Boho Chic Jewelry Is Back For 2020

  Boho Chic featured in just about every style on the runway during fashion week this past fall. Though the outfits ran the gamut from punk, to grunge, to 1970s career, the jewelry choices ran completely toward Boho Chic.  

What is Boho Chic?

A Brief History

Historically, the Boho style debuted in the early 1990s, drawing largely on retro 1960s fashions with a flair of gypsy nomad. Over the decades, the style faded from view, paring down to just a few pockets of culture primarily hidden from view. Then, in 2005, actresses Sienna Miller and Kate Moss revived the Boho movement with a new rendition - Boho Chic. The term Boho has actually been around for millennia. In its earliest usage, it literally served as an abbreviation for the Bohemian Homeless. The original Bohemian community began in France, following the French Revolution of the late 1700s. These pre-Raphaelite artists, having lost their patrons, found themselves impoverished. Rather than starving in the streets of their former glory days, these artists took to wandering throughout Europe, in search of unique opportunities. Their nomadic lifestyle lent itself to spending less while living free. These artists experimented with all manner of self-expression, embracing the freedom of movement and eschewing societal norms. As a result of their poverty and their artistry, they took to dressing in whatever manner they chose. Their nomadic lifestyle, and quite possibly their marauding ways of survival, led Europeans to identify them with the Gypsies from Bohemia and the Balkans. Hence, cultured society members began referring to them as the Bohemian Homeless, in all likelihood a slur that one day this group of avant-garde artists later adopted for themselves with pride. To this day, the term Boho remains synonymous with the free spirit of these wandering artists. Millennia later, particularly during the 1960s, the creatives, the outcasts, the dissidents, and the radicals embodied this Boho spirit to its core. So much so, that decades later, young artists continued to celebrate the Boho themes passed down to them through the centuries. In the 1990s, Boho style emerged as all the rage (think gauzy gypsy skirts, peasant blouses, gauzy patchwork dresses). Though the trend faded some in the early 2000s, it re-emerged on the scene with a new flair several years later, this time with a new name - Boho Chic.

The Spirit and Elements of Boho Chic

The main tenets of the Boho lifestyle include individualism, peace of mind, and a love for nature. The "Chic" added on in the current millennia refers to the striking elegance associated primarily with Parisian style. This new marriage between neo-Parisian elegance and the free spirit individualism of traditional Boho lends itself to novel pairings in both fashion and jewelry. Boho fashion designer Savannah Miller described a true Boho Chic woman for Sunday Times Style: "A real Bohemian is someone who has the ability to appreciate beauty on a deep level, is a profound romantic, doesn't know any limits, whose world is their own creation, rather than living in a box." True to her Bohemian spirit, Savannah shunned the term Bohemian, choosing a new term, rural chic, to describe her collections. Collections which, of course, include many of the elements of the Boho Chic style. These elements incorporate denim, crochet, patchwork, and plaid. Of course, flat sandals with embellishments, Converse tennis shoes, and sheepskin boots prevail for footwear. Bralettes, crop tops, loose tunics, and flowing peasant blouses serve as tops, with flowing, gauzy maxi skirts on the bottom. And of course, colorful leggings. An eclectic combination of floral prints with sheer fabrics in soft earthy tones prevails. Of course, the Boho Chic style would not be complete without embellishments like tassels, fringe, embroidery, and layer upon layer of jewelry.

Boho Chic Jewelry

As I have noted, Boho Chic is defined by freedom, individualism, and an anything goes approach to fashion. Therefore, jewelry is worn in every manner conceivable, and then some. Including NOT on the body. Tasseled charms and metal chains adorn bags, shoes, hemlines, and jackets. Jewels made from old coins, vintage brooches, and nature-inspired pins embellish anything and everything carried by a Boho Chic woman. She might wear a vintage brooch in her hair, on her bag, pinned to her shoe, or even pinned to a chain at her waist. Truly, anything goes. Of course, the Boho Chic woman also wears jewelry on her person, and a lot of it. In fact, commonly this woman wears jewels, literally, from head to toe. On her head, she might wear an elaborate headdress resembling those worn by Hindu brides. She might prefer a simple crown of flowers, or an elegantly draped body chain draping elegantly onto her forehead. Her earrings likely dangle, and she may sport more than one pair. These include Native American- and India-inspired earrings in sterling silver. Geometric shapes, feathers, an metal bells, fringes, and beading. Moving down to the torso, draping layered necklaces draws attention to individuality and artistry. Varying textures and weights add interest, while various charms, pendants, and symbols invoke mystery. Pops of color excite the senses, while earthy tones and nature-inspired themes provide a soothing balm. Of course, the torso also lends itself to body chains. Delicate or bold, these chains prove reminiscent of Persian harem dancers and modern-day belly dancers. Their beautiful enhancement of the body proves both alluring and romantic. Moving down to the hands and feet, the Boho Chic style, of course, includes stacked bracelets of varying sizes and textures. Furthermore, as many rings as possible, as well as ankle bracelets and toe rings. Truly unique, truly inspired by beauty and self-expression, the Boho Chic woman can transform any piece of jewelry into a work of art upon her own person. She is beautiful, romantic, alluring, and even trendy (at least for today). ~Angela Magnotti Andrews