Pearl Necklace

More than they've been in thirty years, though not in the form people picture. The uniform strand is still formal; what's actually selling is single pearls on thin chains and irregular baroque shapes spaced along a satellite chain. Men wearing them pushed the category further than any marketing did. If you're avoiding pearls because they read as matronly, you're picturing the wrong necklace.

This is the one thing to actually be careful about. Pearls are organic — nacre, not stone — and they're softer than anything else you own. Water alone is survivable; perfume, hairspray, chlorine and sweat dull the surface permanently. The old rule is the right one: last thing on, first thing off. And never an ultrasonic cleaner.

Yes, with the caveat above. Freshwater pearls on a chain — as opposed to a knotted strand — are considerably more robust for daily wear because there's no silk to stretch and no restringing to schedule. Wipe them with a soft damp cloth when you take them off. That's genuinely the whole maintenance routine.

They layer better than most pendants because a pearl is round and small and doesn't fight for space. Put the pearl at 16 inches and a plain chain at 18 or 20. Mixing pearls with gold is fine — the idea that they must be worn alone is a rule from formalwear, not from jewelry.

A chain-based one, easily — links out or a shorter chain swapped in. A knotted strand is a different job: it has to be restrung entirely, which costs more than people expect. Ours are chain, so it's a straightforward alteration at any jeweller.

Yes — pearls have been the traditional choice for mourning dress for well over a century, precisely because they're understated and don't sparkle. A single pearl on a fine chain is about as correct as jewelry gets for that occasion.