Necklaces -by Shari

Over the next few days, I'll be focussing on necklaces and the right way to wear them!

Today's topic: Dresses and Halter Tops

I recently advised an old high school friend of mine not to wear a necklace with her wedding dress, which is a halter style. 90% of the time, I stand by that rule. However, there are rare instances that you can get away with a necklace. It depends on the other features of the outfit, and the style of the necklace.

In general, there should be a focal point of every outfit. If you are wearing a halter top, that should be the focal point. Adding a necklace to the mix draws the eye away from the lines of the halter, and the chest section ends up looking too decorated.

See three examples below:

This is me at a Christmas party in December 2009. I almost never wear halter tops, so this was a huge statement for me. Since the dress is very sparkly, and the lines of the halter top very angular, I opted not to wear a necklace. Instead, I did fancy hair and a flower clip.

I got this photo from brides.com . I am a huge fan of the dress; I love the colour and the detail work in the torso area. What I don't love is the necklace. Even though the necklace is small and dainty, think of how striking this look would be if the dress was the focal point with no distractions. Also, the straps are lying on top of the necklace, which looks very awkward to me.

This is my wonderful friend Jessica, who shows us how to properly do a necklace with a halter top! She picked a small pearl choker that is able to lay on top of the halter top straps, and since it stays so close to the neck, the straps of the halter and the patter of the dress are still what the eye is drawn to. Well done Jessica!

Next up: coordinating necklaces with different prints and patterns.