A Jewelry Collector on the Most Giftable Fine Jewelry Under $500
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By definition, fine jewelry is made from solid gold (be it yellow, white, or rose), sterling silver, or platinum, and it likely comes with gemstones (either precious like diamonds, sapphires, rubies, and emeralds, or semi-precious like turquoise, lapis lazuli, malachite, and carnelian). But buying it online isn’t easy, even if you’re a fine-jewelry collector like me.
That’s mostly because it will cost you: Many fine pieces are priced upwards of $1,000. The price of gold now isn’t helping matters, either. It’s at an all-time high (valued at $4,206 per ounce as of yesterday), and some pieces in a previous edition of this guide went up in price — a few even by the hundreds. That means that not only has your favorite jeweler most likely already marked up their prices, they’re not going to be marking them down anytime soon. But, despair not: There are still plenty of fine-jewelry pieces out there for less than $500.
Just in time to meet this year’s holiday shipping deadlines, I searched for fine jewelry under $500 that would make a nice gift, whether you’re shopping for your mother, mother-in-law, wife, girlfriend, sister, or yourself. I made sure to include pieces that feel truly special, from places that we’ve written about, have been recommended to me, or that I have personally shopped at. As of publication time, everything here should be available to ship before Christmas. (I can’t think of anything better to be unwrapped on Christmas Day than something sparkly.) For more gift inspiration, here’s our guide to every gift guide we’ve written this year.
Under $100
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As a carousel horse does, this spins.
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Like a tear rolling down Clairo’s cheek.
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To sit in the middle of your Sweet Nothing and Threadbare rings.
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For comparison’s sake, the similar Catbird Dewdrop is $148 for a single and $296 for a pair.
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Because it’s an open-hoop huggie, there’s no butterfly back to lose.
Under $200
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A subtly sparkly paper-clip chain.
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Quince’s version of a cushion cut, with the traditional rounded corners.
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What Wwake makes remains “between architectural, mathematically precise geometry and riotous organic forms,” says antiques dealer Erica Weiner. For example, this stud takes inspiration from the gestures of its designer’s hand.
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Ted Muehling Berries
“It has been said that Colin Firth is ‘the thinking woman’s heartthrob,’ and this, too, is Ted Muehling as jeweler,” says illustrator Joana Avillez. You can always tell if an earring is a Ted Muehling, whether it’s a rice kernel, acorn, or berries made from amethyst, chrysoprase, turquoise, carnelian, citrine, and chalcedony.
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Can you tell Gabriella Kiss was Muehling’s apprentice? That fact becomes apparent from her ebony pinecones, carnelian pears, and even the buckwheat groats seen here. (Also: If you didn’t know, sorrel, knotgrass, and rhubarb are all related to buckwheat.)
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Inspired by the shape of water, it shifts in form from an ear cuff to a ring.
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For horse girls, spaghetti-western watchers, or proud Texans.
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Part of Catbird’s second collection with the Met, this plum is picked from the still life Fruit and Flowers by Italian nun Orsola Maddalena Caccia.
Under $300
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In Vrai’s hallmark knife-edge bezel setting, this lab-grown diamond “bounces light in every direction.” (It’s available in marquise, trillion, round brilliant, and baguette cuts.)
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I think lapis lazuli might be the next carnelian.
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Olivve’s sequins are very shiny, says our writer Dominique Pariso.
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None of Starling’s diamond-studded pebbles are the same.
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Thanks Dad! uses otherwise forgotten stones like larimar (only found in the Dominican Republican), morganite (named after J.P. Morgan), and spinel (in England’s Imperial State Crown) in its pieces.
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This itty-bitty diamond ring is based on one designer Susan Highsmith procured for a childhood crush.
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Erica Weiner’s forked-tongued, diamond-eyed snake goes through my mom’s left ear’s first, second, and third piercings.
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A “loose interpretation of toy jacks” — if you stare at the spokes long enough.
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Some more “piercings” without the need for a piercing gun.
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“On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me: five golden rings (four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree)!”
Under $400
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Spinelli Kilcollin’s rings could be the priciest fidget spinners around. You can have these sterling-silver bands all on one finger or across your index, middle, and ring fingers.
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Historically, the bean was considered to be as lucky as a rabbit’s foot or the number 7. Elsa Peretti intrepreted it as a “symbol of life’s origins.”
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J.Hannah reinterpreted the signet (a “physical marker of identity”) as something that resembles a lock.
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Actually, a daisy bud can fit inside.
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From Yeah It’s Jewelry’s officially licensed collaboration with Coca-Cola.
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As seen on my editor, Hilary Reid, a Ten Thousand Things mini split-heart charm (the jade, lapis lazuli, and tiger’s eye versions ship as quickly as one business day), which can be worn on a chain or clipped onto a bracelet.
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Getting one of Marla Aaron’s locks — which aren’t unlike hardware-store carabiners — is a rite of passage for any jewelry collector. They can be connectors, charm holders, or clasps. The second-cheapest lock is the Babylock (the Spring Lock comes first), while a Mega Lock can go for upwards of $30,000.
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The pearls are on a silk string so they won’t rub against each other.
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The oxidized sterling silver in Sarah McGuire’s cuff is fused with yellow gold. It reminds me of the inside of a Gilded Age mansion or a Klimt painting.
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The sorcerer’s stone was a rainbow moonstone all along.
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A North Star for your ears.
Under $500
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More affordable than regular Mociun is Caitlin Mociun’s CRZM.
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The tiniest rendition of Anthony Lent’s Man in the Moon.
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It’s a hoop you may miss on first glance, but definitely not on a second.
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It’s old-fashioned in the way a glass milk bottle is (that is, endearing).
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Far away, the diamonds and opal will appear to be floating.
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More Christmas Gift Ideas
- Eat Your Advent Calendar
- Heads-up: Lots of Great Advent Calendars Are Currently on Sale
- Hot Wheels, American Girl, LEGO: The Best Advent Calendars for Kids (So Far)
- Hark, the Advent Calendars Arrived (Very) Early This Year
The Strategist is designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read about here. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
