:: All prices listed are wholesale to shops :: Retail prices to individuals are twice those listed ::
Wood plugs are made out of high quality hardwood. Each piece is unique; these plugs are cut, carved, and sanded by hand with love and full attention to detail. Pairs are matched to be as similar as possible. Wood plugs work best in "dry" areas of the body, especially the ears. Remember, this is a natural, organic product, and there is a chance that some individuals will be more sensitive than others to the materials; some may even develop an allergy to certain woods. Also, be aware that small pores in the wood can harbor bacteria and other germs. Use these plugs at your own risk. They come pre-oiled; this helps to fill in the pores and makes for smoother insertion. The oil will release slowly and aids in softening tissue and helping the body to absorb unwanted hard, connective tissue. Olive oil, peanut oil (both may break down), or jojoba oil are recommended to keep your plugs looking their best. They should be washed periodically with a mild non-chemical soap or with a small amount of tea tree oil if something stronger is desired.
We always have a small selection of hardwood plugs in stock. Please call and we'll let you know what we have in your size!!! We have some earplugs with fancy inlays that are shown at the bottom of this page, however, the more basic wooden plugs that we have on hand are generally not listed online. If we do not currently have what you are looking for, we will be happy to either:
A) Custom order them for you; one of our carvers will make them to your dimensions.
We had some problems with custom orders in the past, as our wait list grew long, and unfortunately too many people disappeared once their orders had been custom made. So, if you are serious about getting specific pieces made, we require money order deposits in the full amount of the purchase price in order to place the custom order. Once we receive your payment, it takes around 1-2 weeks to get your plugs made. Or, we can...
B) Place you on a wait list to be notified if any pieces matching your dimensions become available.
We appreciate your patience, as we will not cut corners
or compromise our extremely high standards of quality
for cut rate pricing, speed, or mass production.
::Specify type of wood::
These six main species we use come from third-party certified renewable, sustainable resources,
with the exception of ebony (as no renewable forestry operations currently exist involving ebony).
We occasionally feature other woods, such as holly wood, osage orange, and boxwood.
Other species are available upon request.
Chakte Kok (CHOK-tay COKE):
beautiful reddish orange,
color may fade in light, lightweight.
Chechen (chey-CHEN):
brown with light and dark streaks,
medium weight.
Ebony:
black, sometimes with blond streaks,
excellent polish, tight grain, very dense.
Granadillo (GRAN-ah-DEE-yoh):
dark brown w/darker streaks,
extremely dense, tight grain.
Katalox (kat-a-LOTSCH):
very dark brown, almost black,
sustainable alternative to ebony; often hard to obtain.
Olivewood:
light tan with medium brown streaks,
and the pleasant smell of olives!
Above we see two species of wooden saddle-shaped plugs,
starting with several plugs made from chakte kok,
followed by a set made out of black ebony.
An unusual type of striped ebony is shown above, made into highly refined saddle shaped plugs.
It's interesting to note that this particular wood is rare as it is infrequently processed for export.
Ask us what we currently have in stock, or they can be custom made in this species to your dimensions!
This wood is a bit more expensive than all the others as prices for the raw materials have risen.
A pair of huge granadillo plugs, showing both their
mildly concave sides and their flat sides.
Shown above are several pairs of very nice smelling olivewood saddles,
which generally have a light tan color with multiple brown streaks.
The hollow pair have larger than normal sized flares on the fronts,
and slightly thinner than normal wall thicknesses.
The bottom pair is also olivewood, specifically custom made so there are no visible streaks to be a more consistent tan color to emulate maple. Often people wanting a more mellow appearance (for example, at work), opt for a light colored wood such as this.
This is currently the lightest-colored wood that we offer, as we have discontinued maple.
::Specify overall shape and type of ends::
Wood can be brittle if too thin, with dramatic curves, etc.
Common shapes include:
Saddle shaped: the standard plug with two flares, generally of the same size.
Cylinder shaped: a simple plug without flares, often with cupped (chamfered) ends to take the edge off for smooth insertion, can be worn with or without o-rings.
One flared: one flare on one side, nothing on the other side, can be worn with or without o-rings.
Nail shaped: ($5/extra) the traditional labret stud design with the backing disk and shaft made from one piece of wood; the front can be held on by an o-ring. Tongue plug shapes are also possible.
