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Throughout our entire history, adornment has served as a way of self-expression, social status and, believe it or not, attracting attention of potential partners. In these modern times, we have taken this to a whole new level – In this era of refined personalization, even our jewelry has adapted to our individual styles.

So what have we learned from our ancient fashion gurus from China, Egypt and India? Let’s take a walk down the decades and explore what shapes the jewelry trends as we know them today.

The 20s and 30s – The Decades of Pearl

A surge in the wealth of economy allowed for glamour to step in and take over. Ladies were embellishing themselves with luxurious diamonds, omnipresent pearls, and costume jewelry, thus perpetuating the premise of opulence. Shapely pendants slowly started growing in popularity, while richness of materials and fine craftsmanship never faded, ensuring that the Art Deco movement reflected social advancement. Introducing additional materials such as wood, paper, copper and glass lead to a more diverse selection of jewelry, still predominantly maintaining their status as luxury items.

The 40s and 50s – The Age of Audrey

The following two decades were deeply influenced by the preceding fashion trends. The pearl-gold tendency lived all throughout the 40s and 50s, with more emphasis on the size and shape of jewelry pieces, making them larger, more lavish and prominent, and turning to different forms and models, such as flowers and discreet leaves.

Brooches and button earrings became very popular and refined necklaces were preferred. While the difference between these two epochs was not that significant, jewelry in general was slowly gaining more diversification through shapes and sizes. And why Audrey? Because her unsurpassed beauty and effortless elegance was something any woman of the age desired and tried to replicate. Her jewelry choices were no exception.

The 60s and the 70s – The Beginning of Boho

As in any movement, the first few years of the decade were transitional, blending the tendencies of the previous years with the rising fashion trends that promoted equality, freedom and diversity.

Going a step further from the golden hues and popular pearls that were associated with the upper class and elegant femininity in the previous era, the 60s brought a wave of mass produced, plastic and affordable baubles. The shapes became bolder, drawing inspiration from geometry, while colors varied from black and white combos to vivid and bright shades mixed with rhinestones, still preserving some of the influence from the 50s. Emerging on every level of society, the hippie trends lead to the creation of ethnic, bohemian-styled jewelry that later shaped the entire course of fashion history. Reflected in the preference of nature-inspired shapes and floral patterns, the love for boho bloomed as the decade instilled new values of youthful radiance, daring sensuality and rebellious passion. With oversized earrings, chunky bangles, layered statement necklaces, plastic space-like creations, versatile color palette, and playful texturing of metal, the jewelry of this era certainly left its mark.

The 80s and the 90s – The Era of Individuality

This period was all about pushing the boundaries and getting even more expressive through individual style, creativity, unexpected combinations and exaggeration. It was a time when statement jewelry fully earned its name, as the growing popularity of mixing oversized earrings, bold chokers and neon, bright colors dominated the market. The leading rule was that there were no rules. Ladies of the era finally felt liberated enough to experiment – making unexpected combinations and using daring colors to embellish their outfits. Ranging from raw punk items with an aggressive note clearly seen through the use of dark hues, chains and spikes, all the way to business, professionally-oriented pieces that were meant to accentuate the entire look, the 80s fully expressed the meaning of individual and unique. Towards the beginning of the 90s, sportswear started to take over the turf, combined with mood rings, glam silver glow, layered necklaces, and other unexpected, bold items.

The 2000s Fashion Fusion

Starting with the hip-hop streetwear as well as the evolution and revival of boho jewelry, the new millennium has delivered a tendency towards combining conflicting styles, abandonment of most rules and a culture of globalization, bringing different ethnic and artistic directions together. Casual chic bloomed with the pop craze, while minimalism became increasingly popular, and the military style was starting to evolve, to name a few. Chunky shoes and hoop earrings, oversized rings, aviator sunglasses, glam glow and metallic glitz took over the world with their techy feel.

On one side, we had the monochromatic power of sparkly black outfits emphasizing sex appeal, and on the other, we had a steady rise of the colorful bohemian movement with their nature-inspired patterns and flowy tunics. The list of undefined and unrefined styles goes on, and while we are repeatedly surprised by innovative ideas of our contemporary designers, we can see the influence of the previous decades in every item worn today. The rebellious choker, delicate pendant, unsurpassed elegance of pearls and the glam of futuristic oversized earrings, they are all inspired by a vivid past. No matter where the future of fashion leads us, the indelible imprint of its origins will always resonate with the past.

Originally published on

Blandiri