Icon Of The Week: The Pearl Necklace
They say diamonds are a girl's best friend. In my opinion, pearls completely trump them by a mile. They transform any look from demure to dramatic, day or night. They aren't pretentious, spell elegance, and you can wear them at any age, whether you're a 20-year-old bohemian hippie, a 30-year-old blushing bride, or a 40-year-old first lady.
Speaking of first ladies, I think it's safe to say that the reason why pearls have been established as the epitome of sophistication is because they're practically uniform for any wife of an American president. From Jackie Kennedy...
Right down to Michelle Obama.
When it comes to the concept of pearls as the jewel of innocence, it probably stems from its artistic interpretations. The Girl with the Pearl Earring anyone?
And then there's the fact that Coco Chanel couldn't get past a day without wearing a pearl necklace, which boosted its image and iconized it as a fashion staple.
So now you know the background story, let's get to the must-know essentials. The value of pearls are determined by their luster, colour, size, lack of flaws and symmetry. They're fairly easy to look after too, just make sure you don't spritz your perfume on them because that tends to make its colour dull.
When it comes to getting your first and staple basic set of cultured pearls, you must get them from Mikimoto. Otherwise, they don't count as a real pearl necklace. It'd be a fashion sin to commit!
But of course, thanks to Coco, Chanel pearls are equally iconic.
As are that of Tiffany's, thanks to Audrey Hepburn.
But take my word for it, thanks to Michelle Obama, Tom Binns's pearl necklaces are on the brink of becoming an iconic staple, albeit a tad more risque when compared to the previous two.
Blair Waldorf from Gossip Girl made the pearl necklace come back into trend for the younger demographic. Paired with her age appropriate but conservative vintage finds, Waldorf made dressing up in pearls look playfully cute and demure.
The beauty of the pearl is that it's completely versatile without compromising sophistication in any case, whether you decide to go kooky preppy, boho chic or classically minimal.
Quite understandably, the shorter the strand and the simpler the layer depict basic class. As the layers pile on with varying lengths, the pearl necklace becomes an essential tool for boho casual chic.
Personally, I think chunkier pearls go perfectly well with any trends current today. They give them a little punk edge. :)
The truth is, because the pearl necklace is such an iconic fashion staple, no matter how modernized or contemporary the design, they still manage to evoke a sense of sophistication and class. And I believe they will for many years to come. How do you feel about the pearl necklace? Where did you get your first strand? How would you wear it?
[Photo Credits: stylelist, pricescope, stylebakery, daniranidesigns, connectedelegance, firstladies, nohway, jewelry, fabsugar, frillr, necolebitchie, thestilettoeffect, girlwearschanel, kidzworld, flairvoyant, tishevangelista, fashion420somethings, hauteaddiction, cocokelley, ferniandfriends, stylebayarea, ]
