You know if you see enough of something, it’s almost certainly a trend. Such is the case for tennis bracelets—and necklaces, maybe even more so—a style that you’d find difficult to ignore as the bronzed days of summer begin to dwindle. I might even be so bold (nuts?) as to say that the tennis style is one of the biggest trends to come out of quarantine (though I’m fairly certain that the pandemic itself has absolutely nothing to do with it).
I’ve seen the look layered on the necks of celebrities and influencers on Instagram, many pairing the style with nameplate necklaces or the of-the-moment paper clip chains. There has been a wave of jewelers either creating new lines with the look or revitalizing the styles they already had. And this isn’t just out of the blue—see Amy Elliott’s report on Jennifer Meyer’s tennis collection from September 2019, which even features earrings in the iconic style.
At first, I found the style a hard one to digest. Tennis bracelets were, in my memory, a favorite of every mom in the ’90s, and while I love my mom greatly and even look back with fondness of how much she admired her own tennis bracelets, I wasn’t so sure such a piece would be for me. But like many things that were once old and now are new, I’ve found the updates to be well suited to a younger generation of shoppers, and, like most things, appreciate the hand of an independent designer at work over the mass-produced offerings I was so familiar with before I got the chance to dive deeper into the jewelry world.
Though I remember the tennis bracelet as a thing of the ’90s, it was coined as such long before I was even born—you probably know by now the story of tennis star Chris Evert’s bracelet of choice in the ’70s. It actually makes perfect sense that the style would be in such favor at the moment, as it coincides with the rise of tennis wear. While I’m staying true to my sweatpants (are you?), much of the fashion set is pulling on cutesy tennis skirts to dress for comfort, whether or not they’re hitting the court (tennis must be a fairly safe game to play by social distancing standards, right?).
Summer is always a time for sun-soaked fashions, and layering on necklaces suits that. But it feels right that tennis necklaces and bracelets will ride into fall and then on into winter, so look for them to be included on those lists of holiday gift ideas, as the (hopefully still) busy shopping season will no doubt sneak up on us.
Top: Rainbow baguette tennis bracelet in 14k yellow gold with 2.45 cts. t.w. rubies, sapphires, amethysts, emeralds, and aquamarines, $1,795; Eriness
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