J U L I A | L E E

Jewelry is usually a very safe bet when you want to buy a gift for someone you care about. It works well as a gift for family members, friends, or partners. However, it only really works well when you make the right choice. For every person that’s thrilled with a piece of jewelry from a loved one, there’s at least one person that’s not too pleased. But, that’s the same with all gifts – it’s about knowing the person you’re buying for and getting them something they’ll like. 

The obvious solution is to straight up ask your loved ones what they want. Give them a selection of pieces or tell them to point out a piece of jewelry they really like. Sure, you literally can’t fail, but it kind of feels like cheating. You haven’t put much effort in, and the gift receiver might not want to tell you what you should buy. Instead, you should read through the tips in this guide to learn how to buy the perfect piece of jewelry for your loved one!

Know their tastes

Do a little bit of recon work in your spare time, getting to know the person’s tastes. The next time you see them, take note of what they’re wearing. Or, if you don’t live together, look at their photos and see if you can spot any trends. For example, do they always wear lots of rings, have they got similar earrings on all the time, do they like a particular style of necklace? 

The more research you do, the more you learn about the person. You could also walk by jewelry stores when you’re out together. You could even stop and look in the window, pretending that you’ve seen something you like. If you do have an idea for a gift in mind already, this can be a good way to get their views without making it too obvious. Regardless, they may point out different pieces, giving you a better idea of their tastes. Now, you should be able to rule out some types of jewelry and only focus on others. 

Understand their sizes

Now, this is the hardest part of buying jewelry for someone, but you do have a slight margin for error with some pieces. Obviously, jewelry doesn’t come as a one-size-fits-all product. Like clothes, you have to understand what size the person is. With things like necklaces or bracelets, you might not have specific sizes as they can be adjusted. So, it’s not that difficult to select the right options when you’re choosing them. Likewise, earrings and other piercings don’t have sizes, so you have no issues here. 

In all honesty, rings are the main problem! If you want to buy a ring for someone, you need to know what size they are. If they’re your partner or a family member, this could be easy as you can slip into their room and look at the sizing on one of their rings. But, if they’re a friend that you don’t live with, the task is much harder. You could ask their housemates for help, try to bring up ring sizes naturally in a conversation, or just guess. If you and your friend have similarly-sized fingers, you can make an educated guess based on your own ring size. 

Be aware of the occasion

Why are you giving this person a gift? What is the occasion or purpose of this piece of jewelry you are buying them? You see, the reason for buying the jewelry plays a huge role in deciding the type of piece to buy. As an example, you will obviously buy something completely different for a friend’s birthday than you would for your partner on a wedding anniversary! 

Consequently, think long and hard about why you’re buying this, and you should start seeing a few options that are better than others. For a partner on a big occasion, you want something flashy and expensive. If one of your friends has recently suffered a bereavement, you may opt for things like cremation jewelry. It’s all about understanding the context behind your gift, then matching it with something appropriate. Otherwise, you can make the big mistake of buying a piece of jewelry that simply doesn’t line up with the occasion. It can be underwhelming for the receiver, or just plain awkward for both of you. 

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Quality matters

Finally, let’s talk about quality. Clearly, you can buy all kinds of jewelry from many different brands. Some designer brands are outrageously expensive and you could afford a house for the same price as one of their necklaces. Others are absurdly cheap to the point that you wonder how they were made and what they’re made from. For most people, you should look to avoid either end of the spectrum. Well, you can splash the cash if you really want to, but most people here can’t afford the top-tier jewelry for sale. 

Instead, it’s all about finding the best-quality jewelry within your price budget. The keyword is quality – there’s nothing worse than poor-quality jewelry. If you give someone a plastic necklace or earrings, it just looks like you really haven’t thought about the gift at all. Some people may disagree with this, but it’s worth spending more money to get a higher quality piece of jewelry than it is to opt for the cheapest stuff you can find. Good jewelry will remain in excellent condition for much longer, meaning your gift has more longevity. So, when you’re comparing pieces, don’t focus too much on the price alone – look at the key quality indicators, such as carats, materials, and so on. 

To summarize, the key to buying jewelry for others is to understand their tastes, know their sizes, be wary of the occasion, and focus on quality. When you look at it like that, it’s pretty simple!