Thursday, April 2, 2009

On the Cuff


Women who are in responsible positions and/or conservative professions have limited options when it comes to jewelry. A statement necklace may work -- or not -- depending on the culture; pearls are a safe option but can be boring; brooches and pins risk looking too retro.

But there's one item of jewelry that's almost always safe to wear, in as wild a style as your suit-smothered heart desires. What prevents them from drawing notice is that they're small, and live in the hinterlands down the arm. Cuff links!

No, they're not just for boys, although the blokes down the trading desk know well the stealthy, anarchic (as it goes) potential of these little gems.

But for you, they don't have to be at all masculine. Silk knots, gorgeous enamel, diamond-sparkly, and yes, even Monopoly Scotties are a possibility. It's possible to find nice nice nice cuff links in any charity shop/thrift store in the land.

It's harder to find the dress shirts to go with them. English shirtmakers like Pink routinely issue link-friendly styles, but probably the best option is eBay. In America, keyword "french cuff", in the UK, "double cuff". Happy hunting!

3 comments:

  1. Thank you for posting about cufflinks as a jewelry choice for women.

    During the mid to late Victorian era cufflinks and shirt studs were fashionable accesories for both men and women. After about 1900 fine cufflinks seem to have become a more male-dominated domain. Then during the Jazz Age of the 1920s, cufflinks were once again favored by fashion forward women. I think we are seeing a repeat of this trend.

    In my experience interest in antique cufflinks is split between men and women. Today both are avid collectors and wearers of fine cufflinks from the past.

    Kind regards,

    Art Anderson
    www.AntiqueCufflinks.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you, Art, for this interesting comment! Your blog looks great, btw!

    ReplyDelete