Necklaces & Chains

Cuban links, tennis chains and pendants in gold and silver finishes. Chain lengths listed in both centimetres and inches.

Length decides how a chain reads far more than the style does. 40cm (16in) sits at the base of the throat and wears as a choker. 45cm (18in) is the standard everyday length and lands on or just below the collarbone, which is where most pendant necklaces are designed to hang. 50–55cm (20–22in) drops onto the sternum and suits a heavier pendant or a layered look. For men, 55–60cm is the usual range for a Cuban link chain.

Width is the other half of it: under 5mm is discreet, 8mm and up is meant to be seen. An iced out chain or a tennis chain is set with cubic zirconia — a bright lab-grown stone, not diamond, and we say so on every listing rather than leaving it vague.

Plated finishes wear first at the clasp and wherever the chain rubs a collar. Taking it off before a shower or the gym roughly doubles how long it looks new.

More in Jewellery: Earrings, Bracelets, Rings, Anklets.