Over the years, cufflinks have staked their reputations on being worn exclusively by those in the upper echelons of society. Thus, conveniently, these cufflinks have been labeled as "dull", "exclusive" and "boring". Recently, new designs for cufflinks have begun popping up like mushrooms. Trendier and classier cufflinks have emerged for men -- and recently, women -- of various age groups. With the rise of the number of young urban professionals, it seemed just right for jewelers to manufacture and produce designs that are well suited to their ages.
Recent trends in cufflinks have involved designs or insignias, logos, cartoon character cufflinks and superhero cufflinks. Cufflinks have also come in gold, silver or sterling. However, society was not really all that keen to the cufflink's renewed status. Many fashion-conscious individuals eye the new cufflink designs with a wary eye. Who would want to wear a cartoon character inspired cufflink, many would ask. Why waste your money on superhero inspired cufflinks? Wouldn't it have been a lot better had you purchased an NFL flask instead of that shiny, bat shaped batman cufflinks? Most likely, people would answer "yes". However, some, the cufflink wearers who are superheroes aficionados would absolutely disagree. What could be better than owning a bat shaped cufflink. Or a blue and red cufflink with an "S" shape? Batman cufflinks, Superman cufflinks, Spiderman cufflinks, Wolverine cufflinks, you name it. These cufflinks will definitely strike a cord with the superheroes collectors.
Fairly enough, these new cufflink designs have altered the way cufflinks are viewed by both men and women. Lately, women have also taken a liking to cufflinks and various cufflink designs. Understandably, a lot of jewelers have also incorporated feminine designs to their collections. Although you can rarely see pink cufflinks or cufflinks shaped like flowers, you can at least see more subtle and feminine cufflink designs.
Cufflinks no longer exclusively belong to the upper crust of society. They have become more than merely a status symbol. The cufflinks have now become a fashion statement. Dress shirt wearers from all walks of life can now freely wear cufflinks -- all the while picking out designs that are to their liking. Of course it has helped that there are actually so many designs to choose from. Whether you are in your 20s, 30s, 40s or 50s, you can choose the designs that perfectly suit your personality. With the wide variety of designs, you can freely express yourself.
How have cufflinks evolved from their past, elite status to being a fashion symbol? This is all owing to the developments in society. The world is getting smaller; the social gap is getting narrower. The status quo has evolved. And so has fashion, more specifically, the cufflinks.
The history of cufflinks is a rich one. As with many other fashion accessories and jewelries, cufflinks have crossed boundaries, stepped beyond comfort zones and reached beyond ages, races and social rank. Gladly, the cufflinks have changed in synchronicity with the world and not against it.
