Money is no object (even when it is)

Look, I’m not pretending diamond earrings wouldn’t be nice. But the days when jewellery was just hard currency in sparkly form are over. Costume jewellery isn’t about fake jewels any more, it is desirable in its own right. Most women who wear jewellery buy it for themselves, change it frequently and love getting it for gifts. You can get fun jewellery on the high street for a tenner and longer-term jewellery-box treasures for well under £100. So a pair of earrings or a necklace isn’t just a landmark birthday present any more – it might be the answer for your aunt or your office secret Santa or your kid’s year-three teacher. Try Zara: I love these black velvet teardrops dangling from beaten-gold domes studded with black rhinestones, for £12.99.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Velvet teardrops from Zara, £12.99.

The snowman earring is the new mismatched earring



If you are buying an earring as a fashion gift, listen up. The shape to look for now is the snowman: a large oval below a smaller circle. The Zara ones I mentioned above, for instance. The shapes can be smooth and symmetrical, like the tortoiseshell-speckled clear beaded double drops at Cos for £19. Or they can be dented and grooved in the modern organic style, like the beaded clusters hanging from burnished brass studs that are £17.99 at Mango. If those seem a bit outre, another on-trend option is anything seaside-themed. Blooming Dreamer makes jewellery from real shells; I am a bit obsessed with their Sea of Love pendant, a gold-edged scallop shell on a fine gold chain, for £60. There are very cute gold seashell studs for £13 at & Other Stories. A gold medallion on a pendant is another chic option. The ultimate are by Alighieri, this year’s name to drop in the jewellery world, and cost about £200.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Gold seashell studs from & Other Stories, £13.

Do a little sleuthing



You don’t have to root around in her underwear drawer, you just have to look at her. Does she wear big earrings? Lots of bracelets? A different necklace every day? This will give you a steer. If you’re already in the shops reading this in a panic and can’t remember if she has pierced ears, text her best friend; if she doesn’t get back to you, then Monica Vinader’s sustainable, ethically sourced jewellery, as worn by Emma Watson and the Duchess of Cambridge, is a failsafe choice. An 18-carat gold-plated adjustable-sized chain link bracelet with a moonstone is £115.

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A teeny box from a big name makes a super fancy special present

If what she would really love is a Valentino dress or a Saint Laurent blazer or a Gucci sweater, but your budget doesn’t stretch to four figures, fashion jewellery makes a brilliant gift. Gucci’s faux-pearl bee-stud earrings, £270 from Net-a-Porter, are a modern classic. Don’t overthink the choice; recognisable is good. Valentino’s logo hoops are £340 at matchesfashion.com and Balenciaga’s silk-ribbon-wrapped pair is £325. The outsize YSL initial earrings as seen on the catwalk are sold out everywhere, but the mini brass tassel version can be found on Farfetch for £260. Smartest of all, Vestiaire Collective is a treasure trove of pre-owned, certified-real designer jewellery: a pair of Chloe-branded bow-shaped studs for £63.17, for instance.

Avoid rings if there is any potential for conflict

I hope this is blindingly obvious but, just in case, bear in mind that if there is the slightest scope for disappointment or confusion about what the giving of a ring may or may not signify, do everyone a favour and stick to earrings. Rings are tricky to give anyway, because a ring that doesn’t fit is as useful as a pair of shoes that doesn’t fit, and most of us don’t even know our own ring sizes, let alone anyone else’s. If you have access to a ring that fits, you can use dental floss to measure the inside circumference, then compare it to an online ring sizer to get the size (a letter) that you need. If you have the size, a signet ring is the newer, cooler take on the cocktail ring. Astley Clarke’s rose-gold plated signet ring with lace agate is an absolute corker for £110.

Beware the strong and stable necklace

2018 was the year Theresa May killed the statement necklace. The PM’s dogged commitment to her outsize silver Amanda Wakeley chain, from which she deviates only as far as similarly chunky strong-and-stable strings of faux pearls or Conservative-blue giant beads, has aligned what was once a power-dressing staple with a political year to forget. However, long-term thinkers might like to note that, possibly thanks to the May association, the chunky chain is the only jewellery item not sold out from the Moschino x H&M collection. At £49.99 for full-fat gold-plated bling, it could turn out to be a sound fashion investment.

Hoops work at any age

Some jewellery has an age bracket. Friendship bracelets are great for teenagers; brooches tend to skew post-50. Hoops work for everyone. Kate Spade’s large faux-pearl hoops are currently reduced from £60 to £39. Marks & Spencer has a cute stocking-filler pearl-studded mini hoop for £7.50. Christmas decorations? Baubles for the tree are all very well. But baubles for your nearest and dearest – or for you – are best of all.

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