The marketing niche for men's jewelry has been fairly small and it only achieved a small boost when it got the name ?Bling? form the Hip Hop scene, but that is still just a minimal addition. It may never compare to the size of the female jewelry market, but it is still a force to reckon with none the less.
In History
Men's jewelry in history was used as a sign of power, wealth and status in the society. It started from the primitive stones that were strung by prehistoric men in order to make a necklace and now we see more elaborate and finely crafted sets. These items adorned the heads, ears, neck, wrists, ankles and fingers of both kings and common men. They often were worn for their aesthetic value, but sometimes they were made for a purpose: like the sealing rings of great ancient civilizations and other European countries throughout history. They also managed to find use in the art of warfare, with adornments that denoted ranking to dog tags that were used to identify each individual. At present, men's jewelry has still preserved its aesthetic and functional value ? the sealing ring may not be used as much anymore, but the military still uses these items in their daily activities.
A Subtle Nature
Not until the appearance of ?bling-bling? (which was immediately replaced by ?bling?) did the modern world see a more showy take on men's jewelry. Other than princes and kings (and they do not even wear their crowns everyday), it seemed taboo for men to wear pieces that were as elaborately created as women's jewelry. It seems that by the start of the Victorian era, men's jewelry has started to adapt a more subtle style. Gone were the elaborate golden plates worn by Egyptian Pharaohs around their necks. No longer did we see gem encrusted shoulder links, as they were worn by the Tudors in England. No, it has all been replaced by subtle touches.
Apart from a few, it seemed that men have reduced their jewelry use to rings, cufflinks, and a few pins to nothing at all. But this subtlety doesn't mean that the niche for men's jewelry is on the brink of extinction. No, of course not! That niche has been constant throughout the years and now, they are starting to get men to be a little bit bolder and wear a little more jewelry than they used to. The steps taken maybe subtle, but is still relevant and will continue to be and will undoubtedly help the industry stay afloat and sometimes even grow.
The Future for Men's Jewelry
Whether we like to admit it or not, the hard fact is that everything in clothing and accessories, even the looks of cars and techie items are dictated by the gods of fashion. The same goes for the style of men's jewelry. It is without a doubt that style sensibilities will change in the future. Who knows, maybe one high end designer will send a male model down the runway with chunky jewelry around his neck and it will be applauded. It will then manage to filter down to lower markets and soon more men will be brave enough to wear loud jewelry.
And if you think that only women like Cleopatra went gaga over pretty shiny things, you're sadly mistaken. During the 16th and 17th centuries, both men and women wore heavy long chains of gold, sometimes diagonally over the shoulder like a sword or belt. Some elaborate buckles were made for the waist like those used by Hungarian noblemen as jewelry. Celts were known to wear gold bracelets of plain twisted gold and Romans wore snake-shaped ones. Some Greeks, going into battle or for a nice walk to the Acropolis, sew gold repousse called bractea into their garments.
History has taught us that human adornment is not only the pure domain of the female but also of men who considered the process of wearing precious metals and stones as a sign of power and wealth.
Nowadays, media has given us the strong context that jewelry is a woman's thing. The Academy Awards is never complete without the usual rundown of who is wearing the Harry Winston diamonds or Bulgari rubies or who is covered from head to toe with Swarovski crystals. Have you ever heard of the presenters describing men's jewelry on the red carpet? No.
With the negative media that considers jewelry feminine, men are hard-pressed into not wearing any for fear that they might be considered less than masculine. But this is not the case. Men's jewelry is usually crafted into designs that speaks nothing but of masculinity. Men's jewelry, like women jewelry, comprise of rings, necklaces and bracelets.
The more popular choices for men are rings with designs including dragons, snakes or simple round bands with their loved ones name engraved on it. A whole range of precious and semi-precious stones can also be used in adorning men's rings. Because of its simplicity and pliability, silver is well-accepted. It can be made into intricate designs and can be incorporated into other metals or made into wedding rings or class rings. White and yellow gold are also much-coveted for men's jewelry. Precious stones like diamonds and sapphires can be integrated into the design. Semi-precious stones such as amethysts and opals are also great choices for rings.
Silver is also a popular option for making necklaces and pendants including the definitive masculine accessory called the dogtags which was originally used to identify soldiers. The dogtag has proven to be more than an ID and is now the ?it? thing in pendants.
The identification tags do not end in necklaces, but has also found a home in bracelets. Silver chain or ID bracelets are popular gifts given by girlfriends to their boyfriends. It is an unobtrusive piece of jewelry that, with the appropriate message can be quite a romantic present. Men's jewelry of today is no longer the trimmings of the rich and powerful but also meant as significant accessories of the ordinary man.
Jason Tye has sinced written about articles on various topics from Jewelry, Pets and Culture. ? 2008 Jason Tye. Jason Tye is the webmaster and owner of the emporium -