After a long hiatus, men's jewelry is back in fashion.
Not since John Travolta first slathered on gold chains in the'70s has jewelry for men been in the fashion forefront. With theexception of wedding bands, cuff links, watches and the occasionalearring, jewelry has long been a symbol of flashiness amongconservative, albeit well-dressed, males.
Lapel pins, bracelets and pendants are among the items enjoyinga revival. Pins are cropping up on suit jackets (actor TimothyBusfield sported them religiously on the now-canceled'thirtysomething'). Biker enthusiasts often are seen with pinspierced through leather and jeans jackets. Those in creativeprofessions are following suit when going to work or out for theevening.
At Elements, a boutique on North Wells, co-owner Toby Glickmancan hardly keep her men's jewelry items in stock.
'We never seem to have enough for our customers. We have aloyal following of men who come in here on a regular basis lookingfor interesting rings, pins and bracelets,' says Glickman. Among thelabels she carries: Lisa Jenks, Gregg Wolf, Mary Beth Roskewicz andDennis Higgins. Glickman's items range from $100 to $300. Most ofher customers, she says, prefer silver metal over gold for largerpieces such as bracelets, but she does fairly well with her selectionof 18-karat gold rings for men.
The pins preferred by today's males range from sculptural,thumbnail-size pins to others almost as large as a woman's brooch.More cautious fashion plates sport only one, whiledare-to-be-different dressers pin on several for a more pronouncedeffect.
The pins fall into two distinct categories. One is thegeometric-mod school of design, which includes styles such assterling silver concentric circles, primitive profiles, spiral cones,and heraldic and religious symbols by Lisa Jenks.
The other category relies on ancient and medieval symbols forinspiration. Robert Lee Morris' pendant, pin and bracelet designsare based on religious symbols or echo the feeling of ancientheraldic accessories such as crosses and medallions. For even moreavant-garde dressers, Morris offers leather corded amulets and large,chunky cross necklaces and bracelets in gold plate, antique brass,bronze or sterling silver.
Exactly what kind of man dons these trendy trinkets? Glickmanadmits a sprinkling of her jewelry clients are creative types, butshe says the bulk of them are business professionals, attorneys andeven accountants. All are, says Glickman, 'contemporary, open-mindedmen who are really trying to get away from traditional looks.'
John Moran, manager of the men's department of Ultimo, says menbecame more accustomed to adorned looks after Barry Kieselstein-Cordlaunched his ornate men's belt designs with amazing success. Theypaved the way for other adornments, Moran says.
Another revamped men's jewelry trend, the identificationbracelet, is something Moran and other jewelry buyers are keepingtheir eyes on. Unlike those worn by high school adolescents, the newstyles are in precious metals.
'In Italy, they are really catching on,' Moran says. 'The lookis very Americana when worn with white T-shirt and jeans.' AtElements, these ID bracelets are so hot that Glickman says she iscurrently sold out of them.
Paul Stura, a Chicago fashion stylist, welcomes the jewelryrevival. Stura, who says he has been wearing a silver coin medalliontrimmed in brass on a plain leather cord for years, admits few peopleunderstood the look until recently. Men's jewelry, he says, hasendured a bad rap for many years.
'For a while it was very drug dealerish, but the new look - ahappy medium between Mr. T and nothing - really works,' he says.
Among the men's jewelry Stura sees picking up momentum with thestreet fashion crowd are strands of Indian bead necklaces purchasedat local African import stores and necklaces made out of bonefragments and sea shells.
'There has been a stigma against guys wearing a lot of jewelry,but now I see a lot of necklaces. I see it all the time now, on menyou wouldn't even expect would wear any,' says Stura, who acquiredhis love of jewelry during his five years as an accessory buyer atthe Oak Street boutique Pompian.
Men who might be tempted to recycle gold neck chains from the'70s might want to think again. Current men's neckwear designs aremore futuristic and bold, a galaxy beyond the 'Saturday Night Fever'category. Even so, Moran says Ultimo isn't yet moving forward withjewelry collections for men. Instead he is studying the trend - withsome trepidation.
'I hope we won't be seeing men covered with hair in skintightshirts with chains everywhere,' says Moran. 'That has already beendone to death.'
