Tuesday, 17 March 2015

I Want It! Fifth & Mae Little States necklaces

I've been reminiscing lately about when I was younger, and had this fixated obsession with the State of California.

Now, I've never been to California. I imagine that a younger me would have liked to say that I know a lot about California, mainly from wandering around Los Angeles on Google Street View and leafing through a Rough Guide from the library. But I'm now pretty willing to admit that I know very little.

My interest was therefore based more on a vague emotional draw towards the state, a gold-rush mentality which told me that if only I lived in California, my life would be perfect. I feel this was primarily based on American movies and songs like 'Meet Me In California' by the Plain White T's; 'cos you know in California/ there's something better for us all.

I don't really think like that any more; I'd like to visit California, but it's not quite the nirvana it used to be for me. However, there's still a little part of me which sees it as emblematic of happiness, success, and fulfillment. As someone rephrased it for me recently: California isn't a place, it's an idea.

So that's what drew me to these necklaces. I guess the idea might be that you buy one for the state you were born in, or where you've made your home, but for me it would be more a symbol of aspiration. It's like when you wear a sweater with a made-up but prestigious-sounding university on it.

Anyway, these are very cute. And despite having only been to Massachusetts, Oregon, and Washington, I would be so tempted to collect all of them. The price is pretty sweet as well, at just under $15 each.

Small pieces of jewellery like this are my favoured accessory at the moment, so it's certainly tempting to indulge in my teenage self's Californian fantasy for a little while longer.

Which one would you go for? Tell me in the comments or on Twitter

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