Give the gift of excitement. Winter accessories that brighten up your face

Glamour, delicacy, softness.

Wearing even a single accessory can shape the impression a person gives, and even express the feelings and refinement of the wearer. Especially around the ears and neckline, areas that naturally draw the eye, accessories can have a particularly strong effect. Winter, too, tends to bring on heavy, cozy layers of clothing. In the midst of that, having just one accessory as an accent can instantly brighten up the face.

Accessories to create a mood different from the usual.

Accessories to wear according to your own mood.

Accessories that can brighten the spirits of someone important to you.

We'd like to introduce winter accessories just like these.

One way to brighten up the face is to create contrast. By placing a different color near the face, you can find an effect where the two colors bring out the best in each other.

Let's consider this using two example images.

For example, if wearing a navy outer layer feels somewhat plain, adding an accessory in orange tones—a strong contrast to the navy—creates a color combination in which not only the orange, but also your skin tone and even the navy itself, are brought out beautifully.

On the other hand, when wearing clothing in brown or beige tones close to skin color, there's the advantage of blending naturally with the skin, but this can also result in a somewhat hazy impression as the color merges with the skin tone. In this case, pairing it with a gentle pink creates an effect where the pink brings out the brightness of the skin tone.

The key to having colors bring out the best in each other is to combine colors of the same tone with strong contrast. Be careful, though: if the pink tone is stronger than the skin tone here, the pink alone may stand out in an unflattering way. Choosing accessories with the same sensibility as choosing makeup will broaden the range of your coordination.

■Colorful necklaces create contrast with your top

Now, let's take a closer look at accessories that brighten up the face. First, let's start with necklaces, which are easy to incorporate into any outfit. One of the appeals of necklaces is their rich variety of colors; by creating contrast with the clothing you're wearing, a necklace becomes a well-balanced accent point that can even brighten your complexion.

I.Ronni Kappos is a jewelry brand that uses vintage glass German beads. The German beads used are beads manufactured from the 1920s to the 1940s, made with materials, pigments, and molds that are no longer available today. Craftsmen bring out the color by adding trace amounts of metal to the glass by hand, resulting in mysterious colors where each bead has a slightly different expression.

Necklace 1584, with its striking large vintage beads, creates a fashionable, modern beauty. The rhythm of shapes—circles, squares, straight lines, curves—combines with the rhythm of colors—black, yellow, pink—and it's the appealing interplay of these two elements that gives this necklace its visual rhythm.

Large beads placed near the face have the effect of drawing the eye upward. Additionally, the black in the beads has the benefit of pulling the whole outfit together. This necklace pairs well with a simple, light-colored knit.

This piece, with its striking shape as if a circle has been cut out, is the Chain Necklace/562 by L'INDOCHINEUR, made using buffalo horn, a natural material from Vietnam. The diagonal coating applied to the buffalo horn gives it a modern design.

Buffalo horn, which has long been prized across Asia for use in cutlery and other items, has an appeal that lies in its depth of color, one that's difficult to describe in a single word. The Chain Necklace/562 retains its unique texture as-is, opaque yet layered with a variety of colors, as if expressing the sensibility of the person wearing it. The earth-tone-based coating brings out the beauty of this natural material, and also plays a role in bringing brightness to your coordination.

With its slightly longer chain, this piece pairs easily not only with knitwear but also with dresses and blouses. Its compatibility with beige and khaki clothing may be one of the benefits particular to natural materials. Paired together with the matching L'INDOCHINEUR bangle, it makes for a lovely, sophisticated combination.

■Pay attention to design, even for small accessories

Besides necklaces, there are many other accessories that can brighten up the face. For example, earrings and ear clips, being close to the face, can greatly change the impression given, depending on their color and design.

The ARATA Earrings JPA1422 are characterized by their rounded shape and a distinctive texture reminiscent of wagashi (Japanese sweets). Made from hand-made washi (Japanese paper), they feature Swarovski crystals attached to the tips of the softly lustrous washi pearls. Because they're made of washi, they're not only light and easy to wear, but also water-resistant thanks to the coating applied on top.

These uniquely designed earrings pair perfectly with the ARATA [Custom Order] Gold Leaf Ball Necklace. The [Custom Order] Gold Leaf Ball Necklace features gold leaf applied here and there to washi balls, strung together on a chain interspersed with small round beads, giving it a different, more feminine impression than the JPA1422 earrings mentioned above.

Beret:PARIS10 KHAKI (beret)

Try combining these earrings with the necklace, and the brightness around your face increases dramatically. The yellow and washi (Japanese paper) balls, which suit Japanese black hair so well, never look out of place and instead create an elegant atmosphere.

