What Is A Locket Necklace?

Everything You Need To Know About Lockets:

What is a Locket Necklace?

You may be wondering what is a locket necklace? A locket necklace is a pendant or charm which opens up to take one, two, four or six photographs, a keepsake, a secret message or a lock of hair. If you have never considered a locket as your go-to necklace, you might like to think again. Locket necklaces are the perfect pieces for bringing together the past and the future. A locket represents a window on an earlier age.

It is also the piece which is most likely to be passed onto future generations. A locket is, quite simply, a jewellery classic, which no jewel box should be without. Becuase it is so personal, it is the one necklace you can wear every day or for special occasions. It is the perfect way to keep the ones you love close to your heart.

But what do you know about lockets? Have you ever wondered about the history of lockets? Or what lockets are used for? Read on to discover our in-depth guide for everything you need to know about lockets:

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Lily Blanche Four Photo Oval Charm Locket and gift box

The History of Lockets:

As a timeless piece of jewellery, lockets have been popular for centuries. During Queen Victoria’s reign, lockets with a piece of hair inside were often worn to commemorate a loved one. In Ancient Rome, lockets with a small piece of hair became a fashion statement. 

What is particularly surprising about the history of lockets is that they were originally created for men. One sweet locket love story involves George IV. Before becoming King, the Prince of Wales secretly married the love of his life, Maria Fitzherbert.

As their marriage was forbidden, it was annulled but George was so in love with Maria, he kept a portrait of her inside a locket, hidden under his lapel. The portrait was just of her eye and part of a nose, keeping their love a secret.

This story started a fashion trend with portrait lockets between 1790 and 1830. Keeping portraits in lockets is just as popular today as it was then.

Vintage Lockets:

Vintage lockets became increasingly popular between 1860 and 1880, with many women wearing them to keep loved ones close. Lockets were also worn by fashionable women during the 20s and 30s. Vintage lockets continue to be popular today and many modern lockets are based on vintage designs.

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Lily Blanche Garnet Vintage Heart Locket in Rose Gold

Today, lockets are more popular than ever. Jewellery fashions come and go. But some accessories are wardrobe staples. A locket is such an item. It is a piece which can complement any outfit.

Wear it with jeans and a blazer for a weekend, casual look. Wear it with business suits and pearls for dynamic power dressing. Wearing with an evening gown for intrigue and mystery on the red carpet.

How To Choose The Perfect Locket:

With so many types of lockets available, it can be difficult to choose the perfect necklace. The modern locket is available in a variety of finishes. At Lily Blanche, we have a range of 2, 4 and 6 photo lockets available in sterling silver, 18 carat white gold, rose gold and gold vermeil.

When choosing a locket, it is best to consider the type of jewellery that the person usually wears. If she often wears silver jewellery, a silver locket would compliment her silver bracelets and earrin

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 Lily Blanche Six Photo Memory Keeper Locket in Silver

Locket Shape:

Considering the shape of the locket can also be an important factor. If you are looking for a more classic design, a traditional round or oval locket may be more suitable. If you are in search of a romantic gift, a heart locket necklace is a great choice.

Chain Lengths:

Chain length is another important factor to consider when choosing a locket. Each of our lockets come on a medium-weight curb chain. We have four different lengths to choose from: 16, 18, 24 and 30 inches.

A 16-inch chain will typically sit on the base of the neck like a collar, 18 inches usually sits on the neckline, 24 inches sits on the breastbone. If you would like to layer your necklace with several other pieces, we would recommend our 30-inch chain to give length and texture. 

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Choose from Belcher, Beaded, Rope, Twist & Curb Chains in Five Lengths

Personalised Lockets:

Lastly, consider how you would like to personalise the locket. If you would like to hold many cherished photos inside your locket, we would recommend our 6 photo Memory Keeper Locket. Our bestselling locket opens to reveal six secret photos inside and can be engraved across 3 panels on the reverse of the locket. As one of our customers said, “It’s like wearing a hug from all of my favourite people”.

Our Four Photo Lockets is the perfect modern slimline locket. You can choose from our Four Photo Heart Locket or an Oval Shaped Locket. Our Four Photo Lockets can be personalised with four of your favourite photos and a personalised engraving.

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Stack your Lily Blanche Locket with daintier pieces for an on-trend look.

If you are looking for a simple yet elegant locket, a two-photo locket may be the best option. You can choose from our modern two photo lockets or vintage heart necklaces, designed to be personalised by you.

Who Can Wear a Locket?

