the middle of the upper fold. This subtle adjustment helps create the appearance of a well-centred piercing in relation to the body as a whole, since the upper and lower parts of the navel are not always perfectly symmetrical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the fold of skin required to support the jewellery is not sufficiently defined, we may decline to perform this piercing.<\/strong> This policy is part of Octopus’ code of ethics<\/strong>. If the piercer believes that your anatomy is likely to cause ongoing problems throughout the life of the piercing, or that the tissue supporting the jewellery is likely to become significantly thinner over time (a process known as rejection), ultimately requiring the jewellery to be removed, we will not perform the piercing.
We understand that this can be disappointing, but our priority is the long-term outcome – not simply performing every piercing requested. No matter how much a client may want the piercing, we will not compromise our professional standards by proceeding with a placement we do not believe has a realistic chance of long-term success.
Our goal is not to take your money for a piercing that we already believe is unlikely to be successful in the long run. Doing so would only create a situation where we see you every 2-4 months with a new problem, until eventually the only remaining option is to remove the jewellery.
The result is a client who has spent months dealing with a problematic piercing, invested time and money into repeated check-ups and aftercare, and is ultimately disappointed that the piercing did not achieve the expected result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clients often ask us to perform a piercing “at their own risk<\/em>.” However, in a professional piercing studio, if we perform the piercing, the responsibility remains with us<\/strong>. In this situation, the piercers are the professionals with the knowledge and experience to assess whether a particular piercing has a realistic chance of healing successfully and remaining viable in the long term. Every piercing we perform is a reflection of our work, our standards, and our expertise.
Of course, every client is free to seek a second opinion or choose another studio if they wish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pregnancy<\/strong>
The shape of the navel can change significantly after pregnancy, so it’s important to keep in mind that a navel piercing may no longer be recommended in some cases.
If you had a navel piercing before pregnancy and removed it at some point, you are welcome to book a consultation with us. During the appointment, we will assess your anatomy to determine whether the original piercing channel is still open (depending on your skin type and how long you wore the piercing before removing it) or whether re-piercing would be a suitable option.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Appointments and anatomy assessment<\/strong>
Before booking a navel piercing appointment, you will first need to visit the studio for an anatomy assessment. No appointment is required for the assessment – simply stop by during our opening hours<\/a> and check in at the piercing reception. The anatomy assessment is free of charge.<\/strong>
If you have already booked a piercing appointment but your anatomy is not suitable, please let us know.
If you are not based in Zagreb, you can send us photos of your navel – taken while standing, sitting and lying down. While we cannot provide a 100% accurate assessment from photographs alone, as it is impossible to evaluate tissue depth and skin flexibility from images, we can at least rule out anatomies that are clearly unsuitable for a navel piercing.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Examples of different navel anatomies and the assessment you can expect from us:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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  1. Not suitable – the navel is very shallow, with an indentation along the upper edge and a completely flat lower edge.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Suitable – the upper fold of skin is sufficiently pronounced, and the navel has adequate depth.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Suitable for a floating navel piercing – more information about this option is provided further down in the text.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. Not suitable – an \u201coutie\u201d navel has a protrusion rather than an indentation, which would cause the jewellery to be pushed away from the tissue and could result in rapid jewellery rejection.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. Suitable – ideal anatomy for a navel piercing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. Not suitable – the skin is tight and flat on both sides, so there is no fold of tissue for the jewellery to sit securely in. Additionally, the navel is extremely narrow, which would be problematic because the bottom ball of the jewellery would be pushing against the sides of the navel, most likely resulting in rejection within a relatively short period of time.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. We would need to perform an in-person assessment in the studio – it would likely be possible to pierce with jewellery featuring very small ends.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. We would need to perform an in-person assessment in the studio – it would likely be possible to pierce with jewellery featuring small ends, depending on how much the skin fold flattens when lying down.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  9. We would need to perform an in-person assessment in the studio – it would likely be possible to perform a floating navel piercing.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Floating navel<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For anatomies with a clearly defined skin fold on the upper side of the navel and a slightly deeper navel itself, the upper part of the navel often folds over when sitting, completely hiding the lower part of the jewellery.
    In this case, we recommend a so-called floating navel piercing, where the bottom of the jewellery features a flat disc or a very small ball, while the top can have a gemstone, flower, or a similar decorative end with smooth, rounded edges to reduce the chance of snagging on the jewellery.
    The jewellery shown in the image can be installed after a certain period of healing, provided that the piercing is healing well and there are no issues.<\/p>\n\n\n

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    Choosing the right jewellery<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For specific anatomies, choosing the right jewellery is extremely important, as it can directly affect not only the healing process but also how quickly the jewellery may be rejected.
    Navel piercings belong to the category of piercings that are potentially not permanent<\/strong>, unlike, for example, tongue or nose piercings, where the jewellery is surrounded by sufficient tissue on all sides, making it much more difficult for the body to push it toward the surface.
