The ’70s Wore It Better
Directed & Photographed by: Alexander Saladrigas
Styled by: Marissa Baklayan
Words by: Jill Newman
Big hoops, long pendants and diamonds with a rebellious streak. The ’70s gave jewelry a new attitude, and five decades later, we still dig it.
We have the ’70s to thank for some of the most iconic jewelry ever created. Elsa Peretti gave us the sculptural Bone Cuff and Diamonds by the Yard®. Aldo Cipullo turned an ordinary nail into Cartier’s Juste un Clou bracelet. David Webb made bold totem pendants, while diamond hoops, oversized medallions, long chains, and stacks of gold brought the era’s glam-rock energy to the jewelry box.
But the decade’s real legacy goes beyond a list of famous designs. As fashion became freer, more individual, and less interested in following the old rules, jewelry followed. Women were buying pieces for themselves and wearing diamonds beyond special occasions. Men piled on chains, rings, and earrings. Fine jewelry could be minimalist or maximalist, polished or provocative, worn to the office or out all night. The point was personality.
Five decades later, that attitude feels remarkably current. The shapes have evolved and the styling has shifted, but the impulse is the same: wear what you want, wear it your way, and don’t be afraid to make it a lot.
NECKLACE JENNA BLAKE • EARRINGS (L-R) PAUL MORELLI, ALMASIKA • DRESS FERRAGAMO
The Decade That Broke All the Rules
That freedom made for some seriously good jewelry. Sleek cuffs and clean gold chains existed alongside enormous cocktail rings, swinging pendants, zodiac motifs, diamond hoops, and pieces designed to move with the body. There was disco decadence, glam-rock swagger, and a new kind of minimalism happening all at once. The common thread wasn’t a particular silhouette or stone. It was the confidence to mix references, pile things on, strip things back, and make jewelry feel entirely your own. No wonder we’re still borrowing from it.
Why Stylists Keep Coming Back
That brings us back to the here and now. Ask almost any stylist, and they will declare the ‘70s as their favorite era. “I always gravitate towards the 70s,” says stylist Elissa Santisi, who is a longtime champion of the ‘70s look. “It was a glamorous time, it was androgynous…men dressed like women and women dressed like men, there was sleek minimalism and bold, personal statements, there was a sleezy side and sexy and chic side.” Her favorite style icons of the era included Bianca Jager, Charlotte Rampling and David Bowie. That tension between polish and provocation is exactly what makes the decade feel so relevant now.
The Designers Remixing ’70s Hits
Jewelry designers are embracing the strong ‘70s vibe, but let’s be clear, this isn’t a repeat. It’s a reference to the era’s defining jewels. Its influence is in minimalist, genderless designs, sexy torque collars and layers of long pendant necklaces. It’s in statement brooches and chunky cocktail rings, glitzy diamond hoops and long drop earrings. It’s in symbolic astrological signs, hearts and butterflies and pops of enamel color.
“That ‘70s feel is back and it filters into my psyche when I’m designing,” says Paul Morelli, who began designing his eponymous jewelry in the mid-’70s. That spirit comes to life in his ‘ultimate hoop’ earring. “It’s a big, well-engineered diamond hoop that is angled the right way and looks great on.” New bolder and heavier diamond necklaces with what he describes as having a “glam rock feel” also echoes the ‘70s vibe.
The ‘70s style conjures up images of caftan dresses with long bold pendants and denim shirts unbuttoned to reveal layers of necklaces, says Jennifer Alfano, a jewelry designer who also has the fashion blog Flare Index. “There was a simplicity and streamlined style of dressing in the ‘70s that I’m drawn to,” she says. Her J case in gold with diamonds is a “love letter” to that era: it’s a large, hinged case that opens to reveal inscribed words or a drawing. And, she says it’s perfect over a caftan (or really anything).
When Diamonds Became an Everyday Thing
It’s not that designers are nostalgic about the ‘70s, they are more empowered by it. The decade changed not only what jewelry looked like, but how it fit into everyday life. Fine jewelry was moving beyond formal occasions and becoming something to wear from morning to night, to the office, out to dinner, and everywhere in between. As Marion Fasel, founder of The Adventurine explains, “It was a time when women started heading to the office in the masses, so jewelers had to change and create everyday work designs.”
The jewelry evolved with them. Fasel points to Van Cleef & Arpels’ Alhambra, Bulgari’s Monete coin jewelry, long swinging necklaces, and everyday diamonds, especially diamond studs, as defining pieces of this new way of dressing. They were luxurious without being precious about it, designed to become part of a wardrobe rather than wait in a jewelry box for the right occasion.
That idea feels especially familiar now. Diamonds show up with denim and T-shirts, vintage finds sit beside major pieces, and a necklace can become a belt while a bracelet can end up in your hair. The styling may have changed, but the freedom at the heart of it hasn’t.
That may be the most enduring lesson of ‘70s jewelry: the good pieces don’t need an occasion. Wear one great statement piece or five. Mix decades, metals, designers, and references. The point isn’t getting it “right.” It’s making the jewelry unmistakably yours.
Get Into the ’70s Jewelry Mood
The best part of ’70s jewelry was the freedom to wear it your way. Consider these pieces a very good place to start.
Akaila Reid Ridge Edge Solitaire Ring, $32,920, akailareid.com
Beck Jewels Arco Ring, $8,950, beckjewels.com
Bernard James Omen Black Diamond Ring, $7,650, bernardjames.com
Lizzie Mandler OG Diamond Bezel ID Bracelet, $6,075, lizziemandler.com
Sidney Garber Yellow Gold Feathers That Move Earrings, $14,000, sidneygarber.com
Uniform Object Vessel Tennis Necklace 6, $40,000, uniformobject.com
Van Cleef & Arpels Snowflake Earrings Small Model, $117,000, vancleefarpels.com
Photographer/Director: Alexander Saladrigas
Stylist: Marissa Baklayan
Hair: Hair by Shinya Nakagawa at BRIDGE using R+Co
Makeup: Maud Laceppe
Manicurist: Yukie Miyakawa
Model/Music: Alici
Creative Director: Lizzy Oppenheimer
Creative Production: Petty Cash Production
Director of Photography: Brandon Mercer
Sound Op: Jose Gonzalez
Photo Assistants: Ben Kasun, Colin Elliott
Digital Tech: Eliot Oppenheimer
Fashion Assistant: Carol Li
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