Backless dress not dramatic enough? Try adding a necklace

It started quietly. Taylor Russell rocked up to the 2024 Venice Film Festival with a pear-cut 11-carat Tiffany & Co. diamond at the nape of her neck. Then came Sabrina Carpenter at the 2025 Grammys in February with a Chopard necklace featuring a 50-carat diamond trailing down to her lower back. The same month, Anya Taylor-Joy wore an archival Tiffany & Co. piece over her shoulder blades at The Gorge premiere in Los Angeles. And because Hollywood loves a good styling hack, Margaret Qualley and Michelle Yeoh both made headlines at the 2025 Oscars in March in Chanel high jewellery and Boucheron necklaces, respectively, worn—you guessed it—backwards. The most recent appearance we loved—Janhvi Kapoor at Cannes in May wearing an Anamika Khanna gown and custom Aurus back chain. So, we had to ask ourselves: when was the last time any of us bought a necklace not to highlight our collarbones but to show off our backs?

The trend, however, isn’t new. Actors, models, and movie characters have been turning heads with this move for almost a century. Let’s rewind to where it all began (or where we think it did): to the original trendsetter Coco Chanel. Through the roaring ’20s, she ditched corsets, gave women pockets (bless her), and made strands of pearls the accessory to have. Instead of letting them hang down the front as was the convention, she occasionally flung them behind.

Then in the 1964 film What a Way to Go! (which reportedly featured jewels worth $3.5 million courtesy of Harry Winston), Shirley MacLaine wore a dress with a plunging back and a pearl necklace that cascaded down her spine—a look that is now iconic. Even Princess Diana attended the Back to the Future premiere in 1985 in an open-back Catherine Walker & Co gown with a string of pearls dangling over her back.

Fast-forward a few decades, to the aughts, and the styling move owned the red carpet. Hollywood was hooked, and suddenly, shoulder blades were the new cleavage. At the 2008 Oscars, Nicole Kidman wore a L’Wren Scott necklace that looked like it had been poured down her spine. Then came 2013, the year the trend kicked into high gear. Anne Hathaway accessorised her pale pink Prada gown with a Tiffany & Co. diamond necklace flipped backward. Not to be outdone, Jennifer Lawrence followed in Dior with a long Neil Lane diamond necklace cascading down her back moments before she tripped on the stairs.

So, why does this styling trick keep coming back? It’s simple: wearing a necklace backwards shifts the spotlight, making the back of an outfit just as important as the front. It’s a move that feels deliberate and elevated.

The key is choosing a piece that drapes naturally down the spine: strands of uniform gems, Y- shaped lariats, and necklaces with well-hidden fastenings. Open-back outfits work best, but light, see-through fabrics that let the necklace move and catch the light can also do the job.

Below, see the necklaces to add to your wishlist.