When was the last time you wore a choker? Chances are you were about 10 years old and they were as cool as gel pens and candy cigarettes in the playground.
Chokers have undergone quite a makeover since then. Out with the cheap black plastic and in with velvet, colour, layers and embellishment.
Let’s skip over the bizarre trend of choker dresses and embrace chokers how they were meant to be worn-as jewellery and accessories.
Choker set, Bershka.Pic.Bershka.com
Although so far, I’ve only bought black chokers (which go with everything FYI), I’m loving all the colourful ones like the Bershka set above.
Wearing several chokers (if your neck is long enough!) or mixing them with dainty necklaces is the ultimate style statement.
Choker and necklace set. Pic: Bershka.com
Zara have some of the classiest chokers you’re ever likely to see. Also models with impossibly long necks…
Black chain choker. Pic: Zara.comStar choker set. Pic: Zara.com
I also really like bohemian chokers and pendant chokers. Etsy is the best place to find crystal chokers like this from ShopCrystalChild.
Crystal pendant choker. Pic: ShopCrystalChild Etsy.com
I also love the contrast in styles of this velvet and opal choker necklace from Alapopjewelry.
Pink Opal choker. Alapop jewelry. Pic: Etsy.com
If you want to customise your own choker, then hit up Choker Saint on Etsy.com.
Choker Saint chokers. Img: Etsy.com
For a punk vibe, try Nine Crow St’s heart chokers. I’m in love with this lilac one.
Lilac choker. Pic: Shopninecrows.com
I find the cord chokers are messy and difficult to wear and the chunky ones look a bit odd so I’m sticking to skinny lace styles. Most chokers are adjustable to prevent them being too lose or too tight.
However if you can perfect the bow style, go for it!
Pic: Pinterest,com
Pic: Pinterest.com
Pic: Pinterest.com
This black lace choker is one of a set of two from Penneys and is the best fuss-free accessory ever!
I’m definitely going to be buying some more chokers soon. Do you like the choker trend? Which styles would you go for? Leave me a comment below and let me know your thoughts.
Thanks as always for reading and and don’t forget to check out my Instagram and Facebook page here.
This evening I attended the 10th anniversary of Irish jewellery label Chupi.
Chupi Sweetman is one of Ireland’s most successful jewellery designers, known for her delicate pieces inspired by nature and the wild.
I love looking at the Chupi instagram account so I was dying to see the collection in real life!
The event was held upstairs in the Powerscourt centre and was decorated with gold balloons and bunting.
Chupi herself looked amazing in a flesh colour dress with white lace floral details, in the style of For Love and Lemons dresses. She also had a gorgeous gold hairpiece.
I went with a fellow jewellery fanatic Siobhan from Aquaruby so I was in good company. 🙂
We got a glass of wine first thing and browsed all the gorgeous jewellery on display.
Unfortunately, I’m still restricted by the student budget so I wasn’t buying but had a lot of fun looking. I wore a vintage shirt, black jeans and snakeskin boots to the event.
These are some of my favourite pieces from the collection. I loved the Constellation pieces especially each representing a star sign.
The farthing coin Worth your Weight in Gold earrings are amazing, a little piece of history in the palm of your hand. Available in silver, gold or rose gold.
Worth your weight in gold earrings. Pic: Chupi.ie
Outside a girl offered to take a polaroid picture of myself, Siobhan and her friend Meabh.
The picture came out lovely and we actually drew straws over who should keep it! I won 😛
Polaroid picture!
As well as the delicate gold pieces, there were also gorgeous colourful pieces like these beautiful rings.
And while I normally don’t wear rings, I did fall in love with the One in Million star ring below.
The Wild Ivy leaf earrings below were another favourite. These are cast from a real ivy leaf.
The swan feather necklace and I Can Fly earrings below on the right are exquisite. Again these were cast using real swan feathers and are plated with rose gold.
We also got a lovely goody bag with a cute notebook and pencil-perfect for college! I really wanted some nice stationary for college so I was thrilled.
Cute stationary
It was a lovely evening and it’s always great to see Irish and independent designers doing well.Here’s to the next ten years of Chupi.
Thanks for reading, hope you’ve enjoyed this post. Don’t forget you can like my page on Facebook here and keep up to date with my blog.
For a change I’m going to do a post on jewellery as I’m a jewellery fiend and a magpie! My taste in jewellery is big, bright and flashy to say the least. But in a semi-tasteful way. 😉 Rihanna in full carnival rig-out is my spirit animal..
I buy jewellery a lot, probably even more than clothes because it you can spruce up an outfit or work uniform and make it look different.
