Emerald Beauty

Diamonds and pearls aren’t a bride’s only jewelry options on her wedding day. “The engagement of William and Kate brought color flying back to the surface,” says Amanda Gizzi, director of communications for Jewelers of America, an industry trade group, in reference to Kate Middleton’s sapphire engagement ring (which originally belonged to Princess Diana) - and the gemstone jewelry trend hasn’t stopped there. Janet Deleuse, a jewelry designer and owner of the San Francisco-based Deleuse Jewelers, says “emeralds are just on the verge,” and the cluster emerald earrings Beyoncé wore during the recent inauguration may have pushed them over the edge. Deleuse recommends a right hand ring - among other accessories - for brides who want to embrace emeralds on their wedding day. “I would say a bracelet or hair jewelry, or a little strand of emerald beads or earrings - drop emerald earrings would be really pretty,” she adds. The number of pieces a bride should wear “depends on the scale of each item,” Gizzi says. “If you have an oversized pair of earrings, if you have a beautiful pair of emerald chandeliers, you’ll probably want to keep your neck bare. Or at the very most have a longer chain, because you don’t want two things competing for attention.” But Gizzi notes that a hairpiece worn on the back of the head could work well with earrings, and bracelets always are OK. “If you have one or even a stack of bracelets, you could definitely wear that whether you’re wearing a necklace or a pair of earrings because there’s space in between,” she says. Wearing multiple emerald accessories or adding in diamonds and pearls are classic choices that can complement each other well. However, Gizzi advises brides to mix gemstones with caution: Stick to a color palette and don’t don both light and dark jewels. “You want one of the gemstones to be the shining star, and they will be because they’re going to pop against the creamy white or the more taupe color of the wedding dress,” Gizzi says. Emerald jewelry isn’t just for the bride. Emerald cuff links can add color to the groom or groomsmen’s tuxedos. And don’t forget about the bridesmaids, says Kasey Skobel-Conyers, owner and principal designer of Bliss Wedding & Event Design based in Columbus. “For the girls, I think emerald jewelry would be beautiful,” she says. (c) CTW Features