My friend Alice asked me if I’d written about jewelry yet, and I had to admit I hadn’t. She suggested I write about how to choose your “everyday” pieces that will last you a lifetime, and I was immediately intrigued.

Jewelry is such an intensely personal part of you—your style, your memories, and what you value. I don’t think that jewelry needs to be expensive to be meaningful. I also don’t think that jewelry needs to be inherited to be special to you.

I don’t wear or own a lot of jewelry—I have never been a “jewelry person.” For me, I’ve worn the same everyday jewelry for the entirety of my adult life (except my wedding ring, which I’ve only worn for the past five years.)

I wear pearl earrings from my grandmother, my class ring from high school, and my wedding ring. For special occasions, I wear my emerald engagement ring (emeralds are a bit soft to wear everyday) and a pearl necklace from my mother.

These pieces make sense for my life because they are all easy to wear, not fussy, and are all meaningful to me. I value meaning in my possessions, and jewelry is inherently meaningful.

For me, these pieces came together to be part of my “uniform” without much conscious thought. But perhaps you are looking to invest in pieces but aren’t sure how to begin.

To start, what does your everyday life look like? Do you have young children; do you garden every day; do you move frequently? Perhaps dangly earrings and larger necklaces won’t quite fit your lifestyle at the moment. Or do you work in the arts; do you live in a city; do you wear monochromatic outfits? In that case, you might prefer your jewelry to make a statement.

In any case, choosing your everyday jewelry required thought. Think about the pieces you’re interested in and see how you’d feel wearing them. Think about what you want your jewelry to convey–do you want it to shout or whisper? Will you actually be able to wear this jewelry on an everyday basis, or not?

Do you have your set of everyday jewelry, and if so–tell me about it! What do you wear?