I often get people ask me should I use a bend or a no bend clip on earring converter? For those of you new to this conversation, a clip on earring converter allows you to change a pierced earring into a clip on earring so that you do not have to have pierced ears to wear it.

Clip on earring converters are great however there are two types of pierced earring where you should think before you use them:

1. Fine jewellery earrings – if it’s your Grandma’s heirloom to you, the earrings your Mom wore on her wedding or an expensive gift from an amorous friend, converting fine jewellery – by that I mean expensive earrings made out of gold, silver, platinum, with real pearl or diamonds etc – is something best left to pros with jeweller’s studios. Take it to one and ask for a quote. You’ll never forgive yourself if you ruin it by your own hand.
2. Cheap jewellery earrings – it’s a sad fact that many supermarkets not only stock very cheap earrings, it’s cheap because it’s made out of cheap materials. Such earrings are often made from alloys, that’s combinations of different metals melted together. As a result the metal can be brittle and prone to snapping

If you are looking to convert either of these two types of pierced earring to a clip on earring then you should only use no bend clip on earring converters since these do not alter the pierced earring post in any way and can be removed at a later date if so desired.

The no bend style of clip on earring converter does a fantastic job for some styles of earring, notably hoops as these cannot be reasonably modified by bend clip on earring converters. However there are other styles like buttons, studs and shields that plain look odd if hung below the ear lobe. For these, you’ll need to use the bend type of pierced to clip on earring converter. These are sometimes called Clip On Earring Converter Posts since they have a vertical barrel you insert the pierced earring’s post into. Once inside and holding both the clip on earring converter and the pierced earring firmly so as to focus pressure on just the pierced earring’s post you then bend the earring so that it faces the right direction.

This process of bending the earring post has both advantages and disadvantages. On the plus side the earring will sit inside the converter nicely and you’ll be able to shake your head about without too much fear of launching an earring into someone nearby’s face! On the downside, your earring won’t be any good to pierced earring wearers so you may not want to convert any earrings you may want to sell at a later date.