The timeless quality of lockets, and the fact they can be customised, mean that they appeal to all age groups. They can be personalised in so many ways. The most obvious is through adding photographs. Anyone can wear a locket of any style. There are lots of types of lockets available. From the more classic round locket, to modern heart lockets and vintage necklaces, there is a style for every age and taste.

Wedding Lockets – The Latest Bridal Trend

Wedding lockets have long been a tradition in the East, with many brides featuring them at Indian weddings where gold lockets are especially popular. But they are also becoming at growing trend in the US and UK. We are creating more lockets than ever for brides. It’s the perfect way to keep the one you love close to your heart. Make like Angelina Jolie and wear a locket on your wedding day. Angelina had a photograph of her mother, Marcheline, who had passed away, inside her special locket.

Or copy singer Katy Perry and wear a locket in your hair. Lockets with an image of a loved one can be attached to the bridal bouquet. This is a really popular way to remember a grandparent who cannot be present at the wedding.

Lockets make perfect wedding day gifts. Why not engrave the locket with the couple’s wedding date and favourite memories? Or gift them to your bridesmaids to let them know how much you appreciate them.

Special Occasion Lockets

Lockets are the ideal present to mark a special occasion. They are perfect for graduations, 18th birthdays, 21st birthdays, 30th birthdays, 40th birthdays, 50th or 60th birthdays. We’ve even made bespoke lockets for 80th and 90th birthdays. Chose photos that have meaning for the wearer and bring joy. Engrave a special message, initial or dates on the locket and you can be sure it will not only be treasured in the wearer’s lifetime but passed on to generations to come.

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Lily Blanche Four Photo Heart Charm Locket is a bestseller.

What Are Lockets Used For?

Lockets are the perfect way to tell your own story. There are many ways that you can personalise your locket. Here are our top 5 ideas for what to put in your locket:

1.     Fill your locket with your favourite photos
2.     Add a special note to keep inside your locket
3.     Keep a piece of lace from your wedding day inside
4.     Engrave your locket with a personal message
5.     Keep a lock of hair inside

How To Choose Photos For a Locket?

A locket is a blank canvas, ready to be personalised with your cherished memories. It can hold fond memories of the past and photos of adventures to come. But what photos should you keep inside your locket? How do you size photos for a locket? We’ve put together a simple guide for choosing photos for a locket

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Add up to six photos to you Memory Keeper Locket

Choosing Photos For Your Locket:

The most important thing when thinking of what photos to include is that the photos should have a special meaning to you. Choosing your locket photos should be a fun and memorable experience. Why not take a trip down memory lane and look through the family albums? Or even contact some friends for their favourite snaps? Looking for photographs can be a meaningful way of remembering the moments that matter most to you.

Once you have chosen your special photos, it is also important to consider the shape of the locket. The best photos are those with some background to work with. At Lily Blanche, we can work with many different types of photos and reduce them to a small size. Our specialist photo editing team can help you achieve excellent results at a small scale:

How To Size Photos For a Locket:

Lockets come in all shapes and sizes, making them easy to personalise with your photos. The sizing of photos depends on the shape of the locket. Here at Lily Blanche, we have a range of 2, 4 and 6 photo lockets which you can personalise with your favourite photos.

Sizing photos for a locket is easy with our free personalisation tool. At Lily Blanche, we have a dedicated tool on our website which is a free photo resizing tool for our lockets. This is a software application which allows you to upload photos from your laptop, phone or tablet directly onto our website.

You can edit your photos using the tools provided. This gives our customers lots of flexibility and shows you how the photos will look in your locket.

If you would like assistance with editing your photographs, please choose the option “I will email photos later”. Please email your photos to media@lilyblanche.com after ordering your locket. Our specialist photo team will assist you with the editing process.

Top Tips on Choosing Photos For Your Locket:

1.     Use high-quality photos: Here at Lily Blanche, we can work with all kinds of photos but the better the quality of the photograph, the better it will look in the locket. If you have an older photograph which has a sentimental meaning to you, our photo editing team can edit this for you.
2.     Include background: it is helpful to have a little background around the edges to ensure that everyone is centered in the photo. Our photo editing tool allows you to ensure that your photo fits perfectly in the locket.
3.     Photos with multiple people: for the best results it is best to have close up photos which focus on the face. However, for large family and friend pictures, our 4 and 6 photo lockets are perfect to ensure that each person which means so much to you is included. Multi photo lockets allow you to include multiple people, you can use the same photo in each slot and use our personalisation tool to ensure each person is included. 

