Carly's Jewelry / Accessories Blog

The term cufflinks was coined in the 1600s, when men used links of chain with a button on one end to secure the cuffs of their sleeves. Cufflinks may not ever see a return to their mid 1900s popularity, when millions of pairs were sold annually by jewelry and accessory companies such as Swank, Inc., but they have been trending upwards in recent years now that more men's shirts have cuff slits to accommodate them. Cufflinks aren't reserved for men -- women will appreciate the endless styles that are available, which range from subdued to funky (the millefiori cufflinks in this collection are a unisex style).

_Forzieri

Jewelry sales, especially high end jewelry sales, are following the same downward slide that so many other retail items are experiencing in our sluggish economy. But men's jewelry is a bright spot in the downward trend, and is becoming more popular with guys than it has been in recent years. Stainless steel still dominates men's fashion jewelry, but titanium and other metals are gaining ground. Black is popular for bracelet metals and other components, and designs are chunky to go along with the scale of a man's hands and wrists.

This collection of men's bracelets is varied, in style and in price. You'll find a bracelet that resembles handcuffs, plus stainless steel chains, a rubber and stainless bracelet with a splash of understated color, and even a bracelet for the Dark Knight buffs.

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Are Olympic gold medals made of gold? Yes, but they haven't been solid gold for almost a century. The medals are designed by the Olympics Committee in each host city, but the designers have to follow a few minimum guidelines:

• all medals must be at least 60mm in diameter and 3mm thick
• gold and silver medals must be made from 92.5 percent silver
• gold medals must be plated with at least six grams of gold.

Some medals for recent games have been larger. Like the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City. The gold and silver medals awarded there were the heaviest ever created, measuring 85mm in diameter and 10mm thick and weighing in at 20 ounces.

Sterling Silver Facts
Gold Karat Weight Facts

_{Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images}

Tennis star Maria Sharapova is a spokesperson for Canon cameras. She was in New York City yesterday to introduce the limited edition PowerShot Diamond Collection. Limited is a good description -- you're not going to find them for sale in stores. The five diamond-studded digital cameras will be given away in a sweepstakes. Each of the $10,000 PowerShots has 88 white diamonds (2.22 carats) encircling its lens.

Nice cameras, and the long drop earrings and diamond bracelet Maria wore to the event weren't bad, either.

MariaSharapova.com
Canon PowerShot Web Site

_{Photo by Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images}

Kristin Chenoweth isn't the only celebrity spotted wearing a cross pendant lately. Most people don't regard the pendants as something that's in or out of style -- they're usually an important accessory that's worn throughout the years.

There's no shortage of cross variations -- you'll find crosses made from all sorts of metals and other substances and they're often set with diamonds and precious gems. This collection includes a cross made from deep blue lapis lazuli and another from inlaid mother of pearl. Another is formed from multi-color glass. The simple, elegant crosses make as much of a statement as any of the gem-studded versions.

_{Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images}

The first ALMA Awards were presented in 1995, a creation of the Latino advocacy organization National Council of La Raza (NCLR), with a goal to promote an accurate and balanced portrayal of Latinos in the entertainment industry. The Spanish word alma was chosen because it means "spirit" or "soul," terms the NCLR feels describe the "determined spirit of the Latino people." Eva Longoria Parker hosted the 2008 Awards and walked on the stage with ten completely different looks -- ten hairstyles, ten gowns and ten groups of jewelry. Her ensembles were a (sometimes) subtle representation of fashions from different eras, but it was Eva's hairdos that reinforced the journey back in time. Eva's wedding rings were the only jewelry that remained constant during the entire show.

_{Photo by Vince Bucci/Getty Images}

You can usually depend on designer Susan Wong to create jewelry with both a vintage flair and varying amounts of asymmetry. Her Castaway Jewelry is made from sometimes unexpected combinations of materials, like horn combined with glass, batik bone topped by gemstones and jewelry that's made from vintage metal and glass beads of all types.

There are two focal points to these these pretty drop earrings. The first is a piece of vintage glass that's encircled with bright 14K gold filled wire. The second focal is created by lustrous groups of tiny cultured pearls that drop from each earring. The pearls are strung together and a gold wire is wrappped around them to add color and body.

Castaway Pearl Strings Earrings: Buy Direct

Photo Couture Candy

I think you'll like these vintage look chandelier earrings. They're large enough to make a show, but not so huge that they take over your ensemble or put too much weight on your earlobe. Three smoky topaz beads dangle from the bottom of each framework, where they add a little bit of subdued glitz with each movement.

Vintage Look Earrings: Buy Direct

_{Photo © Kuo Ting}

Lapis lazuli is a dark blue semi-precious stone that jewelry artisans have used forever. Designers are reaching into their lapis stashes a lot right now, because the stone fits perfectly with jewelry's move towards a more earthy look. The lapis jewelry Christine Taylor wore to the premiere of Tropic Thunder is high end, with blue donuts dangling from diamonds, emeralds and platinum. Christine paired the earrings with a large diamond and platinum broach and a lapis and diamond ring. All of her jewelry was by Neil Lane.

• Closer look at Christine's jewelry, plus links to affordable lapis jewelry

_{Photo by Michael Buckner/Getty Images}

Did you know that sunglass lens colors work differently? Like rose colored lenses -- they're good for water sports because they boost contrast for objects that are viewed against blue or green backgrounds. Green-lensed sunglasses make objects in your vision appear crisper by filtering out blue light. Other lens colors help in different ways, but color isn't the only consideration -- you should consider lens material, too. There are three major qualities to think about when you're buying sunglasses, and you don't have to pay a fortune to get them all.

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Classic & Trendy Sunglasses

_{Robert Downey, Jr. - Photo © Chris Jackson / Getty Images}