LJ Brainiacs - Help!

[ladysprite]

This isn't my usual sort of help request, and I don't know if anyone here will have a decent answer, but I figured I might as well at least put the question out here for any fashionistas or etiquette mavens who might read this.

I'm going to a fancy-dress party this weekend, and I have a truly faboo fancy dress to wear to it. The dress has a very highly decorated neckline, bodice, and straps - it's all over tiny copper and smoke and gold seed beads, and embroidery, and shimmery fabric, and I've always been told that with highly-embellished dresses, one shouldn't wear a necklace in order to avoid being too over-decorated.

However, the dress is also fairly low-cut, leaving me with a vast expanse of bare white neck and chest that looks pretty plain and nekkid without something else there.

So - necklace, or no necklace? Do I take the risk of gilding the lily and blinding people with sparklies, or do I try to be understated and maybe wind up too much so?

(And let me also take this moment to state that, while I love my job, I had thought of better accessories to my dress than the collection of scratches, abrasions, and lacerations currently covering my hands, forearms, and stomach. Luckily, the latter will be covered by the dress, and I think I have a pair of gloves that can hide the rest of my damaged flesh......)

Comments

[redfishie.livejournal.com]

I'd say try out necklaces you have and see how they look....nothing huge but something that matches the neckline well.

[multigeek.livejournal.com]

Wear a necklace.

(And I almost never have opinions on fashion.)

[tpau]

pearls.

[jdulac.livejournal.com]

necklace. something tasteful but striking!

[missmina]

Over-decorated? No such thing! Wear a necklace. Rhinestones go with everything.

Seriously, a simple chain with a single striking pendant would work well.

[98.livejournal.com]

Hard to venture a strong opinion without seeing the dress and model in question but I think a simple pendant would adequately decorate the bare expanse without playing dueling sparklies with the neckline.

[msmemory.livejournal.com]

Necklace, or dangly earrings which will provide glitz/sparkle in the neck area. (Btw, I disagree with tpau in that if your dress is copper and gold, I don't think pearls will go.)

[new-man.livejournal.com]

Choker? Ribbon about the throat?

[sjo.livejournal.com]

Something simple that compliments the dress. A choker or ribbon as new_man suggests might be just the thing. Pearls go with pretty much everything. Pretty earrings never hurt!

[laura47.livejournal.com]

put something on your neck. find something simple and plain if you don't want to be blinding, but find something. I always think too much bare neck looks weird.

[pagawne.livejournal.com]

Perhaps a fairly plain choker and killer earrings. Bling on the fingers is also not a bad thing.

[citabria]

I'm with the people saying try things out.

I have a dress that sounds similar including in color of beads and the low-cut aspect, and I found myself wishing I had a necklace that would go with it. Here are my suggestions of what I was looking for, in case this helps:

If there's metal involved, let it be gold.

I was looking for stones/beads that would match the beading of the dress, or the color of the underdress below (mine was turquoise beneath brown silk chiffon). I also discovered that purple -- a deep, plum-ish purple -- would work well. I think a few amber teardrops could work well, as could a fairly simple beaded collar. The waterfall beaded pieces I'm seeing a lot of these days would take too much attention away from the dress -- whatever necklace you wear would need to be very, very simple. At first I was also thinking choker, but I think that would pull the eye too high -- you want something that falls around/just below your collarbone, to highlight your neckline but not distract from it.

Now if only I had the clothes, jewelry and occasions to use this knowledge with....

[dagibbs.livejournal.com]

With the large expanse of neck/chest, I'd be inclined for a necklace of some sort, to "fill the gap". Of course, I have no class. So... look at and try various things, and go with what makes YOU happy. Really, if you feel better with the necklace, than without, then you will look better with it, even if it breaks nominal conventions.

[ayalanya.livejournal.com]

i would say some kind of necklace close to your throat - not necessarily a choker if they make you uncomfortable, but something that wouldn't dangle much. if the dress is really decorated (i'm having difficulty picturing it), maybe something really simple, like a silver chain or plain silver choker, or a string of somewhat subdued beads?

(i probably actually have something or other you could borrow, even - a couple of sleek silver chains that could be looped, f'rinst)

[ladysprite.livejournal.com]

I'll be home most of the day tomorrow, mostly cooking for the party - if you want to come over and play dress-up with a Real Live Becky-doll, you're more than welcome. :) I think I have one necklace that might work, but I'm always happy for more options, and for company of course.....

[ayalanya.livejournal.com]

how late is too late? i'm going to be seeing a movie in the afternoon, so might not get to you until early eveningish.

[braider.livejournal.com]

Make it a *very* simple necklace.

[melissaagray.livejournal.com]

While I'm horrified to admit this, I'm actually kind of good at this fashion junk now. The reality is that you need something on you neck, regardless of the "gilding the lily" rule. With your red hair and the copper of the dress and your lovely alabaster complexion, I am sure you'll be quite the lovely and striking sight. They key is to play up this lovely stark contrast and not overwhelm it. A carefully chosen pendant (not too large) on a delicate gold chain hanging equidistant between the bottom of your neck and your dress neckline should be just enough to say “notice my lovely shin and delicate collar bones” without fighting with the dress. Costume jewelry should allow you to find something copper / burnt orange to keep you from adding too many new colors. I know I bought something like this at Bijoux Terner at Logan for very cheap. The sets that come with matching mild drop earrings should do you :)

[deguspice.livejournal.com]

"notice my lovely shin and delicate collar bones"

How do you expect her to be posed such that someone would be admiring her collar bones and shin at the same time?

(I hope that was a typo :)

[wcg.livejournal.com]

What she said.

(Though I'd emphasize your lovely skin. Your shins are lovely too, but I think you'd be tripping over the necklace at that length.)

Me, Too :-)

[shalmestere.livejournal.com]

Something simple, like a ribbon choker, or a single strand of unfaceted black onyx or hematite, might be nice....

P.S. Re: Me, Too :-)

[shalmestere.livejournal.com]

Or tiger's-eye :-)

[starcat-jewel.livejournal.com]

I'm with melissagrey -- a simple pendant, not too large, in a color that coordinates with the dress, on a lightweight gold chain. Look for a chain that's either 18" or 20" long.

Also, I'd advise going easy with the dangly earrings. 1/2" of dangle is probably enough; longer, and your earrings end up fighting with both the chain and the dress.

As a general rule of thumb: if the outfit you're wearing is plain in the neckline area, think of your jewelry as a fanfare. If the dress is already fancy around your face, think of your jewelry as a skillfully-placed rest.