There are two problems I often face, although not necessarily simultaneously. The first one I’ve mentioned before: it’s my lack of ear piercings (I tried, it didn’t work out) that is making my choice of earrings woefully limited. And I love earrings. Cue much frustration.

The other issue is that my looks can get boring. To a certain extent, that’s inevitable – I’ve got a job that requires relatively conservative outfits, I’m over 30 and have a kid, I’m possibly a slightly boring person who gravitates towards elegant clothing. On good days, there’ll be some glamour, but there is hardly ever any punk. That would be OK, if I myself didn’t find it… boring.

So imagine my joy when I found something to help me with both of these issues. Anni Jürgenson is a young Estonian model who designs jewelry, mostly earrings. I have stalked her creations (and herself, to be frank) on social media for a while now and finally managed to see her designs in person when I was in Tallinn for holidays. I promptly bought a cuff with black feathers and if the red-gold creation below had been available, I would have bought that on the spot as well.

I’ve tried ear cuffs before (see problem no 1), but they have always been a bit uncomfortable and I never saw a design I really, really liked without entering the aspirational pricing territory (I tend to find that territory very unwelcoming). Well, it’s all sorted now. What I like about cuffs in general is that they are by default less “pretty” than most ordinary earrings, there’s a different feel to them – rougher, tougher. Cooler, if you will. What I like about this cuff in particular is that it works perfectly with biker boots, grey jeans and an old t-shirt, but even better with a dress. Because… yes, you’ve guessed it – it makes it less boring.

PS Second picture is stolen from Anni’s web site.