There’s so much I love about Jewelry Week in Las Vegas—the sparkling sights of jewelry and jewelry-makers most of all—and one of my favorite parts is hunting for trends.
It’s not really something you can plan to do. If you say to yourself, “Okay, tennis bracelets are trending, so I’m going to look for all the tennis bracelets,” then guess what? You’re gonna find tennis bracelets. Trends can sort of be a self-fulfilling prophecy if you set your mind to them. We often have an idea of the things we might see on the show floor, but I like to wipe my expectations and allow myself to be surprised—and with some of these apparently trending styles, I was.
Stackable bangles and rings
When it came to bracelet styles, it wasn’t the tennis bracelet that seemed most abundant this year but rather the bangle. And it appears stacking is back—in a big way. Bangles dotted with diamonds or colored gems were everywhere, as were ones in textured gold and silver.
I feel like I also saw more stacking rings at this year’s shows than in the past decade. My first few years at JCK, stacking was everywhere—and here we are full-circle. To get even more specific, I noticed that many of these stackable rings were not of the ordinary shape; instead, plenty had square tops or were extra high, almost egg-shape.
Texture, detail, and the wave
Between JCK and the Couture show, I saw lots of textured gold, an elevated type of design that’s often hand-done by the jewels’ creators. I love this extra detail because it really enhances the artisan style of a piece, as so many consumers are seeking, and it sets what could be, say, a solitaire engagement ring apart from the rest.
On the topic of detail, there was one that both surprised and delighted me: Many rings, earrings, and bracelets featured a smattering of diamonds on only one side—this asymmetric design allows the wearer to position the diamonds on the inner or outer part of her finger, wrist, etc. Most of the pieces weren’t pavé-set, but rather had no more than 10 melee stones arranged in a way that reminded me of stardust. The look is irresistibly dreamy and romantic!
And finally—the wave. If I had to name one silhouette that dominated the Vegas shows, it was unmistakably the wave. Scalloped, soft lines zigging and zagging along necklaces, rings, hoop earrings—for any piece of jewelry you can think of, there was a wavy version. This design adds playful volume to so many standard, eternal styles, making the wave a modern classic indeed.
Heritage style
You’ve probably heard the term “heritage style” from many well-established jewelry houses, where something in the design is a reference to their history and often (though not always) features a logo. There was evidence of heritage style from multiple big-name jewelers at the shows, including John Hardy, Lagos, Mikimoto, and others.
A (surprising?) lack of color
Bear with me on this one… Obviously, there was an enormous helping of blues, greens, and pinks to be had in Vegas. I was wowed by tourmalines, drooled over delicious sapphires and emeralds, and became transfixed by the swirling colors of opals. Yet I didn’t come away with heaps of color on my mind. No, I’m now living for the all the rich gold I sighted—textured or not, with or without diamonds (both natural and lab-grown). Despite chatter of a cooldown in metals, yellow gold still made a fierce showing this year, and I’m content basking in its warmth a bit longer.
Initial jewelry
Letters are back, baby! Well, maybe they never went anywhere—who doesn’t love a good bit of personalized jewelry? But the initials I saw, particularly at Couture, were welcoming and fresh. Hand-drawn fonts transformed into temptingly attractive jewels, many of them oversize versions that beg to be worn on long chains (an early-2000s throwback). For those who love to collect letter jewelry, there’s never been a better time to expand their repertoire.
Top: Puffy hand-drawn letter pendants in 14k yellow gold at Imperfect Grace
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