Candidates' wives share jewelry style

Mary Altaffer/AP

Cindy McCain often pairs her brightly colored jackets with a string of pearls.

File/Morry Gash/AP

Michelle Obama wore a purple dress with a single strand of large, white pearls around her neck when her husband claimed the Democratic nomination.

NEW YORK — Cindy McCain and Michelle Obama are at the opposite ends of the style spectrum.

McCain is very proper in brightly colored dresses with matching jackets; Obama is more dramatic in bell sleeves with an occasional flash of cleavage.

"There's no way they could be sisters and exchange clothes," says image consultant Ginger Burr. They do, however, have a shared affinity for bead necklaces, particularly pearls — and the chunkier the better.

Obama, just named to Vanity Fair's International Best Dressed List alongside the likes of Carla Bruni-Sarkozy and Sarah Jessica Parker, wore a single strand of large, white pearls around her neck with a purple dress and funky black belt when her husband claimed the Democratic nomination.

McCain paired earth-tone South Sea pearls with a brown jacket and, on another day, wore a funky baroque necklace with uneven-shaped pearls to complement a navy suit.

"A chunky necklace needs a confident woman to carry it off," says Rae Ann Herman, Glamour magazine's accessories director. "Beads are statement pieces."

She's not surprised, though, that McCain and Obama have taken to wearing them, because they both seem to be more style-conscious than the public is used to seeing in its first ladies — save Jackie Kennedy, another pearl wearer.

"To me, pearls are Step One on what to wear if you want to become a first lady," says stylist Mary Alice Stephenson. "Both Michelle and Cindy are channeling Jackie O: They wear streamlined clothing with pearls."

Herman thinks the potential first ladies are taking cues from the runway, noting that chunky jewelry has made inroads with the fashion crowd over the past year.

"We've seen so much statement jewelry — bigger necklaces, bigger bracelets, bigger earrings — and it always trickles down to all price points," she says.

They are also showing that they're savvy: "You use accessories to make your wardrobe more exciting. If you're not buying new clothes, then you're investing in new jewelry, even if it's costume jewelry."

By choosing pearls and beads instead of diamonds, Stephenson adds, Obama and McCain are avoiding questions about cost.

She thinks they may have learned from Hollywood stars the importance of incorporating a "Wow!" moment into each day's outfit — and that it's best to wear it from the waist up. The added bonus of the necklace is that it draws onlookers' eyes toward the face.

"You can look severe and bare if you're not wearing a necklace, which makes you look feminine and elegant," Stephenson says.

Style-savvy vote

Pearls may look great on Michelle Obama and Cindy McCain, but is the look for the everywoman?

Style insiders cast their votes:

--Rae Ann Herman, accessories editor at Glamour, says the key to wearing chunky pearls or beads is not to overaccessorize the rest of the outfit. "If you have on a major belt, stay away from a big necklace, and don't wear a huge earring with the huge necklace. Choose your statement and wear it."

Also, she says, don't reserve pearls only for cocktail dresses or suits. While that's a classic look, pearls look more youthful when paired with a T-shirt.

--Stylist Mary Alice Stephenson notes that pearls work for every budget because, as lovely as the very expensive Tahitian pearls are, there are perfectly serviceable faux pearls at mass retailers for $29.99.

"There is great costume jewelry out there ... and we don't call them 'fake' pearls, we call them 'faux' pearls," she says. "Just because they're faux doesn't mean they're cheap. They can be great looking and accepted whether you're a liberal or a conservative."

--Ginger Burr, founder of Total Image Consultants in Lynn, Mass., has a guiding rule for pearls and beads: Women with small features should wear small-scale beads — maybe multiple strands — while women with larger features can wear the larger beads.