The Horseshoe Necklace: Meaning, Styling and What to Buy

A horseshoe necklace is a luck charm you can wear every day, which is most of its appeal. It means good fortune and protection, it carries well as a gift, and it sits comfortably with almost anything else in a jewellery box. Here is how to choose one and how to wear it.

Key facts

What it means

The horseshoe is an old protective charm, traditionally hung over a doorway in iron to keep luck in and harm out. Worn at the neck, the same idea travels with the person instead of guarding a building.

The full history, including the argument about which way it should point, is in our guide to what a horseshoe symbolises.

Which way should the pendant hang?

People overthink this. A pendant on a chain rotates with movement, so it cannot be relied on to hold a fixed orientation anyway.

If you want a rule: hang it points up if you like the idea of the shoe holding your luck, and points down if you prefer the reading where the luck spills out over you. Both are traditional and neither is wrong.

Choosing a chain length

• 40 to 45 cm: at and just below the collarbone. The most versatile, and the length that works over a buttoned shirt.
• 50 to 55 cm: sits on the sternum. Good for layering under a longer chain and for wearing over knitwear.
• Shorter than 40 cm: a choker line, which suits a bare neckline and not much else.

The Alexandra Hakim Golden Horseshoe Necklace is 45 cm, which is why it works both over a collar and on bare skin.

The designer option

Most horseshoe necklaces hang one shoe from a plain chain. The Alexandra Hakim version does something better: the whole chain is built out of horseshoes, linked open end to open end in recycled brass with a 22K gold plate, closed with a toggle at the front.

It is part of her Canter collection, handmade and set with white cubic zirconia. At 690 US dollars it is a considered purchase rather than an impulse one, and it is the piece our editor picks from the whole collection.

For a smaller charm-led alternative from the same designer, the Lucky Necklace is 311 US dollars.

How to wear it

Over a shirt buttoned to the collar, with the toggle worn to the front, is the sharpest way to wear a statement horseshoe chain. Against a bare neckline in summer is the easiest.

Keep the earrings small when the necklace is doing the work. If you want to layer, add one plain fine chain at a different length and stop there, since a linked horseshoe chain already carries a lot of texture.

Metal and everyday wear

A horseshoe necklace is usually bought to be worn constantly, so the metal decision matters more here than on an occasional piece.

• Solid gold: wear it indefinitely, including in water. The most expensive by a wide margin.
• Gold-plated brass: the designer default. Looks the same, costs a fraction, and needs keeping dry.
• Sterling silver: durable and affordable, tarnishes slowly and polishes back.

If you plan to sleep and shower in it, buy solid gold. If you take jewellery off at night, plated brass gives you far more design for the money. Our guide to gold plated brass sets out what to expect.

Giving one as a gift

The horseshoe is one of the few symbols that works as a gift between almost any two people, because the message is goodwill rather than affection. That makes it suitable for a colleague, a friend, a daughter and a partner alike, which a heart is not.

Occasions it suits: a new job, a house move, exams, a driving test, a wedding, a birth, and a recovery. Because there is no sizing, it is also one of the few pieces you can buy for someone without knowing anything about their measurements.

Frequently asked questions

What does a horseshoe necklace mean?

Good luck and protection. The horseshoe has been used as a protective charm for centuries, and worn at the neck it carries that idea with the person rather than guarding a doorway.

Which way should a horseshoe pendant face?

Both directions are traditional. Points up is read as holding the luck in, points down as pouring it out over the wearer. A pendant rotates as it hangs, so either is fine.

What length chain is best for a horseshoe necklace?

40 to 45 cm sits at the collarbone and is the most versatile. Longer chains of 50 to 55 cm work better for layering and over knitwear.

Is a horseshoe necklace a good gift?

Yes. It carries a clear wish for luck and protection, and there is no sizing to get wrong, which makes it one of the safer jewellery gifts.

How much does a designer horseshoe necklace cost?

The Alexandra Hakim Golden Horseshoe Necklace is 690 US dollars at Coveti, a 45 cm chain built entirely from linked horseshoes in gold-plated recycled brass.

Should I buy a horseshoe necklace in gold and silver?

If you never take jewellery off, buy solid gold, which survives water. If you remove jewellery at night, gold-plated brass gives far more design for the money and simply needs keeping dry.

Who can you give a horseshoe necklace to?

Almost anyone, because the message is goodwill rather than romantic affection. It works for colleagues, friends and family as readily as partners, and it needs no sizing.

Read next

• What does a horseshoe symbolise?
• The Canter horseshoe collection
• Horseshoe earrings, explained
• Lucky charm jewellery meanings

Sources

• Alexandra Hakim, About the designer
• Alexandra Hakim, Jewellery care
• Arab News, Lebanese designer using natural resources to make jewelry
• FashionUnited, Career Q and A with Alexandra Hakim

Prices and stock are as listed on Coveti at the time of writing and change with availability.

Written by Gemma Deeks, Fashion Editor at Coveti.