Designer Jewelry Trends -- Fall & Winter 2011 / 2012

Red is all the rage this Fall and Winter season, and the darker the better. The red trend began in the Fall of 2010 and has only continued to get hotter as we've moved through the seasons, with red being the #1 must-have color according to People Style Watch. In fact, red is showing up everywhere -- in clothing and footwear, accessories and jewelry.

The red trend was also evidenced by Harper's Bazaar "Red Alert," which mixed red with gold, and the latest Emmy Awards event, where I saw at least seven actresses wearing red on the red carpet. While those gowns ran the red shade gamut, the trend for Fall and Winter 2011 - 2012 is what I call a "blue-red."

What influenced this latest color trend? I believe part of the reason deep red has taken off as it is has has been the influence of popular vampire stories, like the Twilight saga books and movies, HBO's True Blood series, and the Vampire Diaries. Deep red is often used in this genre, both as a featured color in costumes, clothing, and on sets as well as woven into the background.

The other major color trend of this Fall and Winter season is emerald green, meaning a medium to dark green, not peridot or a "grassy" green. This season's most popular shade of green reminds me of the rich color of the Wizard of Oz's Emerald City.

Green is spotlighted as a hot color in September's People Style Watch with shoes by Phillip Lim and a minaudière (a small, ornamental case) by Diane von Furstenberg. It is also used prominently in the Neiman Marcus spread featuring Drew Barrymore and several designers, including Versace and Gucci.

While red and green are the top color trends for the 2011-2012 Fall / Winter season, there appears to be a pallet of about five colors which are strong, as opposed to the neutrals, grays, blacks, and browns that tend to be popular in these colder months. Instead, this season goes down the line of red, green, deep violet, blue, and yellow.

Incorporate this big color trend by purchasing a garnet or red stone necklace, earrings or a big statement ring. The more red the better. Or go nearly all black with a red accessory, such as a beautiful beaded red scarf. With green, again try statement earrings or a bracelet, or an emerald green shawl with your little black dress.

Image Credit (below): Used with permission from Chan Luu, Inc.
-- All rights reserved

Black is usually a strong color for Fall and Winter. This season, you'll see black in two statement combinations, one being with polished silver and crystal.

While shiny silver tends to be cool, almost cold, and can be visually rather severe, the addition of crystal and lace into the mix softens this season's look. At the same time, the look is edgy and modern, keeping the angles of the pieces but making the style less severe with the touch of lace.

A popular look this Fall and Winter will be black clothing with polished silver and crystal accents, with lace used in the clothing and sometimes even in the jewelry, where sterling silver wire with glass beads takes on a crocheted, lace-like look.

This trend is prominent in the September 2011 issue of Vogue. Also, InStyle magazine highlights black and gunmetal jewelry in its September issue, profiling "When She was Good ... When She Was Bad", where blush, this season's primary non-black neutral shade, is a consistent theme for good, while a pattern of black, metallics, lace and feathers symbolizes bad.

Take advantage of what you already have in polished silver, and use those pieces to reflect this trend. If you want something new, try a large silver collar or cuff.

Image Credit (above and below): Used with permission from Chan Luu, Inc.
-- All rights reserved

As I've mentioned, deep red is a strong color for Fall and Winter. This year, the Baroque trend mixes black with the hottest color and adds dark metallic tones and lace in both clothing and jewelry, resulting in a Victorian-era influence with a modern twist.

Harper's Lovely Lace mixes rich luxe styling with black, crystal and garnet pieces. And the Vogue Fall Issue features the cast of Glee, photographed wearing black and red.

You can also see an example of the Baroque trend in jewelry and accessories in the photo below. Chan Luu designed this necklace and other jewelry for the "Twilight" film.

Make sure to have a few pieces of your own to maximize this trend. Deep red crystal with onyx in a wrap bracelet would look gorgeous and mixes a new style (wrap bracelet) with the Victorian styling.

Another gorgeous example of this trend is the incredibly popular Alexander McQueen "Savage Beauty" exhibit at the New York Metropolitan Museum, with an obvious Baroque/Victorian influence. (I waited two and a half hours in line to see this exhibit. In fact, I was so moved by it, I had goosebumps!)

Image Credits (above): Public Domain
(below): Used with permission from Chan Luu, Inc. -- All rights reserved

Feathers were the hottest trend in accessories this past summer. And now we move from the brightly-colored feathers of the warm season to the deeper tones of the Bohemian, hippie style on trend this Fall and Winter -- not only the deep greens, reds, and purples but also black and rich browns.

Feathers continue to be popular for earrings and hair accessories, such as clips (or extensions) and groups of feathers I like to call "poofs." The trend for this Fall and Winter includes feathers used in bracelets and very notably in purses.

Take a look at these feathered accessories in Accessories Magazine.

Feathers can also be used with the Fall / Winter color story of deep reds, greens, and purples for a more elegant look. This look was showcased in InStyle's September issue, where feathers were used as the setting for the layout for the article on Luxurious Extras.

And check out the "All About the Feathers" fashion spread in the Marie Claire September issue.

