The recent economic downturn of the past few years has left many things damaged. Investor confidence in nearly anything that is not tangible and traded by survivalists has been shaken, as have many different kinds of luxury items. While booming times may lend themselves to a lot of gold and platinum jewelry, during bad times most people cannot justify spending so much for something like that. With so many people losing their jobs, a bit less bling and a bit more austerity has grown popular, which has led to a few new trends.

Decorative personal fashion pieces classified as fine jewelry may contain a variety of diverse components, but they are overwhelmingly comprised of valuable metals and precious stones. While the range of metals used in fine jewelry is fairly limited, consisting mainly of gold, white gold, silver, and platinum, the same cannot be said for the gems that dot or dominate lovely pieces of fine jewelry. There are literally hundreds of different types of stones that can adorn such pieces. Which of them, therefore, truly qualify to be classified as a precious stone?

Quite likely, almost every woman in the country has her own definition about what pieces constitute a good set of everyday jewelry.  As with most issues in accessory fashion, however, it is possible to discover some dominant trends.

The highly-desirable gemstone known as sapphire actually exhibits a wide range of color variation.  Sapphires that possess a color other than the traditional blue are often referred to as "fancy sapphires" and may appear in hues as diverse as violet, yellow, pink and even orange.  Most people who refer to sapphires, however, have in mind gleaming gemstones that are tinted with trace amounts of iron and titanium.  It is these elements that produce the characteristic deep blue shade of the classic sapphire.

Some types of jewelry are best reserved for special occasions.  An elegant diamond brooch, for example, will generally look quite well on an evening dress with simple lines, but it would not be appropriate at all when worn with a polo shirt.  The hoop earring, in contrast, can be very successfully worn in a wide variety of contexts.  The vast majority of these will tend to be informal in nature, though some of them actually verge into the formal range of occasions.  In general, however, women should consider their hoop earrings as an ideal form of everyday jewelry.