Taper shaped: not for stretching holes in one sitting; they may be worn in healed piercings to stretch gradually; an o-ring on one side can hold the taper in place better.
Spike shapes: basically, a cylinder with both ends tapered.
Ends can be flat, cupped/beveled/chamfered, convex or concave (one side only), slightly pointed, etc....
Here are pictures of a large selection of saddles and tapers in the six main species of wood that we use.
Please click on these smaller thumbnails to view larger photos; these images are not to scale.
::Specify diameter and length::
The diameter is the inside diameter of the plug on the wearing surface, not including the flare or backing disk. A normal flare is 1/16" over the inside diameter (example, 1/2" plugs would have a 9/16" flare), though smaller mellow flares or more drastic big flares can be requested. Tapers are measured at the big end, just a bit back from the edge. We can work in gauges, inches, or millimeters.
The length is overall and should include the flares. Shorter lengths can make plugs with large diameters-especially over 1/2"-more comfortable for sleeping, etc. However, longer lengths may stay in better or allow room for o-rings.
Shapes from around 14 gauge to around 8 gauge, while theoretically possible, are difficult to make, can be slightly uneven, and will likely be brittle and easy to break both while manufacturing and in the finished product. We rarely make such small sizes, and only then for short lengthed plugs or labrets. Thus for all intents and purposes, our minimum diameter is 6ga. Availability of large diameter wood plugs may be difficult (especially with the various types of ebony) and depends upon what we have on hand in terms of raw materials; this changes all of the time, so just ask!
Shown above are a small pair of two-toned katalox saddles. These pieces are cut so that one side is heartwood (the older central part of the tree that is filled with more minerals and forms the structural support of the trunk), and one side is sapwood (the outer part that is newer growth and was being used to transport water). This occurs naturally-no glue is used!
Here we have a gorgeous pair of custom made long streaked ebony tapers.
Sweet little chechen, how I've neglected you so!
Finally, an image of chechen plugs for all to enjoy.
::Specify solid or drilled to make hollow plugs::
Most of our hollow wood plugs are eyelets made so that on one side of the plug, the walls of the hollow part curve outward to reach the face, and the other side has walls at right angles to the face of the plug.
Walls on hollow wood earlets will have to be fairly thick so the wood will not split.
Thin walls are not recommended, and if requested, cannot be guaranteed.
Therefore, hollow plugs are generally not available in plugs under 1/2".
Here is an example of some ebony plugs with a burl inlay.
We can do circular inlays of different hardwoods on both solid and hollow wood plugs.
Inlay is also a good option when we do not have the raw materials large enough to make a pair of plugs in a certain wood (such as striped ebony), but can instead inlay a smaller piece of this wood into a larger species that we do have on hand. Inlay work generally runs $10-$20/pair on top of the base price.
Face-turned (lathed) wood plugs are another option. These have a series of 3-D coencentric circles in various patterns either mildly projecting out from, or receding into, one face of the plugs. The back of the plugs are plain. Please tell us which style you prefer if you'd like lathed plugs, for example, the upper left design.
::Wholesale Prices for Hardwood Jewelry::
Retail prices are double.
Smaller than 1/2" =$15/each ($30/pair)
1/2" to under 1" =$20/each ($40/pair)
1" to under 1-1/2" =$25/each ($50/pair)
1-1/2" to under 2" =$30/each ($60/pair)
2" and beyond = Please call for a quote!
We can also work in decimal inches, gauges, or millimeters.
Please add $5-10/each for: concave or convex ends; face-turned designs; plugs, tapers, or spikes that are 1" or over in length; labret or tongue shapes (anything with large diameter flares); and making grooves for o-rings. Drilling to make hollow plugs generally costs $10/each. Circular inlays are available. Please call for quotes.
::Gallery of old custom designs::
Custom work of this type is not currently available.
Sorry to be a tease, but we still felt like showing them off!
We are not currently offering similar custom line art engraving, inlays with metal or natural materials, nor die cuts/saw work on hardwood jewelry. It would take us a year to get to it! So sorry! We currently offer plain, hollow, convex, concave, or face-turned plugs only...
