Necklace Lengths
Posted by Leah on May 22, 2006
When ordering jewelry online, many sties offer a choice of several different lengths for chains and necklaces. How do you know which is right for you? A lot depends on the style of shirts or dresses you wear.
A choker-length necklace is generally 14″-15″, for small to medium sized necks, and about 16″-17″ for larger necks. Chokers look great with a variety of different necklines, but avoid wearing chokers with turtlenecks or halter tops. Also, avoid any neckline that hits exactly where the choker fits on your neck - it will tend to get tangled in your shirt, or even disappear underneath your shirt.
A lot of people like the look of chokers, but find that they prefer slightly longer lengths that don’t fit so closely around their necks. In this case, for smaller necks, try a 16″ chain, and for larger necks, an 18″ chain. These necklace lengths look great with scoop neck tops and V-neck tops. They usually don’t work with turtlenecks or crew necks - with turtlenecks, they become chokers, and with crew necks, they often get hidden beneath the shirt.
So what do you wear with turtlenecks and crew necks? With a crew neck shirt, I recommend at least 18″ for smaller necks and at least 20″ for larger necks. This should be sufficiently long that the necklace doesn’t hide beneath the neckline of your shirt. I don’t recommend this length with scoop-neck or v-neck tops, because the pendant can get tucked in where the neckline of the shirt hits your chest.
With turtlenecks, I recommend at least 20″ chains for smaller necks, and at least 22″ chains for larger necks. These lengths are usually sufficiently long enough to fit around the turtleneck, without looking very tight. 24″ and longer necklaces are even better with turtlenecks, and ensure that you won’t feel like your necklace is choking you.
Extra-long necklaces have been popping up in shops and fashion magazines lately, and these are often the easiest necklaces to wear. They work with almost any shirt style, because they fall lower than all but the most daring of plunging necklines. These long necklaces can also be layered with shorter necklaces, choker length or slightly longer, or even wrapped around your neck a couple of times to create a double or triple strand look.
