2008 Jewelry Trend: The Signet Ring

Personally, I'm not entirely sold on the re-emergence of the signet ring. Lady Sovereign (MTV's newest female, British, white rapper) sports a chunky signet ring trademark. And with minimizing the number of pieces you wear in favor of larger, bolder statement pieces, signet rings definitely work.

However, these rings remind me less of a rich family history and more of cheesy high school rings. After all, how many times have you been on a horrible date with some guy sporting a huge, jeweled, tacky school ring on his sweaty, pudgy finger? (Maybe I'm the only shallow, fickle girl to stare down in horror at a ruby high school ring while tuning out the droning of a boring attorney.) But seriously, on most men a school ring is like acid wash tapered jeans. They're both dealbreakers.

But should you be less fixated on one bad experience than me, there is a lot to love about the signet. It recalls European nobility and aristocratic indulgence. And what girl couldn't use some more trappings of the bourgeoisie in her daily grind? 

Where to find a signet ring? You can be luxe and have one made bearing your familial coat of arms at Dexter Engraving, you can check out E-bay for some vintage finds, or you can rock a ready-made.

Tiffany does the signet in high style…with an equally high price tag ($1200 / $1400).

This sterling silver signet is only $32.50, so you can jump on the bandwagon without emptying your wallet.