The Right Hand Bling Ring - the latest trend for savvy singles....
by:
Alex Miller
by Alex Miller
www.Engagement-Rings-Guide.com
When my first marriage faded into oblivion, the engagement ring I'd worn with such joy and love was banished to my jewelry case.
Some years later, older and much wiser, I resurrected the ring and had it re-set by a jeweler friend to reflect my newly discovered independence and style. But back in those days, the sight of those diamonds on my right hand was simply a painful reminder of my failure in the marriage stakes.
Now it seems I was ahead of my time.
The right-hand bling ring is the latest status symbol for women who no longer feel they have anything to prove.
Women are earning more, marrying later and have more disposable income than ever before, leaving them with plenty of room for a little self-indulgence. And it goes without saying that the newest status symbol should encompass the ultimate status symbol, diamonds.
In fact, the trend has become such a major force it's been given its own (albeit lackluster) terminology - "self-purchaser".
According to Greg Distefano, a spokesman for the Diamond Information Center at J. Walter Thompson, "The self-purchase market is now a $3.75 billion business in the United States. Rings are the single largest type in this market. They account for two out of every five pieces of self-purchased jewelry."
Eager to get in on the action, DeBeers, the world's largest diamond producer, has produced a series of ads to tap into the hearts and wallets of this enormous, previously ignored, consumer demographic.
"Your left hand is your heart. Your right hand is your voice," croons their recent print ads. "Your left hand says 'I do.' Your right hand says 'I did what?' Your left hand knows the answers. Your right hand asks the questions. Your left hand rocks the cradle, your right hand rules the world. Women of the world, raise your right hand."
With a market of over 43 million single women in the United States, Ruta Fox, a former advertising copywriter, created the "Ah Ring" in December 2000. "Since I was single, I named it The Ah Ring, and decided "Ah" would symbolize being A, available and H, happy. I thought since married women have wedding rings, and engaged women have engagement rings, single women should have a diamond ring they could buy and call their own," says Ruta.
The Ah Ring was an instant success, generating over a million dollars in sales in the first year, and was featured in Oprah Winfrey's "O" magazine.
Never a group to ignore the latest preoccupation with self-indulgence, celebrities have jumped on the bandwagon and taken the trend for diamond accessorizing to a whole new level. At this year's Oscars 5,000 carats of diamonds strolled the red carpet. Showcasing diamond baubles by jewelry design luminaries like Fred Leighton and Harry Winston, single celebrities Renee Zellweger, Cameron Diaz and Halle Berry shone brighter than the strobe lights.
So, what are the top-selling trends in right-hand bling rings?
Mondera.com, a leading online jeweler, suggests colored diamonds are a popular choice, with pink, canary yellow, and blue diamonds the biggest sellers. The resurgence of brown diamonds, re-named and now cleverly marketed as cognac and champagne diamonds also sell well.
Contemporary settings, such as the sleek bezel-set and pavé, are popular with singles wishing to avoid the look of the classic round solitaire diamond. And for those who aspire to the cool sophistication of Audrey Hepburn, Tiffany's newly released Lucida setting is the ultimate in bling ring elegance.
But for those sassy singles who would have to forego three months' rent to afford a diamond, there are plenty of fabulous alternatives.
For all the bling without the sting, cubic zirconias are made with such precision these days that usually only a jeweler's loupe can spot the difference. From the sublime to the outrageous, the affordability of cubic zirconias means that you can have a different ring to match your outfit and your mood!
"Diamonds are a girl's best friend" may well have become the newly revived mantra for the modern 21st century woman, but if you still need an excuse to go out and get yourself some bling, I like to remind myself of the L'Oreal maxim - "Because I'm worth it!"
About the author:
You can find more great articles about diamonds, engagement rings, bridal jewelry, honeymoons and more at http://www.Engagement-Rings-Guide.comThe place to go BEFORE you shop for jewelry online.
Current Fashion Trends in
Costume Jewelry and Accessories
by: Michael Gietl
Color Trends in Costume Jewelry
The fall fashion trends are ushering in another excellent season for
costume jewelry and accessories. Rich colors and bold looks dominate the
trend. Teal, amber and amethyst are the important colors with olivine and
green used as neutrals. Topaz and peacock are also important and all
indications are that rich color will continue into the spring season.
