3Obsession
If there was something constant in my life then it would have to be jewellery. I love most if not all kinds of jewellery. Gold, silver, diamonds, precious stones, crystals and even home-made.
On my first Christmas, my parents bought me a silver bracelet. A small, fragile little baby bracelet with tiny love hearts and flowers. I remember wearing it a little when I was a toddler but I am not too sure when. Now – thanks to my mother – it lies inside my baby box in the tiniest black box I have ever seen.
Another thing that I remember is on my fifth birthday, my gran gave me a delicate gold necklace with a teddy bear on it. It was beautiful. My other gran gave me a ring with my birthstone in it – a peridot. At least I thought it was real. It was in fact a small metal ring with a light green stone in it. Although back then I thought it was real and very pretty. Soon after this I received some jewellery every birthday or Christmas or – as my mother always says – just for being a good girl.
When my gran Angus died she left me her gold necklace. It is a gold locket with a design that I could not describe if I tried. Yet, I was only little when she died and so my mum kept it for me and I only received it a couple of years ago. There is a knot right next to the clasp so apparently my gran – like me – use to tangle her necklaces. It is the most precious thing to me as I wear it every day for good luck. Even though I do not like gold jewellery, my gran's necklace is the only exception and it is the only thing I have left from her as I have no memories.
'Diamonds are a girl's best friend' is definitely true in my case. When a diamond on my necklace or ring catches the light just right it will explode into a rainbow of colours. Diamonds can also go with any outfit and so I have a necklace that is just sitting on my shelf for when I'm late.
Crystals are my second favorite things on jewellery. Crystals are often colourless or see through and so the colour will change to match the environment. Or in some cases, my skin tone. Also – like diamonds – they can explode into a rainbow of colours.
If I had to choose, nothing is better than homemade jewellery. My friend Rachel gave me a necklace for my 15th birthday. It is just a plain black piece of string with a small plastic red key on it. No diamonds. No crystals. Just plain. Yet I love it because it came from the heart and was made with pure imagination.
My jewellery comes in a range of different colours. Black or white for school. Purple to match this top. Red to match these shoes. Yellow to match this and green to match that. I love it all. That is part of the reason why I picked art as a subject.
There is a good memory behind most – if not all – of my jewellery. A birthday or a Christmas. Sometimes they are just costume jewellery and mean very little yet they can make an outfit just right for an occasion. Some still mean a lot to me like when my dad – who hates shopping – will go out and pick up a piece of costume jewellery. Even if it is not much it still means a lot to me.
When I am upset I cannot put any jewellery or make-up on. It is very unusual and my friends notice almost instantly.
When my mum was in hospital after a heart attack, I had shown up in just jeans and a t-shirt. This upset her because she knows me so well and hates seeing me upset. I did not want to upset her – I had just wanted to get to the hospital as quickly as possible.
I can hardly remember not wearing jewellery and sometimes it seems like there is a piece of silver permanently attached to my skin.
Yet some of the most famous people in history had very little like Gandhi or Robert Burns. I know that jewellery is not everything or that important but I still love it.
Other times people in history like Cleopatra are seen draped in silver and gold like they are gods. It is meant to show how important someone is yet if you were to look at Queen Elizabeth, she wears something like a simple or small earrings and she is the most important person in Britain.
I love it all from jewelers to stores to craft shops. Jewellery can show someone's personality or how someone is feeling. Something as small as a wedding ring can show how committed or loyal someone can be to someone else.
Jewellery can reflect on someone's mood or personality. Other times it can help make an outfit look perfect. Even though jewellery is constant in my life and always will be, it might be a little too late to stop my mother from buying me jewellery all the time.