White Copper Yellow Jambhala Stone-set Stud Earrings

A Buddha figure as a stud earring is one of the easiest things to get vulgar. Shrink a three-dimensional image to the size of an earlobe and the features, implements and drapery all crowd together, so at a distance all that remains is a bright point. For a stud, success is not a question of how much detail there is but of whether the silhouette holds: of the figure's build, crown and hand attributes, keeping two out of three is a pass. A single stud also has to be symmetrical on its own, so the angle of the face must be straight.

Yellow Jambhala is one of the five Jambhalas of Tibetan tradition, yellow in colour, holding a wish-fulfilling jewel in the right hand and a mongoose in the left, and those two attributes are the key to recognition. Reverse them and anyone who knows the iconography will see it at once. The other four are white, red, green and black, each with its own colour and attributes, and plenty of people use the names loosely. The identifiers belong to the iconography; what the wearer wants from the piece is a separate matter.

The position of the stone sets the visual weight of the whole stud. A small stone keeps the light concentrated, so the face does not blur; a large one overpowers the figure with reflection, and from a distance it looks like a rhinestone stud. A white copper setting helps because the colour is cool and supports the white of the stone instead of yellowing with it. Watch the thickness of the post as well, since too thick and a small piercing will not take it. A stud weighted towards the back tips forward as it is worn, and a post of the right length sits steadier.

White copper contains nickel, which matters more in earrings than anywhere else. A sensitive piercing will itch and redden within half a day. That is not a quality problem but a reaction to nickel. If you have worn white copper earrings before without trouble, you can relax; if it is a first try, wear them for two hours to begin with. Take them out if they itch rather than toughing it out, because a bad episode takes a fortnight to settle. Do not choose backs that grip too tightly, since pressure over time makes the lobe ache.

Short hair or an updo suits this stud best, because the ear is exposed and the light has somewhere to land. It works with long hair down as well, though the reflection is half swallowed. Layering it with a fine hoop fights over the same small space, so keep to one. Store it in its own bag when it is not being worn, since the stone face scratches and clouds when mixed with other jewellery. If grime builds up in the setting, work it out with a soft brush and clean water rather than scraping with anything hard.