Lucite is durable, versatile, and fast becoming the neatest new medium for the statement necklace. From Beyonce’s “Move Your Body” video, to the pages of Vogue, to the racks of your favorite consignment store, lucite necklaces are everywhere and on everyone, and the trend is only expected to grow.
The great thing about lucite is that it fosters exclusivity and one of a kind style, because customization is so easily available. You can put your own names, initials, words, and phrases out there for the world and choose combinations of color that exemplify your message.
Intricate designs that convey everything from animals to art, to everyday household objects are another thing that’s becoming incredibly popular in this medium. Especially so when elements of retro flash art and vintage styling are incorporated. Many high end jewelry labels have begun to use lucite to achieve looks ranging from retro and eclectic to modern and youthful, including transitional accessory designers like Alexis Bittar. The look is undeniably vintage, but do to shaping, cutting, and faceting, this versatile material can become anything from the thin delicate petals of a feminine flower brooch, to a collection of chunky beads accompanying a skull pendant. The possibilities for accessorizing are practically endless.
Like vintage bakelite, lucite is a material with a history of use in not only jewelry, but other plastics applications, and for this particular material, that history dates back to the late 1920’s, when it was originally used in it’s generic clear form as a substitute for glass. Since then, even clear lucite has come a long way, it’s composition and shaping techniques evolving across the decades.
No matter how you slice it, lucite definitely adds a dose of pizzazz to any outfit it’s paired with, especially in the form of light-weight necklace that’s heavy on style.
