Remember tangled headphones? We’ve all been there: rummaging around in the depths of our handbag, desperately trying to extricate knotted cables from our house keys. Bluetooth helped, but the worry of stuck wires was replaced by the risk of losing one—or both—of your wireless earphones. Canny jewellers have a solution: AirPod jewellery.
Apple’s groundbreaking AirPods were first unveiled in 2016, and swiftly succeeded by similar cordless styles from other brands. Though practical, pocket-friendly tech came with its own set of problems. Early solutions arrived in the form of micro It-bags, with Chanel, Gucci, Saint Laurent and Valentino queuing up to provide chic receptacles for your Pods. But more recently designers have been marrying form and function in jewellery.
“I was losing my AirPods constantly, especially during the early days of quarantine,” says Delfina Delettrez, whose own practical gems were an instant hit. The fourth-generation Fendi has been at the helm of her namesake jewellery brand for over a decade, and was recently enlisted by Fendi’s new creative director, Kim Jones, to oversee jewellery at the house. Delettrez’s Zoom-worthy statement earrings featured in Jones’s first spring/summer couture 2021 show for the house, but the pretty earbud accessories were released under her own label.
On Instagram, a clip captioned “how I take my calls now” shows the pearl chain earrings in all their glory, and a further scroll reveals Delettrez’s handy AirPod holder necklace.
Those with unpierced ears should look to Louis Vuitton’s Nanogram Earphone earrings, unveiled last summer. The dangling, monogram-adorned chains feature a cuff that slots over the post of your AirPods, with two asymmetric dangling chains. (Think of them as pimped decorations, rather than stay-all-day earrings).
Misho founder Suhani Parekh describes her striking gold designs as “handcrafted modern architecture for the body”. Prompted by the success of her best-selling Pebble rings, Parekh was inspired to reimagine the sculptural wraparound design as earrings, that in turn double up as nifty AirPod nests. The minimal Active Pods, the swaddling Pebble Pods, and Convertible Pro styles are all available in plated in her signature 22-karat gold, or a sterling silver finish.
Hassle-free tech laces, to ensure your earbuds are always within easy reach, can also be found at Tapper and Talis Chains. Tapper’s offering is comprised of various metal-plated rope chains, braided leather cords, nylon styles, and an exclusive 18-karat gold knitted mesh design, all designed and handcrafted in Sweden. While Talis has added a pearl and a gold AirPod chain to its collection of sunglasses chains.
