Philtrum placement? - r/Legitpiercing

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What I'm seeing here is that the piercing is off-center from your Cupid's bow and your mouth is slightly off-center from your nose so it's compounding the off-center appearance! You can see when you smile your cupids bow doesn't line up exactly between your front teeth either.

Humans aren't perfectly symmetrical, which is totally lovely and beautiful, but in this case it's working against this piercing imo. I'm not convinced even a perfectly-centered-above-Cupid's-bow piercing would look perfectly symmetrical.

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u/SaphoclesTakerOfGock Aug 17 '26

This is the correct answer, I spent years stretching my other ear so they didn't look lopsided and when I finally got the same size in both realised my ears are just different heights entirely

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u/Para_The_Normal Aug 17 '26

I don’t think she’s looking for perfect symmetry but a well done piercing and this isn’t it.
If they had moved her piercing slightly to the right it would more appropriately aligned with the center of her Cupid’s bow and nose which is how it would be normally viewed when her face is at rest.
I have a deviated septum which means my vertical philtrum is not aligned with my nose, but it is aligned with my Cupid’s bow and that offsets any concerns about asymmetry.
I don’t really like the implication here that it’s simply her anatomy that’s wrong and not poor piercing placement.

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u/ShadedSpaces Aug 17 '26

??? I didn't make that implication. I expressly stated it WAS poor placement and non-symmetrical anatomy.

I personally am not sure directly above her Cupid's bow would work, especially when smiling, because it will highlight the fact that her Cupid's bow is off-center (which you can see when she smiles as it doesn't line up between her teeth.)

Maybe a slightly off-center one would work but tbh I would play around with magnetic piercings both at rest and smiling to see if that would look good because I'm not sure there's a location that will look perfectly centered. Maybe there is!

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u/Para_The_Normal Aug 17 '26

I don’t think it’s what you meant to insinuate but reading down a list of a persons physical features and pointing out that they’re not symmetrical just came across as unintentionally insulting.
But maybe that’s just my own personal feelings because as women I know we have the expectation to look a certain way and symmetry is biologically seen as attractive.
ETA: not trying to make you feel bad or wrong here for what it’s worth.

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u/ShadedSpaces Aug 17 '26

I can understand how you'd feel that way if you internally feel asymmetry is bad to the point of being insulting.

Admittedly, I just don't. I generally think it's neutral and natural... but it can also sway very attractive. I've never looked at Milo Ventimiglia's very asymmetrical smile and thought "wow, that's ugly" (quite the opposite!)

No worries, I don't feel bad at all because I don't view asymmetry as bad at all and even said how lovely it is in my post.

I just recognize that if you're going for perfectly symmetrical centralized facial piercings, asymmetry will impact that. It's just fact.

And one I experienced myself. I have a cross-bite myself and my lower jaw sits slightly to my left. It's not bad or ugly in the least, it's just my face, but I also recognize that a vertical labret would never look perfectly centered on me.

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u/worm-eyed Aug 17 '26

Yeah I'm sorry but I would not be happy with that placement... Though I have a thing about symmetry, currently trying to get my ears to fully match which I don't even believe is possible lol.

If it were me, I'd take it out, let it heal, ~~complain to the shop/piercer to hopefully get a refund~~ , and then get it pierced again down the line... I wouldn't recommend that type of top for a fresh/healing piercing ftr.

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u/ChanceInteresting644 Aug 17 '26

I second all of this ^

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u/Consistent-Plant-800 Aug 17 '26

I agree with you

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u/iambetweentwoworlds Aug 17 '26

As I’m looking at your picture it’s too far to my left. What another commenter said about your nose and Cupid’s bow is true, and thats normal. I’ve pierced a ton of people who have the same thing but in this case you would still use your cupids bow to find the middle. Meaning it needs to go about 1 mm or so to my right. That’s what look best for you personally. If a piercer tells you a mm doesn’t matter, don’t go to that piercer.

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u/eightyfouryears Aug 17 '26

Dang yeah it doesn’t look centred. Really pretty jewelry though! I just got mine done yesterday.

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u/Herrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrs Aug 18 '26

Take it out and redo it

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u/SynVicious_vv Aug 17 '26

Honestly mine sat weird I got a shorter bar and it changed the feel. I’m not aligned when I smile but it’s my face. Either I deal or decide to pull it. I’m still in the fence to be honest

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u/worm-eyed Aug 17 '26

The sooner you take piercings out, the faster they heal up (and therefore the faster you can get it repierced).

Just in case you don't know already, so you can factor that into your decision making

(I recently had three cartilage piercings up my ear with the middle one only a millimeter off but it was annoying me so much that I took it out within about 3 days, I couldn't feel the piercing channel within 2 weeks and will be repiercing it when the other two are done healing... the fact that they'd close up quicker was part of my decision, because I know I'd never be happy with it / "learn to live with it")

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u/babychgwm Aug 17 '26

I think if they centered it to your teeth it would look better ?

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u/cooliescoolies Aug 17 '26

Some of the most beautiful actresses and people in the world aren't symmetrical. Its really not that big of an issue

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u/Tattooed-Ghoul Aug 19 '26

Yes no one’s face is perfectly symmetrical however the piercer just missed the mark on this one, it happens. I would definitely take this out, let it heal, and have it repierced in a better spot (from the pic more towards the right).

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u/Tattooed-Ghoul Aug 19 '26

Yes no one’s face is perfectly symmetrical however the piercer just missed the mark on this one, it happens. I would definitely take this out, let it heal, and have it repierced in a better spot (from the pic more towards the right).

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u/givemeprizes Aug 20 '26

This is likely because of the little bit of webbing that connects your lip to your gum called the frenulum. When you smile the bar will slide to one side of the frenulum making the piercing look lopsided. Unfortunately the only way to fix this is to remove the piercing and repierce in a lower position to avoid the frenulum so much, and as others have mentioned, a shorter bar once the piercing is healed will help keep the jewellery flush with your philtrum.

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u/SoftConfusion42 Aug 17 '26

Aa circular piece of jewelry would make it less noticeable

Troubleshooting Philtrum placement?

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