From top to bottom: ribbon brooch・pin badge・higuma (brown bear) brooch

Among small accessories, the brooch is surprisingly versatile. Compared to summer, winter often means wearing thicker fabrics like sweaters, cardigans, and coats, which makes it easier to pin a brooch directly onto them. And since scarves and hats also come out more often in winter, there are even more chances for a brooch to shine.

Sweater: THE NAVY CREWNECK sailor sweater, grey

Skirt: Cordura mini fleece-lined skirt

Hat held in hand: ZERMATT

A ribbon brooch made of silk, the same material often used in scarves; a chic urushi (Japanese lacquer)-coated higuma brooch; and a pin badge made from cellulose acetate, a resin derived from cotton. Though each is made from a different material, combining them creates a pleasantly lively effect. Against a chic black base, hints of blue, purple, and green draw the eye toward the brooches.

This is the fuji S brooch by SIWA｜紙和 (Shiwa). With a delicate expression that seems to capture the dignified look of wisteria blossoms directly in its form, this small brooch nonetheless makes a striking impression. By using a specially processed material called "Naoron," a firm type of washi, the delicate shape is kept intact without losing its form.

Muffler: Celine scarf

Dark-colored clothing paired with a light-colored brooch is a convenient combination for brightening up the area around your face. Even something small—just adding a brooch gently—can bring a touch of gaiety to your usual muffler look.

There's one more way to brighten the area around your face: scattering light near it.

Just as actors on TV use reflector boards to brighten their complexion, shining light onto the face can be expected to make your complexion look better.

When it comes to creating light through accessories, there are actually quite a few materials that draw in light—metals like gold and silver that reflect sunlight and electric light, pearl-like materials that softly reflect light, and glass or quartz that create a sense of transparency. And accessories like these are also a joy simply to look at, with a beauty that can make your heart skip a beat.

■ The Appeal of Stone

Hearing the word "jewelry" might give you the impression that it's somewhat out of reach, but the jewelry crafted by TO LABO has a charm that makes gemstones feel more approachable. This necklace, the and Necklace, combines quartz—whose impression changes in countless ways depending on how it's processed—with agate, which has a distinctive charm all its own in its coloring.

You might assume the color was applied afterward as a coating, but the and Necklace actually makes the most of the stone's natural coloring as it is. It retains the luxurious feel of gemstones while creating a design that looks like a two-tone pairing with the quartz, and its small circular shapes make it easy to incorporate into everyday wear.

Wristwatch: CLASSIC F907YG-BK

Even small stone accessories make a strong impression the moment you put them on. Placed onto dark-colored clothing, they quietly become an accent around your face. There's no doubt they'll also work wonderfully as accessories for the workplace.

■ Pearls for Everyday Wear

Pearl accessories teach us that sparkle doesn't have to mean anything flashy. As a natural material, pearls—when used in their raw form—each have a different shape and size, and it's this variation that creates a one-of-a-kind play of light and shadow when illuminated. Because they absorb light moderately, the way they reflect it feels very soft, giving off a gentle impression that has made this material beloved across every era.

The Knit/Pearl Necklace by Vlas Blomme is a necklace made by combining linen knitting with freshwater pearls and brass. The freshwater pearls, each uniquely shaped as only natural materials can be, reflect light softly and randomly, giving a healthy glow to the skin while finishing the look with a charming, delicate touch.

Even pearls, which tend to carry a strongly formal impression, take on a clean, pure look with a touch of charm when paired with linen knitting. The brass linking the freshwater pearls together also deepens in color the more it's used, and you can enjoy watching its expression change over time.

■ Glass That Creates Shadow

The last accessory we'd like to introduce is made of glass. The accessories from HARIO Lampwork Factory, a brand popular at ZUTTO as well, draw on the years of expertise unique to this venerable Japanese glass manufacturer. Glass rods, the raw material for these accessories, are melted over a burner's flame, and craftspeople carefully shape each one into a variety of silhouettes using specialized tools.

That transparent beauty is something only glass can achieve. Letting light pass through creates shadow even within transparency, and the impression shifts depending on the color placed behind it—that's the kind of charm it holds. Besides necklaces, there are also bracelets and earrings available.

Knit dress: Shambhala Multiwear Dress, Black

Accessories from HARIO Lampwork Factory, with their delicate craftsmanship, are perfect not only for everyday wear but also for dressing up a little for the winter season. They're the kind of pieces that brighten up your face and even bring out the best in the clothes you're wearing.

▼There's more. Winter accessories