How did Fashion Jewelry Evolve

Today’s fashion jewelry is able to draw on the past, both to choose antique pieces for use with current styles and to design totally new concepts with one foot in the past. Fashionable rings, pins, necklaces and other decorative pieces are available in boutiques, department stores and outlets for designers. They are also found in consignment shops, second-hand stores and flea markets.

Beautiful Georgian jewelry is crafted by artisans who worked almost entire by hand. Some of the popular gemstones include sapphires, emeralds, garnets and diamonds. The settings for Georgian pieces are often made of silver. Multi-faceted gemstones came into their own during this historical period. Jewelry for both sexes tended to be bold and the number of pieces worn at any one time was perhaps higher than at any other period.

Victorian jewelry tends to be more romantic and flowery. There are many dainty examples of the jewelry of this era. Cameos, hair ornaments and chokers were popular designs. Women today still select beautiful Victorian engagement rings because of the sentimental designs. Victorian jewelry is more delicate and ornate. Viewing many of the pieces will make you think of lace.

Chronologically, the Art Nouveau period was the next popular jewelry era. You can still obtain period pieces for jewelry from this school. Gemstones are often less costly than from early periods. Moonstones, opals and other colored gemstones often are used to enhance and draw focus to the design, rather than being the center. Some popular motifs are sunbursts, botanical items and languid female figures or faces.

The arts and crafts movement in jewelry and art was occurring at the same time as Art Nouveau. Instead of the machine made pieces of the industrial age, artisans in small factories or establishments produced beautiful and intricate handmade pieces. The volume of such pieces was limited, since they were one at a time creations and the time period in which they were produced was short, only about three to four decades.

Edwardian jewelry is heavily into the use of diamonds and platinum. The style tends to be lavish, ornate and even ostentatious by today’s standards. The development of thin settings made the gemstones almost appear to be unsupported.

Art Deco jewelry designs used alternatives to traditional materials and designs. There was strong influence from the Caribbean, Africa and the Far East. Bakelite was a popular construction materials and angles were more popular than fluid curves.

Retro jewelry is particularly popular in the United States. It is the large, bold and often flamboyant look favored by the Hollywood stars of the 1930s and 1940s. Base metals were more common than precious metals. Charm bracelets are an example of popular pieces. The pieces can still be found today and they are popular with someone who wants an attractive and unique look.

Today’s fashion jewelry is a mix of many past generations, styles and looks. It is also skilled at pulling unique aspects of previous generations and recombining them for new and beautiful looks. Choose your own look by mixing and matching pieces.

A.Moosa is founder of Outfit Additions, a California based women’s fashion accessories retailer. View the collection of belts, unique bead necklaces, and a variety of fashion jewelry at the store.