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Choose our locket photo service for spectacular results.

Engraved lockets:

What To Engrave On a Locket:

Engraving a locket is the perfect way to keep loved ones close. Adding a bespoke message allows you to tell your own unique story. Whether it’s an engraved name, initials, date, personal message or even song lyrics, our personalised lockets are designed to be passed down the generations.

Engraving Ideas:

Family Engraving Quotes:

family locket is the perfect way to keep loved ones close to your heart wherever you go. Add a special engraved message to tell your own unique family story:

  • Family, Where Life Begins and Love Never Ends
  • Love You To The Moon and Back
  • Home is Where The Heart is
  • All You Need is Love
  • Love is Family                       

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Engrave a secret message on your Memory Keeper Locket for the perfect gift.

Engraving Ideas for Mum:

Looking for a personalised gift for your Mum? Perhaps Mother’s Day is coming up or you just want to let Mum know how much you appreciate her. These engraving quotes are sure to let her know she’s loved:

  • Forever Thankful For All That You Do
  • You are Not Only My Mother, You are My Best Friend
  • Thank You For Always Believing In Me
  • Forever My Mother, Always My Friend
  • Love you Mum

Anniversary Engraving Quotes:

Whether you’re celebrating your first wedding anniversary or even a 30th, 40th or 50th wedding anniversary, a personalised locket can be the perfect way to show them how much they mean to you. Here are some of our favourite anniversary quotes for her:

  • The Best is Yet To Come
  • Love You Forever
  • Always In My Heart
  • All My Love
  • You Will Forever Be My Always
  • Together Forever
  • I Love You With All Of My Heart
  • Forever Yours
  • Love You Forever
  • You’re Still The One!                       

Friendship Engraving Ideas:

Show how much you appreciate your friendship with an engravable locket. Whether it’s a funny quote, story or even your favourite song lyrics, an engraved piece of jewellery can help show them how much they mean to you:

  • Life is Better With You
  • Forever Friends
  • You’re the Best
  • You are My Best Friend
  • You’ve Got a Friend In Me!
  • Friends are Forever
  • If Friends were Flowers, I’d Pick You
  • A Good Friend Is Like a Four Leaf Clover, Hard To Find and Lucky To Have.                                                    

Engraving Ideas for Motivation and Inspiration:

Whether your loved one has just graduated, secured a promotion or moved house, let them know how proud you are of them, with an engraved piece of jewellery designed to last a lifetime.

  • Follow Your Dreams
  • She Believed She Could So She Did
  • You did it!
  • A New Chapter Begins
  • We’re so proud of you!
  • The Future is Yours To Write                                                                      

Memorial Engraving Ideas:

  • Forever In My Heart
  • Remembered with Love
  • You'll Always Be in Our Hearts

Still Stuck For Ideas?

Do you want the option of being able to change your personal message from time to time? Why not add a quote inside your locket inside? Our team can print a quote on a piece of specialist high-quality photo paper to keep inside your locket and cherish forever.

If you are unsure of what to engrave on your locket, you can contact our specialist in-house engraving team who can assist you with choosing your engraving. Simply email media@lilyblanche.com and ask one of our team for our top engraving tips!

Adding a Charm To Your Locket:

For a truly personalised locket necklace, why not add a birthstone or initial charm? We can add most charms to any of our 2, 4 or 6 photo lockets for a unique look. You can also swap the charms around, you can choose to have a locket without a charm or with a different charm. At Lily Blanche, we are always happy to work with you to create your own bespoke locket.

How To Wear a Locket:       

From vintage necklaces to modern family lockets, there are so many styles and ways that you can wear your locket necklace. Whether you are looking for a simple yet elegant look or you want to make a statement, we’ve got you covered:

Keep It Simple:

Wear your locket with your favourite shirt for a simple yet sophisticated look. Lockets can be worn with any kind of dress, shirt or top but a lower neckline can really make your jewellery pop!

Layer Up:

Layering jewellery is an easy way to elevate your jewellery game! Combine your favourite locket with small pendants and birthstone jewellery to make a statement. The key to layering is choosing a longer chain for your locket and shorter, more delicate pendants to create texture.

Mix Metals:

Combine silver and gold for a unique and on-trend look. Adding silver pendants to your gold locket is a modern take on the traditional locket and we’re loving it!

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Heart-shaped lockets are always popular.

Create your own personalised locket:

Looking for a personalised gift for a loved one? Discover our collection of 2, 4 and 6 photo lockets designed to be personalised by you.

Browse our full collection of Lockets today!