This post has been sitting in my draft box for possibly a month or even more – yikes! It never quite felt like the right time to post it (I didn’t really want to post it right before or right after my A/W’18 trend report and wanted to post my holiday posts asap) but I’m finally ready to talk about one of my favourite things in the world – jewellery, and why it’s such a big deal this season.
I’m going to be focusing specifically on earrings in this post because earrings really are having a moment (and I always have and always will love them), and with necklaces, it’s all been pretty standard for the past few years – Missoma, Astrid & Miyu, Cinco and (more recently) that kind of annoying yet somewhat irresistible alphabet necklace by Celine continue to rule fashionistas’ necks and décolletages. And precisely because statement earrings are all over the place, it’s probably wise to keep necklaces relatively simple.
That’s right folks, when it comes to earrings for A/W’18, go bold or go home. My beloved and favourite fashion decade, the eighties, has creeped up on both the runways and high street with some quietly powerful moves. One obvious example is earrings – because if there is one decade that was all about big, bold and statement earrings, that is the eighties. I have personally loved big and chunky jewellery for quite a long time – yes, I can smugly say that it was long before it was actually a thing. I’ve been hunting down beautiful vintage costume jewellery and raiding my mum’s jewellery box for ages and have a pretty great collection – but my shopaholic ways led me to picking up a few new pieces… from Primark, shockingly! I don’t know what’s going on but Primark has nailed it in the jewellery department this season, offering some amazing pieces that guess what, no one would ever think were Primark. So here are three key trends that I spotted from my little findings at Primark but that you are guaranteed to spot all over the high-street and your fashion feeds.
1. Wood
This is a look that has carried on from Summer 2018’s love affair with all things natural, rustic and straight outta nature. It might not last into the depths of winter because ultimately ‘natural’ materials look so much better in the sun, but there’s something very elegant and even wholesome about elements of wood in jewellery, don’t you think? I like how these earrings are literally fully wooden, but look out for touches of it combined with resin or gold – Topshop and New Look are onto this trend, which I wouldn’t be surprised if it made a big splash next spring and summer. Touch wood… literally.
2. Rattan
I’m a bit annoyed about these earrings – I adore them but was angry to see that Primark might have potentially copied them from independent sellers on Etsy (you can shop a really similar pair here). I have mixed feelings about high-street brands copying designer brands, but what I really don’t like is when high-street brands copy small, independent makers. Or maybe both the high-street and independent designers have taken inspiration from some bigger brand – I’m so ignorant these days as to who is copying who.
I can’t say this changes my feelings about these earrings because I absolutely love the rattan effect combined with the gold. I first tried this look with these Monki earrings and as they were my most earrings throughout the summer, I’m now a big advocate for incorporating rattan (or a simulation of rattan) into jewellery. I love how unusual and elegant it looks, it’s the perfect balance of making a statement and looking pretty chic. Again, it’s a look that like wood might not survive the colder months, but I think it can tie in beautifully with those rustic tones that are currently screaming Autumn/Winter’18 and might be big again next summer.
3. Tortoiseshell & resin
Initially I wasn’t sure whether to write about these two elements separately or ‘join’ them together, but I chose the latter because I do feel they go very much hand in hand this season. The tortoiseshell effect pretty much equals resin these days, although resin comes in many shapes and sizes.
I did a little research about tortoiseshell, a jewellery look that I’ve loved for a long time (proof here, bitches). It turns out tortoiseshell is exactly that – poor tortoises and turtles would die in order for humans to have pretty furniture, jewellery and other consumer goods. I know – dreadful! In fact, the hawksbill sea turtle is now an endangered species thanks because of this. Luckily, the use of real tortoiseshell was banned in the seventies, and as it turns out there’s no need to kill turtles to have this look in one’s jewellery box because hello resin and plastic.
And here’s a beautiful example of a subtle tortoiseshell by way of resin pair of earrings.
I couldn’t resist grabbing this pair as well, which ditches the tortoiseshell look for a cool-as-a-cucumber and retro look. I’m actually not sure if I’m using the term resin correctly – I think most fashion brands refer to this look as resin, but it might not be the most accurate term? I just hope you get my point – that plastic effect with subtle patterns is probably going to be a biggie this season and is ultimately a timeless look that will always come back.
It’s fair to say fashion is having a love affair with natural-inspired materials – let’s not forget another huge-end-of-summer, start-of-autumn trend that was plastered all over Instagram, cowry shell jewellery. Combined with the excess of the eighties, what’s not to love?
I hate to admit that ever since buying these five pairs of earrings I’ve since gone back and bought more, as Primark’s selection of jewellery just keeps getting better and better. Having said that, I’m going to try to stir away from Primark – I keep thinking about the labour conditions the workers must go through and it doesn’t sit well with me. Also, it’s crazy how so many earrings that are almost identical to these pieces are available on Etsy, specifically through these two sellers, SunandDayshop and studiotyyli.
I didn’t intend to get political with this post but hey, I guess you can never know where a post about jewellery trends is going to take you! I guess I’ll conclude that since so much current jewellery is inspired by the eighties and handmade pieces from natural materials, why not go the extra mile and look for some vintage costume jewellery or get lost in the wonderful pieces Etsy has to offer?
xxx