Jewellery trends: the wonderful and the wierd

I recently came across a small sample of jewellery from my teenage years: odd bits packed away in a box which for some reasons I haven't been able to part with.

Yes, I was definitely into fish!

I wouldn't wear jewellery like this anymore, and that got me to thinking: is it fashion that has changed, or my personal taste, or both?

So I've been taking a look at some changes in jewellery taste over the years which has been great fun.

Did you know that the Victorians were into jewellery made with human hair? 'The Victorian Period saw a rise in mourning practices due to its popularity through Queen Victoria, and wearing hair jewelry was seen as a form of carrying one's sentiments for the deceased.' Wikipedia

Nowadays you can even have jewellery made from the ashes of your deceased love ones. No thanks, not for me!

Jumping forward, hippy 70's jewellery is much more to my taste: beads, multiple layers of everything, natural materials like wood and clay, and of course, flower power.

With the 80's came an abundance of BIG, bright, colourful, often plastic jewellery. Think Madonna, Cindy Lauper and Janet Jackson. It was fun and fabulous.

One jewellery style I have never really appreciated is Gothic jewellery. Wearing skulls, wolf heads and bats is just not my thing.

But what I really love about jewellery is that anything goes. Whatever your taste, wearing jewellery isn't simply part of your look. It can be used to represent what you believe in, what and who you love, it is part of the story of who you are.

So wear your jewellery with joy and pride, whether it is discreet or outrageous, enjoy it!

And who knows what we might be wearing in the future?