Metals are seeing a return to gold, but silver is still stronger.
Bold Designs Dominate Fashion Jewelry
Fashion jewelry thrives when bold designs are in vogue and that is very
much the case this season. The high fashion look is popular in necklaces,
earrings, and bracelets with natural components contributing to the
designs. Wood is continuing its second season of popularity with shell
important even in the fall line. But the rising star in natural materials
is gemstone, which provides the beauty of natural semiprecious stones to
the costume jewelry designs. This will definitely continue and accelerate
in the spring line. Also popular in neckwear are 48 inch and 60 inch ropes
that are worn extended or doubled. Jet is strong in holiday jewelry and
estate looks (antique designs) are becoming fashionable in bridal jewelry.
Traditional Costume Jewelry and Accessories
While costume jewelry in bold designs and rich colors forge the way for
leading fashion, there is a larger market that shouldn’t be ignored in
more traditional and classic looks. Theme jewelry in pendants, earrings,
and charm bracelets has an appeal that goes beyond fashion alone because
it identifies with what the wearer cares about. In addition, traditional
rhinestone, bridal jewelry, evening bags, and formal gloves have a classic
look with timeless appeal. There is a major market for these items that
will always be present even as fashion changes.
Accessory Trends
Sequins and buttons are very big in all accessories, especially in
handbags and evening bags. Beyond these, the looks of the larger bags
introduced by leading designers are the trendy styles of the season. These
are the bags the stars are carrying, which goes a long ways towards
popularizing the styles. In evening bags, large sequins and buttons are
very much in vogue, but traditional looks seem to be carrying the day.
Sunglasses are definitely big and bold with aviators the runaway
favorite. Retro looks are also excellent and colored frames with matching
lenses are very popular.
Hats and Headwear
In millinery, dress hats are an important part of the market, with
ladies hats the dominant player. The looks are very traditional with a new
element of pre-made bands allowing for the versatility of custom designs.
Casual hats, however, account for the major share of the market and no
design in 2005 is more important than the rollup cowboy hat. While the
design is not popular in every region of the country, the sheer number of
sales makes it the number one hat of the year. This rugged look that is
typically American has risen to such popularity that it becomes an
important fashion statement. After cowboy hats, the three most fashionable
designs are wide brim floppy hats, ladies fedoras, and newsboys. The
entertainment field has played a major roll in popularizing these designs
and the fashion looks continue into the fall season with felt, leather,
wool, and leatherette used as the material for the fall versions.
Afrikaans 
Albanian 
Amharic 
Arabic 
Armenian 
Azerbaijani 
Basque 
Belarusian 
Bengali 
Bosnian 
Bulgarian 
Catalan 
Cebuano 
Chichewa 
Chinese (Simplified) 
Chinese (Traditional) 
Corsican 
Croatian 
Czech 
Danish 
Dutch 
English 
Esperanto 
Estonian 
Filipino 
Finnish 
French 
Frisian 
Galician 
Georgian 
German 
Greek 
Gujarati 
Haitian Creole 
Hausa 
Hawaiian 
Hebrew 
Hindi 
Hmong 
Hungarian 
Icelandic 
Igbo 
Indonesian 
Irish 
Italian 
Japanese 
Javanese 
Kannada 
Kazakh 
Khmer 
Korean 
Kurdish (Kurmanji) 
Kyrgyz 
Lao 
Latin 
Latvian 
Lithuanian 
Luxembourgish 
Macedonian 
Malagasy 
Malay 
Malayalam 
Maltese 
Maori 
Marathi 
Mongolian 
Myanmar (Burmese) 
Nepali 
Norwegian 
Pashto 
Persian 
Polish 
Portuguese 
Punjabi 
Romanian 
Russian 
Samoan 
Scottish Gaelic 
Serbian 
Sesotho 
Shona 
Sindhi 
Sinhala 
Slovak 
Slovenian 
Somali 
Spanish 
Sundanese 
Swahili 
Swedish 
Tajik 
Tamil 
Telugu 
Thai 
Turkish 
Ukrainian 
Urdu 
Uzbek 
Vietnamese 
Welsh 
Xhosa 
Yiddish 
Yoruba 
Zulu
