It’s that time of the year again. Chestnuts are roasting on open fires, glasses of egg nog and plates of mince pies are being passed around, and everyone’s getting dressed up for office and family parties. Christmas earrings add a fun and festive flair to your outfit, giving you that warm, fuzzy Christmas feeling and encouraging you and everyone else to embrace the seasonal cheer.
If you’re usually more of a simple stud person or prefer plain hoops, going all out with a set of Christmas tree earrings or dangling Santa earrings may feel a little over the top. But there are other ways to dress up your jewellery for Yule. In this article, we’ll look at festive party earrings in all their tinselly glory and some more refined, understated options you can choose if you’re heading out to a more formal evening event.
We’ll examine current Christmas earring trends and provide a quick rundown of your available options, from budget-friendly to high-end designer options. We’ll jingle our way through some themes you can consider, including colourways and combinations that have that Christmassy feel but without going too OTT. We’ll also discuss how you can make your very own personalised earrings.
Along the way, we’ll include a few top tips from our jewellery experts so you can create your signature look into the New Year.
The main reason to wear Christmas earrings is, well, why not? It’s a jolly time of the year, a chance for you to be festive, be a little bit silly and have fun! A pair of snowman or Rudolf earrings with a flashing red nose is guaranteed to put a smile on everyone’s faces (except the office Scrooge!).
Playful earrings add a finishing touch to your party outfit or just as something cheerful to wear in the week before the big day. Even if you didn’t get that bonus this year, a pair of Christmas-themed earrings will brighten your mood and prepare you for the party season.
For more formal events, you can interpret the theme with more delicate earrings, so you can have that festive feel even at a gala dinner. Think rubies and emeralds to represent traditional Yule colours, pearls for mistletoe berries, and glittering diamonds to stand in for snowflakes. If you get creative, you can celebrate the season in your own way and be full of Christmas cheer this year.
Like ugly jumpers and reindeer horn headbands, festive party earrings have their fair share of kitsch influences. But the clever way to avoid falling into the tacky trap is to look for trends and themes that can be upscaled to something a little more sophisticated. It’s always important to never lose that sense of fun and frivolity.
Christmas character designs are perennial favourites. From snowmen to the main man himself, Santa, character designs pop up every year in varying forms. Most often, these character earrings are bright, sassy and charmingly cute dangles, although you will find the occasional more subtle snowman earrings or a realistic reindeer form rendered as a leaping deer.
So, are studs or baubles more popular when it comes to Christmas earrings? The consensus is that, just like the decorations on your tree, baubles are best. Hanging earrings give you that added movement, which, if your gingerbread earrings are studded with sparklies or your Christmas tree designs have lots of colourful crystal highlights, catch the light and bring the design alive. If you prefer the minimalist look, then studs are still on trend. But for that over-the-top, full-of-Christmas cheer look, it has to be dangles all the way.
Another trend is to take the tinsel concept to the next level and apply it to earrings for the party season. A top tip: You can make tinsel earrings yourself by winding some mini tinsel strands around a pair of hoop earrings and impressing everyone at the Christmas party. Or if your budget’s a bit bigger, you can look out for custom-made options that use precious metals beaten into wafer-thin strips to add real Christmas cheer to your outfit.
Whether you’re after a traditional pair of Nutcracker earrings or a delicate snowflake design, we’ve scoured the lists and put together our top 15 choices. To make it easier, we’ve put them into individual categories so you can find your new favourite pair of seasonal accessories. Festive earrings are available for all budgets, so we’ve looked at cheap and cheerful right through to sensational sparklers.
Good enough to eat and a Yuletide favourite around the world, these gingerbread man earrings add a tasty touch to any seasonal outfit.
Gingerbread man earrings from Cookson Gold – These little guys look good enough to gobble up! Beautifully detailed in brown enamel on 925 Stirling Silver, these tiny studs are deliciously subtle yet fun. At just over £7.00 a pair, they’re a great Secret Santa or stocking filler idea, too.
Jeulia Stirling Silver Gingerbread Men earrings – With dazzling gemstones and gold detailing on a Stirling Silver stud design, Jeulia gingerbread men jewellery is a quirky yet super-stylish addition to a Christmas gala event outfit. They’re fully customisable, so your pair is unique to you. At around £100.00, they’re top-quality studs you’ll love to wear every Christmas.
It’s one of the quintessential Christmas images – a jolly snowman in a hat and scarf, and with a carrot for a nose. Captured in a multitude of different designs, snowman earrings range from cheap and cheeky ones that light up to diamond-studded happy chaps that are just right for a special event.
Silver Cubic Zirconia Snowman studs – These gorgeous studs twinkle with joy from the moment you pop them on. A solid silver base is encrusted with cubic zirconia gems in different colours. At around £35.00, these earrings are a pair you can wear again and again.
Snowflake and Snowman mismatched earrings – ‘Mismatched’ is a big jewellery trend at the moment, and these Christmassy offerings from Jeulia are exceptional indeed. A long dangle with a flawless single snowflake is complemented by the cutest of snowmen. Created from yellow gold and plated with silver, the collection of Diamond White and Fuchsia Jeulia® stones brings this set to life. Expect to pay around £100.
