When it comes to jewelry, what could be simpler than a necklace? Wrap it around your neck or drop it on over your head, connect the clasp, and get on with your day. You don’t have to think about it until it’s time to take it off, right? Sure, unless you are wearing a necklace that keeps getting caught in your collar, or the pendant drops below the edge of the neckline inside your shirt and you spend the day pulling it out every ten minutes. Or, the chain rides up against the base of your throat and you spend the day pulling it back down every ten minutes. Or, every time you lean over, your necklace gets tangled up inn your jacket zipper or blouse button, the knob of your desk drawer, the ID badge, headset, microphone, pin, or name tag you’re wearing on your lapel. A necklace can actually be one of the more challenging pieces of jewelry to wear, because there are so many different chain lengths, you have to take a number of factors into consideration when you make your jewelry selection, such as the type of garment you plan to wear, the type of neckline, and whether or not the necklace is going to be in constant contact with your skin or the fabric. Another variable that can affect how the necklace wears is the thickness or gauge of the chain links or beads. A strand of pearls or beads that are larger in diameter can mean the necklace falls differently than a fine gauge chain would, even if the overall length is the same. Wearing the wrong length necklace can be really irritating, and can add a source of annoyance to your busy work day if you end up continuously fidgeting with it. If you are a jewelry collector, and have lots of pieces in your jewelry box from which to choose, then you may already be well aware that your favorite heart pendant isn’t going to work with your favorite top, because the neckline of the shirt is too close to the length of the necklace, which slips underneath the neckline, and you spend the day pulling it back out. What’s the point of wearing it if it’s just going to keep slipping below the neckline of your top, never to be seen?
Conversely, you may have thought your choker-length bead station necklace would be perfect with your mock-neck cashmere sweater, only to discover throughout the day that the clasp keeps snagging on the back of your neck, and that the fabric is too thick to allow the necklace to hang freely, and the necklace gets tucked up under the fold of the turtleneck, making it uncomfortably tight around your neck. Granted, these are first-world problems, but you certainly didn’t bargain for being driven crazy by your necklace when you got ready for work that day. By your boss, yes, your jewelry, no.
So how do you know what necklace length is right for the outfit you want to wear? Here are some standard length measurements that may help you to group your chain or bead necklaces together in such a way as to make choosing the best one to coordinate with your outfit effortless. After all, you have other things to focus on than tugging at your jewelry during your workday, job interview, or hot date.
14-15 inch length is a choker length. This length wraps around and sits high on the neck, above the collarbones.
16 inch length falls right at the base of the neck on most people, and if a pendant is attached, the pendant will nestle right in the hollow of the throat. If you want your pendant to peek out from the little “v” created by the opening at the top of a button-down shirt, this is a great length.
18 inch length will fall over the collarbones, and fall below the hollow of the throat. This is probably the most common necklace length. It may interfere with higher necklines, such as a boat neck or jewel neckline, so use it when wearing a V-neck or higher scoop neck blouse.
20 inch length necklaces are long enough to fall over the edge of a crew neck, with a little room to spare. For men, this is a good standard length for wearing a chain or pendant that will show over the top of most T-shirts.
22 inches long is perfect if you are wearing a plunging neckline such as a low V neck or scoop neck. The pendant will sit right at mid-chest for most, yet not slip below the fabric of the neckline.
24 inch lengths will usually fall somewhere close to the top edge of your bra or undergarment, and is an ideal length if you want to wear a spiritual medallion, cross, or other pendant you prefer to keep close to your skin. It’s also a great fashion length for when you want to wear a turtleneck, or a shirt with a more elaborate collar, as you can tuck the chain under the fold of the collar at the back of the neck. Also, 24 inches is the length at which most people can put on a necklace over their head without having to fuss with a clasp, so if you just did your nails, have manual dexterity issues, arthritis, or have no time in the morning and need to grab and go, this is the length to choose.
30 inch lengths are great for wearing a bead strand or chain you want to wear long and dramatic.
36 inch lengths are typically long pearl strands, and can also be comfortably worn doubled around the neck, either wrapped around twice and secured with the clasp, or doubled up using a pearl enhancer clip.
Obviously, depending upon your height/build, your mileage may vary. Taller people might find that an 18 inch length, which is what is typically sold most in jewelry retail, is too tight, or rubs against your neck in an uncomfortable way. Do a little experimenting with a variety of shirts and necklaces to find your best length. There are also plenty of choices in chain lengths that are in between any of the above “standard” lengths, which may suit you better. Instead of wasting time searching for the perfect necklace length, though, which may be hard to find, consider using a chain extender to add length to a necklace you already own. Chain extenders can be a very handy fashion tool.
One of the best pieces of advice I can give for putting together an outfit, especially if it’s an outfit you plan to wear to a special event, is to conduct a wear test. I would even more strongly recommend this if you will be wearing something new, whether garment or jewelry. Finding out at the last minute that your jewelry doesn’t work with your outfit can add a great deal of stress to your need to get to, or enjoy, your event.
If you intend to do a dry run of your outfit for a job interview, if you are in a wedding, or if you plan to have pictures taken, be sure to include all the jewelry you want to wear in the dry run. You might learn a couple of really important pieces of information by doing this that would have caused a problem throughout the event, had you not known in advance. Maybe those shoulder-duster earrings keep getting caught in the embellishments of the sweater you wanted to wear. Or the bracelet clasp catches on the lace at the cuff of your sleeve. Or maybe that super stylish, oversized pendant hangs exactly over top of the super stylish, oversized buttons on your blouse, and every time you move, you hear click, click, click. Not good. Remember, you always want to keep the focus on you, your witty bon mots, your beautiful face, your vocational achievements,rather than create distraction by constantly fiddling with troublesome jewelry. You want you to shine through. That’s how you sparkle on!
Laura