Does Costume Jewelry Make Me Look Cheap?

What distinguishes the woman looking great in costume diamonds from the one you want to save from her own bad taste? It typically comes down to two factors: what she's wearing, and how she's wearing it. What she's wearing is perhaps the easier set of characteristics to define.

It's fairly straightforward: finishes and gems.

Finishes are the colored coatings that turn the chain, setting, French hooks, clasps and all other metal components into, typically, silver or gold tones. Of course, some high-end costume pieces actually are silver or gold. Those are the relatively expensive ones, and are sometimes referred to as "bridge" jewelry. They can run into the thousands of dollars and often sport very real-looking fake stones.

More often, we're talking about the cheaper stuff -- "fashion" jewelry, which you can typically pick up for under a $100 (sometimes way under). In those pieces, the metals usually aren't precious, and finish quality can vary dramatically. What you want to look out for is the cheap, flimsy coating you can scratch off with a finger nail. That stuff looks cheap, acts cheap and is cheap.

Typically, the nicer pieces will be electroplated in real silver or gold. That's when manufacturers chemically bond a thin film of precious metal to a base of non-precious metal. It's a higher-quality finish that looks good and stands up to normal wear.

That's the background, and it's a crucial component in wearing cheaper jewelry without looking cheap. The other major factor is the centerpiece -- the gem.

Expensive-looking costume gems can be made of a variety of materials and take countless forms. They may closely resemble diamonds, rubies, pearls or emeralds, or they may create a look all their own. It's perhaps easier to define quality costume gems by what they're lacking, namely: paint, foil backing and lightweight plastic. And they're not glued on -- they're prong-set or hand-tied.

With an eye out for materials and mountings, classy costume jewelry is pretty easy to spot. Wearing it with class, on the other hand, can be a bit more complicated.

The thing about wearing baubles, beads, and all sparkling things is, genuine materials or not, it's easy to end up looking overdone. When including costume jewelry in your style, the best way to avoid coming off cheap is to follow one simple rule: Less is more.

You can have the most beautiful costume ruby necklace and turn it into an imitation nightmare by adding a ruby ring, ruby bracelet, ruby earrings, two gold chains, a pearl choker and ruby-and-sapphire headband. Matchy-matchy is usually kind of tacky, and, as they say, how classy a woman looks is inversely proportional to the number of rings she wears.

Keep it simple. If you're wearing a particularly large piece of jewelry, treat it as a focal point. That means only one necklace, and perhaps one or two other "background" pieces, simple gold hoops or a few silver bangles, for instance. You can wear a larger number of subtle pieces at once without looking cheap, but even with simple jewelry it's wise to edit. A thin gold chain can look a bit street-walker when you pair it with 20 more just like it.

Aside from limiting your jewels to a few well-chosen pieces, looking expensive in the inexpensive can also come down to:

Size -- Unless you're royalty, you probably won't look classy in a lemon-size "diamond." Keep it small and tasteful.

Color -- If you're going for an expensive look, a hot-pink or lime-green stone can be tough to pull off. To be safe, stick with colors in the natural-stone spectrum.

Outfit -- Most people look cheap pairing a 10-carat "ruby" with sweats and a t-shirt. Sure, a lucky few in Beverly Hills can make it work, but most people do well wearing fancy jewelry with evening wear and casual jewelry with jeans.

One other thing to think about when wearing affordable jewels: Some people have allergic reactions to certain inexpensive metals. Before you wear a costume piece for a night on the town, make sure you're not allergic to the chain or setting. No one looks expensive in a rash.

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