Costume jewelry, the inexpensive stuff, has always been more meaningful to me than the fine, expensive jewels found in specialty shops displayed under bullet-proof, glass cases. Had I been born an heiress, I might feel differently. But as fate would have it, I was born the grandchild of immigrants.
My granny, who lived in an apartment in Greenwich Village, New York City, taught my sister, cousins and me that it was essential to accessorize. She always told us to pick basic clothes, and then dress them up with fun, colorful earrings, bracelets, necklaces and rings. This may be why I have so many versatile black pieces in my wardrobe.
It might also be the reason I feel it necessary to purchase at least two coordinating pieces of costume jewelry every time I buy a new dress, sweater or pantsuit.
It might seem, then, that I am amassing quite the collection of cheap baubles. And while I do have a nice selection of accessories from which to choose when getting dressed each morning, my collection is not all that expensive.
One of the perks to investing very little in your accessory assortment is retaining the ability to toss items when they break or become worn without the least bit of guilt.
Knowing I didn't break the bank on any of my treasures also makes it easy to give away pieces that friends or family admire. On my trip out West to see my sister and her family, my oldest niece openly coveted a necklace I brought to wear with my basic black tourist outfit.
The next day, while packing in preparation for the long drive back, I surprised my niece by coyly asking her to protect my necklace until I made it back out to Oklahoma, should I happen to leave it behind. I winked and then helped her put it on, noting how nice it looked.
There is also no stress when a young niece or neighbor (over the age of 3, of course) wants to play dress-up with my collection.
I played for hours in my granny's collection. My other grandma also let me drape strings of colorful beads over my neck and stack bracelets from my wrist to my elbow. Clip-on earrings and a feathered hat completed my dramatic play outfits.
My mom maintains quite the collection, as well. I don't remember playing with her accessories quite as much, however, over the years, I have been responsible for at least 20 percent of the contents of her jewelry box.
In the beginning, I proudly presented my mother with gifts of dyed macaroni strung on neon pink bits of yarn.
As the years slipped away, I graduated to spending hours at the mall picking out dangling earrings and matching necklaces or bracelets. By the time I hit high school, I discovered that it was just as much fun to shop for accessories as it is to wear them.
As an adult, I normally pick out something a little more expensive than plastic bead-wear for my mom and grandma on those special, gift-giving occasions.
Occasionally, however, I'll slip in an extra little gift. Sometimes it's a silly bracelet flooded with charms. Sometimes it's a pair of droopy earrings that match one of their favorite pieces of clothing.
No matter what type of bauble they open, a flicker of excitement always shoots through their eyes. They are visualizing how the piece will look with this blouse or that purse. They are making plans to wear it for an upcoming event.
I enjoy watching their animated reactions. And when it is time to toss the trinket, there are no hurt feelings ..
. for such is the life of costume jewelry.
My sons really don't understand my fascination with cheap accessories.
They have absolutely no desire to raid my jewelry box and play dress-up. But one day, when they are grown and have started families of their own, their daughters - my granddaughters - will have free access to my inexpensive treasures.
They will drape miles of beaded strings around their necks, and they will line their arms with bracelets.
They will mix and match scarves and hats. They will cover their fingers with rings.
In the meantime, the fathers of my future grandchildren will continue to shoot me a bewildered look when I get excited over a new set of earrings that matches five different items in my wardrobe.
Of course, they will also continue to easily find inexpensive holiday gifts for their mom. Well, at least as long as they can convince Hubby to shop for them. My three boys would never risk being seen shopping in the women's accessory department.
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Micki Bare is a columnist for the Arkansas News Bureau and the Courier-Tribune in Asheboro, N.C., and author of the book, "Relative Expressions.
" She lives in Asheboro with her husband and three children. Her e-mail address is mickibare@inspiredscribe.com.
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