Gemstone Necklaces

Eighteen inches is the most common adult length and lands at or just below the collarbone, which is why most pendant designs assume it. Sixteen inches sits higher, at the base of the neck. Twenty inches falls a little onto the chest and works well over a higher neckline.

Height, build and neck circumference all shift where a given length actually lands, so the numbers are a guide rather than a rule.

The most reliable check is to measure a necklace the wearer already wears often. That length reflects a preference that has already been tested, which no chart can.

Yes. These are complete necklaces rather than pendants sold separately - the stone, the setting and the chain are one piece, made together.

The chain length is selected at the point of order, and the options available for a given design are shown on its listing.

If you would prefer a stone to hang from a chain you already own, the pendant collection is the better starting point, since those are designed to be threaded onto a chain of your choosing.

A faceted stone is cut with flat planes that reflect light back in flashes, which is what produces sparkle. A cabochon is cut as a smooth polished dome with no facets at all.

Cabochon cutting is used where a dome shows the stone better than facets would - for moonstone, opal and turquoise, for star and cat's-eye effects, and for material whose interest lies in colour and internal glow rather than in refraction.

Neither is a compromise. A cabochon reads as depth and colour; a faceted stone reads as brightness and movement. Which you prefer is genuinely a matter of taste.

Give the layers room. Two inches between chains is about the minimum for them to read as separate, and with three pieces a clear gradient works better than even spacing.

Put the piece with the most detail at the bottom where it has space around it, and keep the layers above it plainer so they do not compete.

Chains of noticeably different weights tangle less than identical ones, and clasps positioned at slightly different points on the neck help too. Mixing metal colours is fine, and a two-tone piece in the group makes the mix look intentional.

A jeweller can usually shorten a chain, and can often lengthen one by adding matching links or an extender, so this is not a decision you are permanently locked into.

That said, these pieces are made to the length ordered rather than adjusted afterwards, and a design where the setting integrates into the chain is harder to alter than a simple pendant on a plain chain.

Choosing the right length at the outset is much the better route. Measuring a favourite necklace the wearer already owns is the fastest way to be confident about it.

Both 14K gold and platinum appear here, with yellow, white and rose across the gold designs.

As a general rule a cool metal lets a stone's own colour dominate, and a warm metal adds warmth to it. White metals give blue, violet and green stones a cleaner background. Yellow gold suits warm stones such as citrine and garnet. Rose is a deliberate contrast against green and blue and sits naturally with pink stones.

The practical considerations usually decide it: what the wearer already owns, and how heavy they like a piece to feel, since platinum is denser than gold.

Much more so than for a ring, and this is the main reason to consider a necklace for a stone you would hesitate over on a hand.

A necklace does not meet door frames, keyboards and worktops the way a ring does. Stones that need care in a daily ring - opal, moonstone, turquoise, tanzanite - are entirely practical worn at the neck.

The risks that remain are chemical rather than physical: perfume, hairspray and lotion. Putting jewellery on after those are applied and dry removes most of the problem.

Lobster and spring ring clasps are the usual fittings. A lobster is spring-loaded, secure and easy to grip. A spring ring is lighter and more discreet, which suits a fine chain.

If a clasp is awkward to work one-handed, a jeweller can fit a larger lobster or a magnetic clasp extender - a small change that often decides whether a necklace gets worn at all.

It is also worth knowing that when a necklace fails, it is usually the jump ring beside the clasp that opens rather than the clasp itself. That is a quick, inexpensive repair.

The necklace is produced after the order is placed, built to the metal, metal colour, stone and chain length selected. That is what makes those genuine choices rather than approximations of something already sitting in stock.

The trade-off is time: there is a production window before dispatch, and the current lead time is shown during checkout.

If the necklace is needed for a specific date, work backwards from that date and allow for shipping as well as production.

Flat and separate. Fastening the clasp before putting a necklace away, and laying it out rather than dropping it in, prevents almost all tangling - and a knotted fine chain is the most common avoidable damage to any necklace.

Keep chains from resting against harder stones. Hardness differences do their damage in a jewellery box as readily as in wear.

A soft pouch or a lined compartment is enough. Somewhere dry matters more than anything elaborate, particularly for porous stones such as opal and turquoise.