Twice as Nice

Twenty-four-year old marketing professional,Nivedita Jain,leads a busy life. From making a presentation in the morning to attending a sit-down dinner in the evening,it’s all in a day’s work for her. Going from a formal look to a classy evening look has never really been a smooth process,but Jain has worked her way around it.

“As somebody who’s always on the go,I am all for multi-functional accessories and that includes my jewellery,” she says. So Jain may walk into her office,wearing a plain diamond bracelet,but by evening,she has conveniently added a few clips and worn it as a choker to go with her off-shoulder dress. “We live in the age of quick-fixes. Why not extend it to jewellery too?” she asks.

Indeed,the trend for multi-purpose jewellery has caught on. Varuna D Jani,a Mumbai-based jewellery designer,points how the trend has worked wonders for her VOW line. “My last year’s collection of necklaces that can be worn in several different ways,was a hit. It spurred me on to launch a similar line this year. One of its key pieces is a bangle that separates into two. One can either wear the pieces separately or wear them together as one,” she points out. The rising gold prices and increasing demand for versatile jewellery have actually worked well for this line,she adds.

Jewellery brand Tanishq,too,has played with this concept. Their ‘Dvaita’ range of multi-functional diamond jewellery aims at women on the move. This line mainly comprises pieces that can be interchanged to create new looks — a necklace doubling as a bracelet or a centre piece from a necklace that can be detached and worn as a pendant.

Jewellery designer Mira Gulati explains that the rise of multi-functional jewellery is directly related to its practicality. “Versatile jewellery allows one to decide on a particular style in the morning and adapt it to suit another occasion later in the day,” she says.

Interestingly,it’s not just the low-end ranges of delicate rings and pendants that are undergoing a change due to this trend. Makers of heavy bridal jewellery too are waking up to the advantages of such pieces. Jani’s range,which starts at Rs 1 lakh,extends to the high-end bridal ornaments too.

Mahesh Jagwani,owner Mahesh Notandass jewellery stores based in Mumbai,feels that these innovative lines reflect the increasing awareness about different options among the customers. “The consumer today has a wide variety to choose from.

So launching a range of multi-functional jewellery is necessary to keep pace with the times,” he says.