Image Credit (above and below): Used with permission from My Wholesale Route
-- All rights reserved

But I'm not talking bright metallics. The focus this season is more on the muted and burnished metals, like pewter and antique gold, as well as bronze, deep purple, dark red, and black metallics like hematite and gunmetal, sticking with the overall theme of rich shades.

When I refer to metallics, I'm primarily talking about accessories rather than full outfits. Metallics will also be popular in fashion trim. And when used in jewelry, the trend is more towards muted metallics, not polished except when silver is used with black as in the black, silver, crystal and lace trend I mentioned above.

Remember to continue with the gold trend from this past summer and mix some of those items with the antique gold, pyrite, bronze and burnished pieces that are popular for this Fall and Winter. And pile 'em on -- layers of necklaces and bracelets, and long dangling chandelier earrings stay the course.

This season, handbags will shine as metallic leather is incorporated into the designs.

Color is not such a strong influence in every season. Oftentimes, it's the deep neutrals -- black, brown, gray -- that dominate the Fall and Winter trend, along with one special color like purple or burgundy, for example. For the 2011 - 2012 season, however, the color story goes beyond the deep reds and emerald greens, with deep violet, dark vibrant blue (but not navy) and yellow also on the pallet.

You can see this color trend in InStyle's Bright Lights, which features red, green, blue, purple and yellow, with an emphasis on "Color Crash Course in Emerald." BCBG's Fall ad campaign also uses these colors.

Also known as Boho Chic and Hippie Chic, the Bohemian influence continues to be a strong trend as it has been for several seasons. This updated '60s hippie look is popular with a number of young celebrities, including Venessa Hudgens, Sienna Miller, and Hayden Panettiere. You'll often see these Hippie Chic enthusiasts wearing cut-off shorts, vests, and scarves, with jewelry pieces featuring feathers or antique gold or brass with turquoise.

Fringe is another huge feature this season. You MUST incorporate a fringed bag, multi-chained earrings, or a fringed scarf. Fringe is also used in necklaces, like the one pictured here.

This Bohemian style is now also known as Navajo Nation, a term that was coined in 2011 by Fashionologie. The Navajo Nation version of the Bohemian trend has a southwestern influence, featuring earth colors, suede, leather and fringe, but the focus remains on red and black. In fact, the #3 "Must Have" in People Style Watch is southwestern prints.

"Nouveau Native" or "Nouveau Boho" is a similar look, combining ancient and modern art with tribal markings. This and an updated hippie styling are both featured in the September issue of Marie Claire.

Image Credit (above and below): Used with permission from Vanessa Mooney Jewelry
-- All rights reserved

The polka dot trend of the season is primarily seen in fashion, with complimentary jewelry often being polished silver, keeping the look relatively simple.

Designers Marc Jacobs and Stella McCartney have incorporated polka dots in their respective Fall and Winter lines. And Harpers' September "On the Dot" focused on black-and-white polka dot pieces, often complemented by black and crystal jewelry.

Make sure to keep your jewelry fun when wearing polka dot clothing.

When it comes to the polka dot trend in jewelry and accessories themselves, those dots are showing up in feathers, notably small polka-dotted accent feathers mixed with larger, single-color feathers, as in the hair piece pictured below.

We'll also be seeing polka dots to a limited extent in scarves and small clutches.

Image Credit (below): Used with permission from My Wholesale Route
-- All rights reserved

You've probably seen them -- those outwardly dull rocks that are split open, and inside there are beautiful gem spikes, like amethyst for example. A geo stone, though, is much more subtle. It's like the gems have been scooped out of the stone, leaving behind a sparkling "sugar coating." That's how I explained what a geo raw stone is to someone who'd never heard of them.

The sparkly coating inside the rock are crystals known as drusy (also spelled "druzy"). The photo you see here is drusy quartz. The quartz is then made into stones which can be used in jewelry.

Drusy crystals naturally occur in many different colors, some of them very vivid. But the stones can also be dyed or even coated to create iridescent colors.

Drusy stones have been popular for about a year now and will continue to be for the 2011 - 2012 Fall and Winter season. And now it's bolder and larger the better, with a rich bronzy color dominating an otherwise extensive palette. Rich gold, pyrite and dark silver are also on trend. You'll see these geo raw stones in earrings, bracelets, necklaces and especially rings.

As is often typical in the Fall / Winter season, we'll be seeing bolder, heavier pieces in jewelry, both in style and weight. Look for collar necklaces, chunky cuff bracelets at least an inch wide and up to three inches or even more, and eye-catching cocktail rings.

Bib necklaces are also still on trend, with multi-layered strands on the upper chest.

Mix and match bracelets. Use layering, combining thin bangles with wide cuffs, and mix chains with wraps.

You can downplay these haute couture designs to your personal taste and comfort level, and mix them into your own style to create looks that suit the everyday gal.

For the accessories, focus on which trend is really "you" and get a few pieces -- like a couple of bracelets and earrings, and one statement ring and necklace. Mix in a few scarves and a handbag for example, so you don't have to make a big investment to be right on trend.

I carry a large selection of these jewelry and accessory options at LavishlyHip