Summer is so close we can feel it. We’ve been dreaming of it, planning for it, and honestly just sort of wondering about what it might be like this year.
When most of your days are spent indoors, the year’s hottest season becomes all the more welcome, a chance to get out and breathe in the fresh air, and just enjoy the perks of nature. And compared to 2020, this year is filled with more hope and less dread, or so it seems. People are planning to take vacations for the first time in a while, many choosing destinations to which they can drive, and where they can still maintain a healthy distance from lots of crowds.
So it makes sense that beaches—and beach rentals—are filling up for the foreseeable future. While the idea of a beach vacation perhaps felt out of reach last year, this year, it’s a reality. Sort of. If you can snag a reservation.
Which makes us want it more, of course. And in turn, mementos and reminders of the beach cause a greater stir in us, putting seashore-themed jewelry at the forefront of summer demand, whether to wear to the beach or serve as a sweet reminder of it.
Our Amy Elliott wrote about designer Renna Brown-Taher’s collection late last summer, featuring a limited-edition shell bracelet accented with blue topaz (100% of its proceeds went to Free Arts NYC, an organization dedicated to helping underserved youth through art and mentoring programs).
Since then, her line of shell jewelry has expanded into a Sea (the name of the shell-rich collection) of options, and with our newfound desires to get outside and perhaps even mingle a bit (safely!), the jewels have taken on a greater meaning.
No longer will we be viewed solely on Zoom, so bracelets and ankle jewelry will have a greater purpose in 2021 (I’m all over that Blake anklet with the shells, and you should be too).
For rings, there are more than a few nautical niceties to choose from, but my two favorites combine a trio of metals, with one adding aquamarines for an even greater nod to the ocean.
If it’s pearls you’re looking for, Renna has plenty. And the exceptional knockout from the bunch comes from a pair of one-of-a-kind earrings that dangle a trio of rose gold shells from large, luminescent pearls. We’re talking mermaid dream kind of stuff.
The best thing about this seashell jewelry is that it’s so much more than its label. These aren’t simply pieces that mimic the treasures washed ashore—rather, the jewels dress them in ways that make them treasured keepsakes no matter the season. Too absolutely chic to be a novelty, they’re beloved for the beach, but require no such reservation to wear them.
But in case shells aren’t your particular thing, head for Land, a collection that boasts gorgeously artful interpretations of the ocean’s movement, like the Wave ring and earrings in rose gold pictured above, and the sinuous sapphire ring that could easily pass as an engagement ring, if you wanted it to.
An ocean of possibilities, just in time for summer—and truly, I’ve just dipped a toe into the depths of this brand’s beautiful repertoire.
Top: Wave Study IV bracelet in 18k rose gold with 1.4 cts. t.w. aquamarines and 1.1 cts. t.w. diamonds, $13,500; Renna
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