Visit a professional piercer to perform the stretching or initial piercing. Ask the piercer to help you select appropriate jewelry. Purchase jewelry no larger than two sizes bigger than your current piercing. Use stainless steel if possible as it tends to be non-irritating.
Clean earlobes thoroughly using iodine or surgical scrub. Do not be surprised if your piercer uses the water-based surgical scrub as a lubricant too; this is perfectly safe. Massage lobes gently while cleaning.
Apply lubricant to the the small end of the taper and insert it into the current piercing. Take a deep breath and exhale. Hold the jewelry against the wide end of the taper and push the taper through the piercing on the exhale, stretching the hole to accommodate the larger jewelry.
Clean your earlobes daily with antibacterial soap. Fill a small disposable cup with warm water and add 1/8 teaspoon of sea salt. Mix thoroughly and soak your earlobes for 15 minutes. Throw the cup away.
Stretch your lobes every six months using tapers. Resist the temptation to stretch more often, as this can lead to blowout. Use electrical tape wraps to stretch lobes past 00 gauge. Wrap tape around plugs one time, once a month. Continue until you've reached the gauge you want.