Humans have been decorating their nipples from time immemorial by attaching decorative jewelry thereto. A common way to do this is to pierce the nipples and then insert a thread in the resultant hole. However, few individuals today are willing to undergo such treatment just to wear jewelry. Moreover, there are few facilities where one can have nipples pierced safely. In addition, once the nipple is pierced a retaining device has to be worn at all times, since nipple perforations can heal within 24 hours if left open. Such retaining devices may not be desirable to be worn at certain times. The danger of infection is another serious drawback. Furthermore, if the retaining device is a ring worn in the pierced nipple, it could get caught and it might cause serious harm to the wearer.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,625,526, Milawski, discloses a nipple decoration device which basically is a pressure pad earring shaped and designed so that it will fit over the nipple of the wearer. The device contains springs within the body of the ring which compress two opposing pads that are to be placed around the nipple. All of the references cited in the prosecution of U.S. Pat. No. 4,625,426, Milawski, relate to pressure pad earrings.
The major disadvantage of this approach to a decorative device to be hung from the nipple is the fact that all of these devices rely on opposing pressure pads. The nipple, unlike the earlobe, can change in size and consistency considerably due to temperature, sexual excitation, etc. This can result in the pressure pad type of decorative device becoming loose and being lost and, in addition, would not be comfortable for the wearer.