My late Mum loved emeralds and bold yellow gold jewelry, unlike her daughter who prefers white gold and pearls. I inherited all of Mum’s jewelry, but because it’s never quite been to my taste the flashy stash stayed bundled up in a safe place for just over a decade. Until last weekend, that is, when I wore some of the pieces for the very first time.

Having recently incorporated gold jewelry and hardware into my style, revisiting Mum’s fine jewelry collection seemed like a good idea. And I’m so glad I did because 10 years down the line I look at the vintage pieces with brand new eyes. Surprisingly, as soon as I put on the earrings, things felt right. It’s AMAZING how you can grow from one style into another.

I decided to debut the earrings to a casual holiday party last weekend. They required dressing down so on went faded skinnies and a black mod frock. I finished off the look with a pair of party pumps and a textured grey clutch. I left off the specs and the red lipstick so that the earrings could shine. I tend to look a little sleepy without my specs. Oh well! I assure you I was awake and sparkly all evening.

I usually wear a necklace with this dress, but that would have been a bit much with the earrings. So I added Mum’s favorite chunky bangle. I have memories of Mum wearing this bangle when I was as young as 5 years old, which made glancing down at it during the evening extra special. To complete the ensemble and match the metals, I removed my own white gold wedding ring and wore Mum’s instead.

The evening was fabulous and our hosts were as gracious as ever. Outfits ranged from dressed up jeans and casual dresses, to little black pants with sequin tops and holiday sweaters. My outfit felt appropriately festive and very “new”.