Fall officially arrived the twenty-second of September, and the latest jewellery trend, donned by such celebrities as Sienna Miller and featured in top fashion magazines like British Vogue, is jewellery from the Victorian era (1837-1901).
Though a diverse style, the most popular Victorian pieces at the moment are dainty gold designs with whimsical themes--diminutive bows, stars, moons, hearts, arrows, flowers, insects, and animals, to name a few. Forms include bracelets, brooches, rings, pendants, and lockets. They often feature numerous, small, classic gemstones—diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires, pearls, and turquoise for example—many of which had symbolic significance to the Victorians; rubies were a symbol of passionate love, turquoise true love, pearls chastity, and emeralds faithfulness. Some of the designs also held sentimental meaning—love birds, particularly swallows, bows or ‘love knots’, words such as souvenir , meaning ‘remember’, and of course hearts.
These jewels make an ideal romantic gift for the fashion-conscious woman, are affordable enough to treat one’s self, and, unlike other fashions which come and go, will remain a rare and increasingly valuable keepsake.