Accessories How-To: When More Is, Well, More!

So far the year 2011 has been right down our alley! Considered to be the “Season of Accessories”,  S/S 2011 has presented unique styles all centered around jewelry, handbags, hats, and more. The notion of “more is more” has caught on and I personally could not be more thrilled. Besides working for 1928 Jewelry, I have been an accessories queen all my life. I have an embarrassing collection of shoes, I have more hats than I can wear, and I change handbags as often as I change my clothes! If anyone is happy about the season of more- it’s me!

But there is a fine, fine line between accomplishing the trendy look and overdoing it. What we see in editorial ad campaigns or magazine spreads doesn’t necessarily reflect to every day fashion. In fact, the rule I use is to copy what I see in the magazines, and then remove piece by piece until I feel more comfortable in what I have on. Here are a few short rules that I’ve found apply to just about every style:

1. Balance things out! if you wear large chandelier earrings, best to not put on a statement necklace. Lots of bracelets? Keep the rings off for the day.Also think of your clothing proportions and what accessories will actually show.
2. Don’t be afraid to mix metals! It’s a hard pet peeve for some to get over, but the end result gives you so much more options!
3. Texture, texture, texture! The more different textures you have, the more unique your look and the more it reflects your personal style! All one material makes it look heavy and overplayed. Mix it up!

The three easiest jewelry pieces to wear multiple pieces of are necklaces, rings and of course bracelets. So let’s take a crash course on how to avoid looking over-accessorized and weighed down while still rocking the more is more jewelry and accessories look! Here are our Looks to Love and Looks to Leave behind when it comes to layering and piling on the biggest trend of the year!

Layered Necklaces

The Look to Love: Here, Sarah Jessica Parker has got some serious necklace lust going on! And not only has she layered at least 3 necklaces, but she has picked bold statement making pieces to boot! However, she has taken ALL the necessary steps to make this look work for her. Her hair is pulled back and out of the way, her dress is solid and smooth, and her necklaces all fall at different lengths.

The Look to Leave: I hardly ever criticize Rihanna’s style, but this is the perfect example of too much! Instead of mixing it up like SJP did, Rihanna opted for ALL pearls and almost ALL the same length. Layers work better when they hit different lengths so that they do not pile up so high around your neck. Even had she added a darker pearl strand in there somewhere it would break up the monotonous look. Overkill!

Multiple Rings

The Look to Love: Now not everyone supports the style of wearing multiple rings, but I think that is because it is very rarely pulled off in a stylish and clean manner. Forget wedding rings and simple silver bands- while they are beautiful, classic and meaningful, they don’t fit into this look. The idea to rock multiple rings is to keep them all generally bulky and bold. However, minimize it to no more than 3 fingers. Rings that connect two fingers are an automatic plus!

The Look to Leave: You can pile up to 3 rings on one hand, but then leave the other hand alone. Rings pack a lot of design into a small little piece, so you lose the detail of each ring with the more you wear together. You want people looking at your rings, not your ring filled hands!

Stacked Bracelets

The Look to Love: It’s pretty easy to get this look right! At 1928, we encourage mixing bangles, cuffs, stretch bracelets, and even watches to create a different look for your wrist every day! As stated in my simple rules above, the key here is texture! Leather, beads, metal, and some ribbon all look great together and each piece will stand out on its own. Pay attention to how the bracelets move on your wrist and overlap one another. If they all stay in their perfect place, throw something in there to mix them up!

The Look to Leave: When all of your bracelets look alike, it gets hard to tell where one bracelet ends and the other begins, until you create a look that resembles one large metal cuff. Too much! The other trick to making this look work for you is determined by how the bracelets fit. If they are all tighter clasp bracelets that barely move along your wrist, you may want to cut down on the number you put on.

We hope this was a fun and helpful guide to tackling “more is more”! Remember- your personal style is YOUR personal style! So take what you see in the magazines and other blogs and think about how you can make the jewelry you already own fit into the new you!