On Jewellery
If you know me you know I love me some jewellery.
I’m like a magpie. I’m attracted to pretty shiny things. It's no wonder you'll find me on any given day layered up on necklaces and stacked with rings as I go about my day. I’m particularly a fan of gold plated jewellery (because we’re saving up for solid gold sis!) that doesn’t tarnish or change colour when it comes in contact with water. That’s a big one! I shower with all my jewellery so I’m not about to be removing every single piece I own every time I do. And who wants to wear jewellery that could eventually turn your neck green? Not me. Let’s want better for ourselves hmmm?
I’m also a HUGE fan of brass jewellery. you honestly can’t go wrong with brass. It’s super popular in Kenya and can be found almost everywhere. And yes, it does not discolour no matter how long you wear it. It’s super durable & just needs a little buffing to get back its shine if/when it starts to dull. There are some really great Kenyan brands doing the damn thing back home and you should seriously check them out. Some of my favourites are Adele Dejak & We Are NBO, just to name a few.
Here are a list of other brands I love and have purchased from (so I can vouch for them).
South African brand Matter of Fakt which I was introduced to a couple of years ago makes some great brass pieces. I wear their rings daily & particularly love their bullet pendant which is one of my favourites.
Missoma London, who do some great pieces and pendants (their pieces can be pricy so watch out for their sale period if you want to save some money).
Daphine whose pieces are simple yet timeless (I got this ring from them).
My current rotation.
I love to mix different materials when it comes to my jewellery. That’s my thing. Makes your selection stand out a lot more & switches it up. With that being said, I’m very much into beaded jewellery, a love I’ve had since childhood. I remember making simple beaded bracelets and necklaces for myself throughout primary and high school. My favourite piece right now is a most recent purchase from Luzi Kate, a jewellery designer from Turkey who makes these beautiful beaded necklaces.
Fun fact: I did a summer internship at Bombolulu Workshop in Mombasa making beaded jewellery with the artisans there. The talent I was exposed to was amazing. Memorable times.
A classic hoop earring will never go out of style
Now I’ve surely had some misses when buying from brands who claimed to have ‘tarnish free’ jewellery. I’ve noticed recently that there’s been a surge of brands touting their tarnish free jewellery & super attractive prices (you know the ones that send you messages on IG to be an ambassador & offer to pay you in jewellery? Yeah those ones!) Naturally, I caved. I told you, magpie! So I decided to buy a few items from said stores & was initially sold. The quality seemed good. Now these brands claim you can wear them anytime, anywhere. And that’s what I did. 2 months down the line, as I subconsciously knew, things went left! Most if not all the stuff I bought started fading & left me with ‘silver’ jewellery. Was I surprised? No. Disappointed? Yes. Cause deep down I knew these claims were too good to be true & I had been duped. And don’t bother paying attention to the reviews because they probably pay people to give them 5 stars. Lesson learned.
All bracelets worn here are brass and made in Kenya from various brands and Masaii markets
A good way to tell whether the jewellery is of good quality in my experience is the price tag. Yes unfortunately (or fortunately) if you want quality pieces that won’t tarnish you will have to pay a little more than what you would find say at Zara (their jewellery is costume jewellery so will not last long and will most certainly discolour when it comes into contact with water). Say between €50-€100+ depending on what you’re looking for.
So if you’re looking to mix it up or just update your jewellery here’s my advice (not that you asked but I’ll give it to you anyway!)
For necklaces, your best best, and something that I still do is to buy them from your traditional jewellery store, as well as bracelets (if you’re looking for dainty designs). Most of my necklaces are from physical jewellery stores & have been with me for years. I don’t tend to get earrings from them (unless they’re simple hoop earrings) because their designs are quite old fashioned in my opinion.
As for rings, bracelets & earrings, brass is your girl. I’m a fan of chunky pieces that demand attention and I know I can get that with brass.
But at the end of the day, whatever you choose to wear, have fun with it. x
Rings by Matter of Fakt
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