Pendants, Collars and Matched Necklace & Earring Sets

A matched set is one decision instead of two. Thirty-five of the forty-five pieces here are necklace-and-earring pairs designed together, same stone, same plating, same cut; the other ten are necklaces on their own. Prices start at $49.99 and stop at $119.99.

Fourteen pieces are .925 sterling silver, and that is where the natural and lab-created stones sit: moss agate, labradorite, blue topaz, rose quartz, a lab-created emerald and a lab-created alexandrite, each named for exactly what it is. The remaining thirty-one are brass in rhodium, silver or gold plating — plating over brass, not solid gold — set mostly with cubic zirconia, plus turquoise in two styles, synthetic tanzanite in one and imitation pearl in four.

Pendants sit close to the collarbone and disappear under a collar when you need them to: a crescent moon in labradorite, a Saturn in blue topaz, a pear-cut solitaire. Collars, bibs and fringe sets do the opposite. They fill an open neckline and want a bare one to work against, so save those for the wedding, the party or the prom. Tennis lines fall between the two, bright enough for an evening and plain enough for a Tuesday.