It’s the man himself, Saint Nick, Cris Kringle, and, of course, Santa Claus. The iconic image of the big jolly man with the snowy-white beard is a common theme for Christmas earrings. If you love Christmas, a pair of Santa earrings is a must-have for your party outfit.
Santa hat earrings – Keep it subtle yet seriously Christmassy with these adorable Santa hat earrings. Made from Stirling silver and cubic zirconia, they’re sweet little studs that really capture the festive vibe. At around £40.00, they’re affordable yet excellent quality Santa earrings that can be worn throughout the Yule season.
Rose gold plated Stirling silver Santa studs – Charming button studs with Santa’s rosy cheeks picked out in rose gold make the perfect discreet pair of party earrings. Showing off your fun side, these sleek studs cost about £70.00, making them an ideal gift for someone who loves everything about Christmas.
Many of the traditional Christmas symbols date back much further than you think. Reindeer have been a part of North European culture for thousands of years, so it’s no surprise that they have a role to play in Christmas festivals. Reindeer earrings can be cute or chic, depending on the style.
Gold tone reindeer Xmas earrings – These cheap and cheerful reindeer earrings are just the right amount of bling for a Christmas Day family party. Costing just £7.00, they’re a perfect stocking filler too.
Yellow gold plated Stirling silver reindeer – Beautifully designed and ideal for wearing all year round, these reindeer earrings are a contemporary take on the classic pattern and cost around £60.00 The antlers are picked out in gold against a silver body.
The Nutcracker is a distinctly Germanic symbol that’s been adopted across the world as a typical Christmas character. With bright coats and curly black moustaches, Nutcracker earrings will definitely make you stand out at the Christmas party.
Nutcracker Christmas Earrings—There are so many different designs on platforms such as Etsy, but we love the detail in these delightful Nutcracker earrings, right down to the toys and gingerbread men in their hands. That’s a lot of earrings for around £27.00.
It’s at the centre of celebrations, a symbol of Christmas for millions of people. And it isn’t Christmas without a tree. Christmas tree earrings are a must-have in your collection of seasonal jewellery, ranging from just a few pounds right up to luxury gold and diamond options.
Rotating Christmas Tree Earrings – We love these for their sheer elegance. A contemporary design that doesn’t lose the spirit of the season, these tree earrings are only around £7.00, making them a wonderful Secret Santa present.
Jeulia Christmas Tree earrings – Encrusted with crystals and topped with a golden star, these drops are utterly gorgeous for a special family celebration. Incredibly detailed and guaranteed to catch the light, they’re a fabulous flourish to your Christmas outfit. Expect to pay around £60 for a pair.
Clogau Christmas Tree Silver Drop Earrings – Fabulously fashionable and very contemporary, these chic little silver drop Christmas tree earrings are encrusted with white topaz and crafted from Stirling silver. They cost around £130.00, making them a memorable gift for someone special, especially someone who celebrates their birthday around Christmas.
Silver disco ball earrings – It’s time to light up the dancefloor with these adorable mini mirrored disco balls that also light up! Dazzle everyone as you dance the night away with these cheeky little drops from Oliver Bonas. At just £8.00, they’re well within budget for a Secret Santa gift.
Crystal drop Star of the East earrings – If it’s good enough for three wise men, it’s good enough for a Christmas earring. These star designs are encrusted with crystals on a gold back and attached to gold hoops. At £25.00, these are great value and a design you don’t have to keep just for Christmas, either.
Christmas bow earrings – A bow is the best way to brighten up that special present, and these delightful earrings grab that theme and take it to the next level. Clogau Christmas Bow silver stud earrings are made from Sterling silver and feature a princess-cut white topaz that glitters in the firelight. Rare 9ct Welsh gold accents the bow, adding a unique finishing touch. They cost around £90.00. Don’t just save these for Christmas – wear them all year round!
While there are thousands of online designs to choose from when it comes to Xmas earrings, there’s always another option – why not make your own? Christmas is a time when there’s plenty of glitter, shiny beads and baubles, ribbon and colourful inclusions at hand. So why not use it to create your own unique design? All you need is a pair of earring wires, some jump rings, and a healthy dollop of imagination.
Wrapping tinsel around hoops gives you earrings with an instant wow factor. Or why not add some flashing LEDs to really stand out? Making your own earrings is also a fun way to involve the children in the celebrations. Just remember that at Christmas, there’s no such thing as ‘too much sparkle’!
Whether you’re buying some Christmas earrings for someone special or have a precious keepsake given to you by a family member, you can insure your Christmas jewellery with TH March. Trusted since 1887 as jewellery insurance experts, we understand that it’s not just about the monetary value of a piece – it’s the sentimental value you place on it, too. Protect your jewellery with bespoke insurance from TH March. Find out more by browsing our Jewellery Insurance page today, or contact us direct for a free, no-obligation quote.