My favourite places to buy jewellery are from the Diva range in Miss Selfridge and Topshop’s Freedom jewellery. Kudos to the jewellery buyers and designers for the Arcadia group, they always get it right. I don’t usually find nice jewellery in charity shops but sometimes I stumble across a find like this little swallow necklace.
I also love Forever 21’s jewellery, it’s really price conscious and funky. As for independent stores there’s a great little store in the Ilac centre that has loads of unusual jewellery with loads for only €3.
I bought beautiful earrings and a pearl with a chunky chain for my college graduation for about €6 or €7 in total. I got lots of compliments on my jewellery that day which was lovely.
There is also another store called Adorn just off Grafton Street which has the same kind of jewellery, great selection and lots of cheap items.
My hometown of Roscommon has a beautiful shop called Timepieces, they always have an incredible window display and unusual jewellery, watches and home furnishings. One of the few shops in Roscommon that’s worth a look! 😛
Hearts of Galway is a gorgeous little shop which has some beautiful jewellery. A lot of jewellers in Galway appeal to tourists with Claddagh rings etc. but don’t let that put you off.
I got a really pretty bracelet here as a gift for completing my degree from my parents (and I needed serious bribing to finish it! ), it has a poppy enclosed in glass. It’s really delicate and pretty.
I tend to save it for special occasions as it’s not my day-to-day style. The only disadvantage is the clasp opens quite easily so you have to be careful with it.
My poppy bangle
Twice as Nice in Galway sell vintage and antique jewellery. It’s more expensive obviously but beautiful to look at. They also have some very nice clothing upstairs FYI.
There’s a lot of speculation about skin tone and whether gold or silver looks best on different skin tones. When I was younger I always wore silver colour jewellery but now I would prefer gold colour jewellery and I think it compliments me more. (Emphasis on “gold colour” rather than “gold”, I don’t wear real gold as I’m not Kanye West!)
Silver can look a little harsh on pale skin IMO especially near the face or neck. I like a lot of gold, chunky chains, pearls, plastic and costume jewellery. I also like ethnic jewellery, woven and beaded items, especially for festivals. I still can’t make a friendship bracelet though.
I mostly wear dainty necklaces and earrings during the day and for a night out lots of bangles, bigger earrings and long necklaces. I never wear rings as I have developed a phobia of them. I hate the feel of rings on my fingers so I just admire them from afar!
To give you a brief idea of my aesthetic tastes here is a car from Robbie Williams and Dizzee Racal’s new video…
I love spikes and recently got a silver spike bracelet in Penneys for €3. These are really easy to make if you have time, you can buy spikes on Etsy.com and string them together with elastic thread.
You can also buy a smaller version with one row of spikes in Penneys and they look cool mixed with other jewellery or other colours.
I’ve also been obsessing over the jewellery in Zara lately. I love this chunky pearl necklace, it would be amazing for a night out!
Also suitably glamorous for a formal occasion. The chain doesn’t look very bright in this photo but it’s nice in real life. I’m hoping this will go into the summer sale!
. I think it would be best with a black dress or maybe a black jumpsuit.
Chunky pearl chain €22.95 Zara
I love these cute beetle earrings below and I had similar colourful ones a few years back from Penneys. Unfortunately I lost/broke one of them, rendering the other one useless!
Maybe these could be my replacements? I lose and break a ridiculous amount of earrings. Or lose the backs which leads to earring loss.
And if you’ve ever seen the clip from Keeping up with the Kardashians where Kim Kardashian loses her diamond earring in the ocean you’ll know the pain of earring loss!
I know Kim I know!
Crystal beetle earrings €9.95 Zara
This is a really exquisite necklace. The detail is gorgeous but I don’t know where I would wear it! The Met Gala?! I don’t frequent many super formal occasions but I’m sure I’d find somewhere to wear this beauty! It would work best with a black, white or possibly a turquoise blue dress.
Keep it in mind for the races! Or someone get married and invite me.:) I don’t need a meal, I’ll just parade around showing off my necklace.
Crystal flower necklace €22.95 Zara
I love these cool evil eye styles. I’m not in the Illuminati I swear. 😛
I could literally buy everything in Topshop so it’s hard to pick out my favourites but here’s one I adore.I like the contrast between the flower shapes and the chain.
It’s a mix of glam and casual and I’m a sucker for monochrome. You could wear this alone without any other jewellery and it would really stand out. I would definitely pay Topshop a visit if you’re looking for some unusual jewellery, the range is just amazing!
Hope you all enjoyed the post. Thanks for dropping by! Don’t forget to visit my Facebook and Instagram and my next post will be on New York City.
“I want those of you in the cheaper seats to clap your hands! The rest of you just rattle your jewellery!” (John Lennon.)
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