A "Madonna" or "Monroe" is a piercing of the upper lip that is offset to one side or the other, meant to resemble the sort of "beauty mark" found on Marilyn�s own lip. Actress/singer Madonna doesn�t actually have such a mark, but both terms are popular and used interchangeably. While precise placement of the piercing is entirely up to its recipient, it is frequently found near the shallow outer ridge between one�s upper lip and nose. It may be set somewhat further from or closer to the center, depending upon personal taste, though the prevalence of blood vessels to this area of the face can make placement tricky. Your piercing artist should be able to help you find a suitable location for your piecing.

Jewelry worn in a Madonna is usually of the labret style, essentially a barbell in which one bead is flattened to help prevent damage to the teeth and gums. The other end may be round, spiked, or flat as personal taste demands. Be sure to choose jewelry that will accommodate the initial swelling experienced by those who undergo any sort of lip piercing. Your starter jewelry should be somewhat longer than the jewelry you will eventually use. You should also be careful to remember to switch out your starter jewelry for the new, shorter set; unnecessarily long bars in the lip can cause serious damage to dental structures.

Post-piercing care for your Madonna is essentially identical to that for any lip piercing. Use an antibacterial, alcohol-free mouth wash as often as five times a day: upon waking, after each meal (three, presumably), and before bed. Brush your teeth regularly (twice a day) and thoroughly to remove any buildup of plaque, as it is, of course, full of bacteria. Using a soft, new tooth brush, you may clean the area around the inside of your piercing as well. Avoid excessive smoking and drinking in addition to spicy foods or any foods that you find irritating to your piercing as it heals. After smoking or drinking anything but bottled water, use your (non-iodized) sea salt rinse for thirty seconds or so to remove any particles from your mouth.

The mouth wash takes care of the inside of your piercing, but the outside needs cleaning too. The best time to do this is just out of the shower, as the heat and moisture from the water will loosen the crust around your piercing and soften your skin, reducing the chance that you will do damage to your piercing while you clean it. With a cotton ball or a small cup, soak the outside of your piercing with a sea salt solution to soften the tissue and the crusted discharge. Now, using a small drop of antibacterial soap (non-perfumed, non-colored to help prevent irritation) on a moist, sterile cotton ball, soap the area around your piercing gently, moving the bar or ring back and forth gently as you do so. Let the soap sit for about one minute before rinsing thoroughly. Repeat this process twice a day (once upon waking, once before bed, for instance) for the first week of your aftercare. For the rest of the healing period, once a day should be enough. If you find that your piercing becomes irritated from cleaning, step it back a bit and see how cleaning once per day feels. If that doesn�t help, you may need to switch to another soap or a lower concentration of sea salt in your solution, or you may need to alter some other habits to facilitate the healing process.