Jewelry 101
From layered pearl necklaces to chunky rings, the world of jewelry can be difficult to navigate. To mix metals or not to mix metals? Can I stack rings? And what even is a pendant? To help you out, we’ve described our favorite ways to accessorize with jewelry.
Corinne Dottori
My jewelry style is rather eclectic. On a daily basis, I usually wear my Robert Coin silver necklace, my Apple watch, and a few gold rings. On days or nights where I'm dressing up, I often layer long necklaces I thrifted. One is a beaded necklace that has an array of purple beads, and the other is a rainbow beaded necklace with a hanging silver coin in the center. Additionally, I like to add more rings when I'm going out. The rings I wear are mostly gold, but range in shape and style, consisting of chunky, linked, and more classic banded styles. I also like to stack my thin-banded jeweled rings. In terms of mixing metals, I used to strictly wear gold, but now I mix metals by incorporating my Silver Hamilton watch with chunky gold hoop earrings, gold rings, and a simple silver necklace.
James Prewitt
I've been a watch guy since my sophomore year of high school, but I'm still relatively new to jewelry. My first piece was a simple chain I got in a style subscription box that I still wear most days. I recently added a charm to it that I thrifted. For watches, I have a couple that I inherited from my Dad that I wear a lot, but my everyday wear is a Seiko diver with a blue dial on a silver Milanese strap. It goes with pretty much everything. I'd say I actually started getting into jewelry in April. That's when I got my first ring, a spinner from Sterling Sylvia on French Market Place. A couple of months later, I got a gold-plated signet ring on Depop. I don't really care about mixing metals, so I'll wear both my rings at the same time if I want. I try to balance my jewelry between my hands, though, so I usually wear my two rings on my left hand and my watch on my right wrist because I'm left-handed. I just go with what looks good to me on that day. I also have a fake pearl necklace and some chains, and I love to layer them. My everyday chain has a charm with some Christian symbols on it, and I'll wear it pretty much anytime I'm not wearing a collared shirt. If I'm dressing conservatively, I'll probably just wear a watch, and I'll just add pieces on the more liberties I'm taking. I really love how jewelry can step up an otherwise basic outfit and make it look like you put in some effort.
Liz Small
When it comes to jewelry, my preferences are yet again, all over the place. I have been really into jewelry the past two years and since then I have accumulated quite the collection. My staple is my Luis Vuitton lock necklace that was a gift from my mother. I never take it off so my neck is permanently stained green. Lately, I have been wearing a lot of thrifted jewelry on top of this, including a vintage queen bee necklace from Magazine Antique Mall, and my guitar pick earrings from an antique store back in Nashville. If I had to give one word of advice on sourcing jewelry, I would suggest antique stores. They always have vintage costume jewelry that is cheap and unique in all kinds of styles. That’s why I like to mix golds and silvers in my jewelry. Sticking to one kind of metal can be a nice put-together look, but having an array of different kinds and styles makes the whole look more fun. I get most of my rings from antique stores as well; they always have one-of-a-kind types of finds. Lastly are bracelets. I like to wear my handmade and sentimental items on my wrist, so all of my bracelets are either made by friends or myself. This includes beaded and strung bracelets with a silly band or two hidden in the mix.