    Similar to eyebrow piercings, navel jewellery is held within a raised fold of skin that can gradually become thinner over time. The body may recognize the jewellery as a foreign object and slowly work to remove it through a process known as rejection. If the tissue becomes too thin and the jewellery is not removed in time, the skin can eventually split, leaving a visible scar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The initial jewellery<\/strong> we use at Octopus is made from implant-grade titanium<\/strong> Ti-6Al-4V ELI, ASTM F136<\/strong>, which is also used in medicine for pacemakers, bone plates, and other implants designed for long-term placement inside the body.
    Allergic reactions to this specific titanium grade are so extremely rare that they are considered negligible. If you are wearing titanium jewellery, piercing issues are generally related to many other factors rather than the material itself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For many years, the standard jewellery used for navel piercings featured 5\/8 mm ends – a 5 mm top ball and an 8 mm bottom ball. In 2026, it is almost impossible (at least in our practice in Zagreb) to find someone with a navel that is wide and deep enough for this model to be used as initial jewellery without causing a whole range of issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It is especially important to pay attention to the size of the bottom end, which should not be large enough to push against the edges of the navel, stretch the skin, or cause discomfort while sitting. Oversized jewellery ends can accelerate the rejection process of a piercing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In most cases, we use jewellery with 4\/6 mm ends for initial piercings, or for particularly shallow and small navels, 4\/4 mm ends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    For the initial piercing, we use slightly longer jewellery to accommodate more tissue. This helps ensure that the jewellery remains supported by enough skin even after the body naturally moves it slightly closer to the surface, which is something that commonly occurs with many navel piercings.
    A few months after getting pierced, you may notice that the base (bar) of the jewellery becomes visible above the skin. If everything is healing properly, the jewellery can usually be downsized approximately 3 months after the piercing, and a shorter bar can be installed if needed.
    During the first 6 months after getting pierced, we recommend wearing simple jewellery designs without hanging elements, as this helps support the healing process, which can take up to a year.
    More information about piercing aftercare can be found at the link<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Once your piercing has fully healed,<\/strong> the choice of jewellery becomes significantly wider. Since it is no longer a healing wound, you can also wear jewellery made from steel, as it does not cause allergic reactions in most people.
    Surgical steel is, in terms of composition, more pure than gold, and allergic reactions to SS316L, meeting the ASTM F138 and ISO 5832-1 standards, are extremely rare.
    When wearing jewellery with large bottom ends or hanging decorative elements, it is important to keep in mind that such jewellery is not suitable for everyday wear, especially not for sleeping. You can compare it to wearing large and heavy earrings: over time, the weight of the jewellery can stretch the piercing hole in the earlobe, and you would most likely not sleep with such earrings because they could catch on bedding and irritate the earlobe.
    The situation is very similar with hanging navel jewellery. Although it is usually not as heavy, lying on your stomach or catching the jewellery during sleep can irritate the piercing channel or contribute to jewellery rejection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There is an extremely large amount of piercing jewellery available on the market, and it is often difficult to distinguish high-quality jewellery from pieces made from lower-quality metals, as they can look almost identical.
    If you purchase jewellery online or from stores that are not specialized in piercing jewellery (for example, a professional piercing studio), ask whether they can provide     jewellery certifications<\/a> for review. If they cannot, the quality of the jewellery may be questionable, and for some people wearing it may cause irritation or an allergic reaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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    How you can influence the healing process<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The average healing time for a navel piercing is considered to be 9\u201312 months. For some people, healing may take less or more time depending on individual anatomy, skin type, immune system, habits (such as sleeping on the stomach), accidental snagging, and how consistently aftercare instructions are followed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The navel is a piercing placement where mild redness is usually expected at the beginning, and after approximately a week, everything often appears to look great – as if the piercing has always been there.
    This is also the point when many people become less cautious and start neglecting proper care. They begin sleeping on the piercing (which no freshly pierced area of the body appreciates and, in most cases, will respond to with irritation), wearing clothing that puts pressure on the piercing, swimming in pools or hot tubs, going to saunas or tanning beds, and similar activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    None of the above should necessarily be a problem if it happens occasionally. However, if you regularly sleep directly on your piercing every night, over time you may experience issues such as the growth of hypertrophic tissue, increased lymph or blood-tinged discharge, possible swelling, or migration (healing at an angle).
    Of course, there are also those rare lucky individuals with a skin type that allows them to \u201cabuse\u201d their piercing from day one without experiencing any problems. However, they are uncommon (and we are slightly jealous of them). \ud83d\ude06<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Sleeping on a piercing, regardless of how old it is, can cause problems
    at any point while wearing the jewellery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    More info:<\/p>\n\n\n\n