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4 Glam Ways to Shake Up Your Statement Jewelry Game for the Holidays

The sparkliest season warrants a little something extra.

Add a bold timepiece

Watches don’t have to be serious: consider an option that’s delightfully over-the-top. Colorful watchbands, crystal embellishments, and dials and faces adorned with diamonds add a smart touch to all that satin and sequined cocktail hour attire. For an even stronger effect, stack with a few bulky bracelets—don’t worry about matching the colors or materials—and jangle your way through the night.

jewelry
Left, top to bottom: Olivia Burton Case Cuff watch, $195 at Bloomingdale’s; Carolina Bucci bracelets, $6,960 and $4,560 at Net-a-Porter; Specialties Olympic Official Timekeeper watch, $5,950 at Omega; gold bracelet with white, black, and brown diamonds, $47,000 at Tiny Jewel Box; Arrow watch, $150 at nixon.com; Crystal Baguette Cluster Hinge bracelet, $215 at Alexis Bittar (available December 6). Right, top to bottom: Movado “Bold” watch, $795 at Bloomingdale’s; “Luxe Azura” sapphire-and-diamond bracelet, $7,800 at Brilliant Earth; snake bangle, $9,500 at Shah & Shah; “Renaissance” bracelet, $3,500, and “Helena” bracelet, $2,900, at David Yurman; Cartier watch, $13,000 at Tourneau; bamboo bangle, $10,600 at Shah & Shah; “De Ville Trésor” watch, $8,600 at Omega.

Revisit the brooch pin

You have one somewhere, perhaps a hand-me-down from a great-aunt, or a gift for graduation. But if you’ve never dared to rock a brooch out and about, the holidays are definitely the time to dust one off and try. The best thing about brooches is that they make the perfect vessel for showing off personality: they come in just about every shape, size, and color, from simple abstract sculptures to blinged-out animals, and serve no function except as whimsical flare. Curious? Pin one to a simple sheath and wait for the compliments to roll in.

jewelry
Diamond-and-aquamarine eagle brooch, $93,000, and rose-and-yellow-gold diamond ring, $2,550, both at Liljenquist & Beckstead. Satin Dusty-Rose Dress, $135 at ASOS.

Layer on the glam

Maximalism is alive and well in the interior design world, but rather than plan your next redecoration, get in on the trend by layering necklaces. Start with a choker (the current necklace du jour) and then add longer pieces, varying the style and width of the pieces so that a bejeweled sculptural pendant might shine next to strands of reserved pearls or rows of sleek diamonds. Part of the fun is in the color and clash— it may not feel totally cohesive, but with all the glitz and sparkle, who is really going to notice?

jewelry
Top to bottom: “Enchanted Collection” choker in gold, onyx, tourmaline, and rhinestone, $5,800 at Mindy Lam; gold-and-diamond collar, $28,000 at Shah & Shah; Baublebar “Lydia” statement necklace, $48 at Bloomingdale’s; Crumpled Gold Stone Studded Bib Necklace, $395 at Alexis Bittar (available December 6); double-row diamond necklace, $96,500 at Liljenquist & Beckstead.

Go with a colorful cocktail ring

A clunky cocktail ring alone is a statement-making piece, but bold color can really up the ante. Look for semi-precious stones such as turquoise or coral, or go luxe with sapphires and colored diamonds. The material matters less than the color in this case, so think primary hues like red, yellows, and blue, or a pop of cyan or emerald. Tip: the eye-catching baubles look particularly spectacular when paired with a flute of bubbling Champagne.

jewelry
Left, bottom to top: Diamond “Love Hurts” ring, $5,500, and sapphire-and-diamond ring, $63,000, at Shah & Shah; emerald-and-diamond ring, $131,400 at Tiny Jewel Box; triple-stone cocktail ring, $195 at Alexis Bittar; citrine-and-pavé-diamond ring, $8,200 at David Yurman. Right, left to right: turquoise-and-diamond ring, $7,550 at Shah & Shah; sapphire ring, $160,000 at Tiny Jewel Box; pink-diamond ring, $82,500 at Liljenquist & Beckstead; gold-and-coral ring, $3,500, and diamond-and-emerald ring, $185,000, at Shah & Shah; Cable Collectibles “Evil Eye” pinkie ring, $1,500 at David Yurman; opal-and-diamond ring, $95,500 at Shah & Shah. Layered Open-Back Dress, $63 at COS.

This article appears in the November 2018 issue of Washingtonian.

Assistant Editor

Hayley is an Associate Editor at Washingtonian Weddings. Previously she was the the Style Editor at The Local Palate, a Southern food culture magazine based out of Charleston, South Carolina. You can follow her on instagram @wandertaste.