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New-season jewellery trends: from gold chains to Downton-inspired vintage jewels

This autumn, it's all about layering your gold chains for maximum effect - Instagram / @jessicamccormack
This autumn, it's all about layering your gold chains for maximum effect - Instagram / @jessicamccormack

Forget ‘transitional’ – it feels like we’ve gone from sundresses and sandals to boots and coats in ten seconds flat. At least with jewellery, what worked in the heat can also work in the cold with a few minor tweaks. Herewith, the jewellery trends you need to know for the new season.

Gold chains

The new chain gang is one you’ll want to join. Forget the single, barely-detectable gold chain delicately shimmering around the neck – the new chains can be seen from a distance, and are able to take on the chunkiest cold-weather knits.

gold chain trend
gold chain trend

From left: 18ct yellow gold and diamond Vintage Alhambra necklace, £52,000, Van Cleef & Arpels; 9ct gold Box chain, £698, Tom Wood; Gold-plated 50mm Slim Curb Link necklace, £250, Tilly Sveaas

If layering, unless money is no object, a mix of lower-karat, vermeil, and 18ct gold chains will give you the fully loaded effect. Try layering up Catbird’s finer 14ct chains with Wwake’s diamond and opal-strewn pieces, then steal from the boys and add Tom Wood’s vermeil chains for extra length.

For heft, look to Tilly Sveass and her super chunky watch chain necklaces plated in 18ct gold, and to make sure you’ve got some real gold in there – as in solid 18ct – head to Tiffany & Co, Cartier, or Van Cleef & Arpels, whose Vintage Alhambra necklaces in etched, guilloche yellow gold have a highly polished gleam to catch the eye.

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley - Credit: Instagram / @rosiehw
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley wearing an 18ct gold and diamond Ball'n'Chain necklace by Jessica McCormack Credit: Instagram / @rosiehw

If it’s just one statement-making gold chain you’re after, opt for major pendants or multiple strands. Jessica McCormack’s ball’n’chain range of chunky gold orbs linked together can be anchored with huge diamond or emerald drops – as seen on Rosie Huntington-Whiteley in both a bikini and a blazer, while CVC Stones now offers a gold version of its diamond-studded pebble.

If all this sounds like too much gold, there are gold and silver blends to be found by HUM, a Japanese brand who leads the way with melding gold and sterling silver.

Neon brights

Next up, it’s brightly hued enamel. Instagram went crazy for Bea Bongiasca’s squiggly, tendril-like ‘vine’ collection of 9ct gold, hand painted with brilliantly-hued enamel, and set with gemstones like topaz and peridot.

neon jewellery
neon jewellery

Left to right: 18ct white gold, blue topaz and enamel medium Flip ring, £1,750, Nina Runsdorf; £1,254, 9ct rose gold, silver, peridot and enamel Double Curl Vine earrings, £895, Bea Bongiasca; Alice Cicolini 14ct gold and enamel Memphis ring, £1,900, Net-a-Porter 

Nina Runsdorf’s iconic Flip rings now come in primary coloured enamels, along with oversized hoops with removable charms, and Roxanne Assoulin’s enamel bracelets and hoop earrings are made to be layered.

Alice Cicolini is the queen of sweet enamel rings in stripes and polka dots, and if colour’s just not your thing, Nikos Koulis uses black enamel for a distinct look you could spot from across the room.

Vintage jewels

Since it’s Second-hand September, recycling jewellery has to be mentioned. The vintage jewellery market is huge, and with Downton Abbey about to hit the big screen, Edwardian, Georgian, and Victorian jewellery will likely be in demand again.

Downton Abbey
The release of Downton Abbey is likely to spark a demand for Edwardian, Georgian and Victorian jewellery

Try Grays Antiques for an insanely overwhelming array of vintage pieces, or scour regional auction houses’ websites for bargains. I’ve lost hours perusing the websites of Fellows and Chiswick Auctions, online window-shopping.

Earrings, but not as we know them

One trend I personally can’t wait to get on board with is the gravity-defying ear jewellery trend. These aren’t earrings as we know them – they don’t simply go through a hole in your lobe and hang down.

Marco Panconesi’s Psychometry collection 
Marco Panconesi’s Psychometry collection features pieces that wrap around the ear, from tip to lobe and beyond

Marco Panconesi’s Psychometry collection features pieces that wrap around the entire head, or if that’s too much, just one ear, from tip to lobe and beyond, while Gaelle Khouri’s Episteme single earring looks like a floating jumble of multiple hoops.

For a simpler take on the look, Liv Luttrell’s Twist earrings seem to float against the ear rather than through it, while Ana Khouri’s phenomenal Harmony collection includes an earring that flows from ear to ear, over the head, via a diamond-set chain.

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