Your Style Update for 2024: Everyday Pearls… How to Dress Like an Adult with SHANE WATSON

These are the days when you need to sort through your everyday wardrobe items: the unseen items (bras and pants), the half-seen items (tights and layered tops) — or you can skip those and go straight to your 24/7 jewelry essentials.

Brace yourself for what I’m about to say. The quickest way to freshen up your look for the new year, your guaranteed skin-boosting, brightening touch of beauty on a dreary January day and for all the days to come, is a simple pearl necklace.

Doesn’t sound like you? That’s because you think of ’80s pearls: chunky chokers made of creamy pearls the size of a blueberry; long flapper ropes of pearls that are wrapped around your neck and then knotted; or the single strand of perfectly spherical pearls that the late Queen always wore.

You imagine Dressing Up pearls, while the pearls we’ll be wearing will go with everything – the equivalent of a gold chain or a pair of gold earrings, and about the same price.

They may not even cost anything, because if you’re over 55, chances are you have pearls hidden in a drawer. And if you’re younger, your mom probably does too.

I recently asked a 20-something store clerk where her pearls came from (a short chain among a few necklaces and pendants) and she shyly replied, “Oh, they’re from my mother.” She’s not happy that I pinched them!’

And that nicely summarizes the new position of pearls. Twelve months ago, her mother wouldn’t have cared if her daughter had pinched her pearls. Last year the children were allowed to wear pearls, including the boys.

But now, pearl necklaces are like colorful Gazelle suede sneakers – great no matter your age, and the details make you feel a little bit on edge.

Pearls are also flattering and somehow light up your face, which is probably why pearl earrings have been the most popular piece of jewelry in recent years.

The smaller the pearls, the better they can be stacked with pendants and necklaces. The larger and more symmetrical they are, the more old-fashioned they will look.

Soft white pearls are the ones having a moment, not the deep cream pearls that can look like something rented from the theater outfitters. Also avoid bright white: it looks too fake and doesn’t flatter the skin in the same way.

If you can’t find one at the back of the drawer, you can now buy pearls at any price pretty much anywhere on the high street, from John Lewis’ classic freshwater pearls (£115, johnlewis.co.uk) to Jon’s natural seed Richard. pearl necklace (£22, johnlewis.co.uk) and Accessorize’s seed pearls (£20, accessorize.com).

Trendy mid-range jewelry stores, such as Mejuri, have entire departments dedicated to pearl jewelry. The Tiny Pearl Necklace (£98, mejuri.com) is designed to sit just above the collarbone, so it’s always visible, even above the neckline of a crew-neck sweater.

Actress Cate Blanchett wore layered pearl necklaces over a black Maison Margiela dress at the British Academy Film Awards last year

Other places to look for quality freshwater pearl necklaces are Missoma (missoma.com) and Astrid and Miyu (astridandmiyu.com).

Meanwhile, & Other Stories makes a delicate 45cm pearl necklace (£35, stories.com) with an extension chain. A little chain in the mix is ​​all good. These new pearls aren’t traditional or “the best,” so making the changes can work.

If you’re mixing up your pearls – and I prefer it this way – & Other Stories has a half chain, half a two-strand organically shaped pearl chain (£35) or a single strand of pearls alternating with a few flat, gold-coloured beads (£29).

Looking up the price scale, I like Monica Vinader’s mini gold nugget and pearl bead necklace (£125, monica-vinader.com). It’s adjustable between 16 and 18 inches, so you can wear it just on your collarbone or lower.

Don’t be tempted to go for colored stones or crystal-pearl combinations. That’s too flashy. The fancier and more polished the pearls look, the less useful they are – but that doesn’t mean they don’t have a place.

I recently saw a woman wearing a long string of organic (irregularly shaped) pearls over a plain dress. Could catch on. Who knows, maybe by summer this will be our new neck protector for weddings.

Something to remember: wear a pearl necklace or earrings with pearls, but not both together. And pearls always look better on the skin; don’t wear your necklace over your turtleneck.