Pearls Are Poised for a Big Comeback in 2024: Here’s How to Style Them

Long reserved for the preppy look, pearls are shedding their bourgeois connotations to assert their fashion potential on the catwalks that count.

Pearls were omnipresent on the spring and summer 2024 catwalks from New York to Paris to London to Milan. They were most notably seen at Givenchy, where the collection, presented by artistic director Matthew M. Williams, featured an ear cuff, earrings, and rings adorned with large, perfectly contoured pearls.

If last season we were all about baroque beads, more conventional ones are now ascending. For proof, take a look at the runway looks from Versace and Dior. Donatella Versace and Maria Grazia Chuiri, the fashion houses’ respective artistic directors, adorned their silhouettes with pearl-set jewelry.

And how can we talk about pearls without mentioning Chanel? Coco Chanel, who started making jewelry in 1932, put pearls on her most famous pieces. Karl Lagerfeld, who took his first steps at the helm of the house’s artistic direction in 1983, also used them in his collections.

Under the leadership of Virginie Viard, the French institution continues to make them its signature. Proof is provided by the iconic pearl chain featured on the latest show.