If you are looking for fancy inlays, engravings, and cut out patterns, we are focusing on horn jewelry for those type of designs. Please check it out! We will occasionally be stocking some friends and craftspeoples' designs that DO have inlays (see below), but again, these cannot be custom ordered.
These are not available as it's impossible to get work out of my friend who does the fancy saw cut patterns, as he has moved to Holland and no longer makes jewelry! Holes were laboriously cut by hand in other designs than just a circle. These were called sawed or "die-cut," and were available in 1/2" and larger plugs.
Hollow water buffalo horn plugs with cut out stars, spirals, and triskels are available.
Here is another example of the type of sawed designs we used to make! This amazing pair of over 1-1/2" maple saddles sold long ago, however.
And now for something completely different...
::Hardwood plugs with honeycombed cellular matrix grain::
Not to confuse the issue, but I thought I'd show off some of the most amazing figured wood I've come across. They have a pattern like a sort of quilted brown honeycomb or cellular matrix structure. The top pair depicted is brand new and unworn. The larger pair of plugs shown are my own; as they have been worn and oiled, the middle image shows them after they have darkened a bit from a more medium brown color. The bottom image shows the same pair over two years later, with considerable natural darkening.
We can only offer these in limited amounts as the wood is quite rare. Pricing is different than our normal ones listed above-around 2.5 X higher-to account for the extremely high cost of the material itself.
They look best in 3/4" and above plugs, and can be made as large as 3".
Please call for a quote if this amazing wood is of interest.
::Hardwood plugs with unique inlays::
The hardwood plugs shown below have large, Mayan style front flares.
No custom work is available; we only have what is shown and described.
Above are new 7/8" (ON HOLD) and 1-1/8" ($100-SOLD)
pairs of katalox with silver and ammonite inlays.
Ammonites are fossil shells of ancient sea creatures.
A pair of 1" katalox with inlaid ammonites. $90/pair. SOLD
These cannot be custom ordered as we get them in only randomly!!!
::Huge boxwood stash plugs with amazing carving::
Boxwood stash boxes that are perfect cylinders! The designs are skillfully executed in 3-D.
The lids will rely on some sort of wax or tape being applied to stay on if used as earplugs.
Please click on the smaller scans to view these boxes at actual size.
≤1-7/8" with pheasant and flower design - $70/pair
±2-1/8" with Chinese foo dog design - $80/pair
btwn. 2-7/16" and 2-1/2" with a beautiful flowing pheasant and flower design - $100/pair
These sizes only... sorry!
::Ebony coils::
All ebony coils have SOLD OUT. We do not anticipate getting any more in anytime soon.
Prices were as follows:
0ga ($35/pair), 00ga ($35/pair), 7/16" ($40/pair), and 1/2" ($45/pair).
9/16" ($50/pair), 5/8" ($60/pair), and 3/4" ($75/pair).
Each pair had a lefty and a righty, opposite coils.
Shown are: 0ga and 7/16" ebony coils in the top and middle scans,
9/16" and 5/8" in the bottom scans. Both side and bottom views are shown.
::Wood Spirals::
We are making a very small amount of wood spirals available,
mainly unusual woods with grand figure.
Please ask if you are interested in a particular size!
Huge brown streaked ebony spirals measure between 7/8" to 15/16" at the greatest wearable surface.
$150/pair. SOLD.
Enormous chakte kok wooden spirals and black jet spirals measure 1" on the wearing surface.
Chakte kok is a relatively light weight material. These were made as a custom order and have SOLD.
Jet is a type of rare fossilized (not petrified, but mineralized) wood with a high density that makes it heavy and sturdy. The black color comes from jet's high carbon content.
:: All prices listed are wholesale to shops :: Retail prices to individuals are twice those listed ::
Face-turned (lathed) wood plugs are another option. These have a series of 3-D coencentric circles in various patterns either mildly projecting out from, or receding into, one face of the plugs. The back of the plugs are plain. Please tell us which style you prefer if you'd like lathed plugs, for example, the upper left design.
These are not available as it's impossible to get work out of my friend who does the fancy saw cut patterns, as he has moved to Holland and no longer makes jewelry! Holes were laboriously cut by hand in other designs than just a circle. These were called sawed or "die-cut," and were available in 1/2" and larger plugs.
