Style Panel: How can you artfully layer jewellery without looking overdone?

Date June 19, 2012

In the age of the arm party, layering jewellery can start to look a bit of a mess when it’s not piled on with artful ease. To help with the layer conundrum, we asked the ladies of Style Panel to help!

Question 6: How can you artfully layer jewellery without looking overdone? Read the answers now! »

Niki Blasina, 26
Vancouver | A Haute Mess

I think part of the fun of layering jewellery is being a bit overdone and over the top. However, there’s still a line between layering artfully and layering like a six-year-old who got into mom’s jewellery collection. My rule of thumb is to focus on layering in one area: you need to choose between bracelets and necklaces. So, if you want to layer a few necklaces, don’t also layer multiple bracelets. Easy!

I like wearing this neon yellow necklace over top of a silver bib necklace, and normally, if I weren’t wearing two necklaces I’d probably be wearing a few bracelets on each wrist, but I toned it down in order to let the necklaces make a statement on their own and wore just a couple bracelets on one wrist instead. It’s still a helluva lot of jewellery, but (hopefully) just shy of being too much.

Niki’s wearing: Yellow necklace, Zara. Silver necklace, Stella & Dot. Blazer, BB Dakota. T-shirt, T by Alexander Wang. Pants and shoes, Zara. Bracelets, Stella & Dot. Bag, House of Harlow 1960.

Alyssa Lau, 20
Edmonton | The Ordinary Peoples

When it comes to jewellery, there’s no such thing as overdone. I could have bracelets up to my elbows and be content. Jokes aside, nothing can be more annoying sometimes than bangles, bracelets and necklaces alike clinking non-stop whilst you strut around town. So, I’ve started to showcase jewellery only on one hand, picking bracelets by random and just throwing them on (if you think there’s an art to layering jewellery, it’s variety). As for necklaces, I’ll wear a maximum of three, each at different lengths so that no one necklace is being hidden behind another. You have to give each necklace its time to shine, y’know?

Alyssa’s wearing: Boots, Steve Madden. Dress, beginningboutique.com.au. Jewellery, Vanessa Mooney, madlady.co.uk. Bag, romwe.com

Vickie Laliotis, 28
Edmonton | Adventures in Fashion

Layering jewellery is one of the most fun, creative ways to give an old outfit new life. I like to layer necklaces that have a slight variation in length, mixing styles and stones but keeping the metals the same for a cohesive look. I keep the same principles in mind when packing on bracelets, considering the colour and proportion of my watch. But with that being said, I feel that bracelet layering affords you an added level of creativity, as fun colours and textures are more permissible here. However, no matter how you stack your bits and bobs, it’s all about having fun and showing off that sparkly personality of yours.

Kassandra’s wearing: Dress and blazer, Forever 21. Necklaces, Topshop, H&M and Forever 21. Flats, Halston. Watch, Michael Kors. Bracelets, H&M and Forever 21.

Alex Grant, 25
Toronto via Vancouver | To Vogue or Bust

My arm party is more of an arm get-together. In other words, slightly more delicate and toned-down than the usual chunky and bright arm fiesta. When it comes to stacking on jewellery, there’s no real science for me other than taking one anchor piece and just layering on top of it until it looks right. With this outfit, I started off with my hammered metal wrap bracelet and just added on other pieces one by one, removing and adding pieces until it felt done. Despite being a big colour person normally, I really wanted to stick to neutrals in this look, leaving the focus on my swishy palazzo pants and, of course, my little arm get-together.
Alex’s wearing: Palazzo pants, Lucca Couture. Tank, H&M. Bracelets, Birks, Club Monaco and H&M. Bag, Marc by Marc Jacobs. Wedges, H&M.

Kassandra Camponi, 26
Edmonton | Kastles

I like to try to pick an area and stick to it. This could include focusing on earrings, necklaces or bracelets. In today’s outfit post, I focused on my wrists. I went a little matchy-matchy with this outfit, matching my studded pink bracelet to my pink shorts. It’s really up to you if you want to match everything or not. Worried about wearing gold and silver together? Don’t be! Mix it all together, adding different tones and textures in. Want to make your assortment a little more interesting? Add a masculine watch. I just got this beautiful Michael Kors rose gold watch as a graduation gift, and I can’t seem to keep it off my wrist. The sky is the limit with this trend, so have fun.

Lolitta Dandoy, 32
Montreal | Fashion Is Everywhere

If you are going to layer jewellery, you may as well be bold. I personally love statement necklaces and wearing more than one is the best way to achieve that look without spending a fortune. To me, it’s important to choose pieces that have some kind of a link together, whether it is in the colours or the material. In this case, I did both, the palette is pretty much coral and pink, and both are necklaces made with buttons. The most important thing to remember is to keep the outfit simple. If you want to focus the attention on the jewellery, you can’t go for a busy look. A black cami and skirt are your best allies.

Lolitta’s wearing: Necklace at top, Bizbilles. Necklace at bottom, Dario Bivona. Hat, Ophélie HATS. Top, James Perse. Skirt, Garage. Sandals, Zara.

I think the key to layering jewellery is to keep it varied. I think a wrist with a couple of silver bangles looks great, but an entire arm full of metal is a little overbearing. Unless you’re going formal, try mixing different types of bracelets for a more textured, less intense look. I like mixing metals—I think silver, gold and even rose gold look gorgeous together. I also love a good friendship bracelet, be it homemade or store bought. For some reason, I have an abundance of skulls gracing my wrist; maybe I’m drawn to unity, or maybe I’m just creepy. It’s important not to overdo jewellery on every front — if you’re going to go heavy on the bracelets and rings, maybe ditch the necklace. Similarly, if you’re going to layer chains and necklaces (also an awesome look), skip the earrings. And hey, guys, go vintage! Vintage jewellery is way cheaper and often sturdier than new stuff.

Wearing: Top, vintage. Shorts, Zara. Shoes, Chloe Sevigny for Opening Ceremony. Bag, Alexander Wang. Jewellery, varied.