Cartier is marketed as a luxury jewelry brand and was thrown into the starlight after many celebrities, particularly Kylie Jenner, started stacking the love bracelets on their arms. Jokes have even been made as to how Kylie Jenner is wearing college tuition on her arms, with the diamond love cuff alone priced at $40,000. A Cartier salesman told me it is now their best seller among college students, and they all save up to try and splurge on this bracelet. All this hype brings me to, “Is it really worth it?”
So lets jump right in to the pros and cons.
Pros:
- It is an item that some luxury departments call “eagle watch.” Meaning, it is a piece that everyone can now recognize and know the price for. People will eye that bracelet “like an eagle.”
- Most people will wear it on their hand every single day: showering, exercising, and sleeping. You do not need to take it off. My friend purchased hers two years ago, and it is the one bracelet she wears every single day and will continue to do so.
- It is a Cartier Love Bracelet. It is the classic design that they have had for over 30 years. Chances are the design will not go anywhere, and the piece will be timeless in your collection.
Cons:
- It WILL scratch and become dull. The bracelet is delicate. I’ve only worn it three times, and it already has some scratches on the edge of the cuff. If you did wear these bracelets every day, there will be significant signs of wearing and it will lose its shine overtime.
- You’re paying for the name. It is an 18k gold bracelet, and 21k gold is usually the starting point for gold exchanges. What does that mean? Well, let’s say you want to sell this bracelet, so you take it to your local jeweler. Because it is only 18k gold, they will offer you maybe $1,000-$2,500 for the bracelet. Every jeweler that I have talked to in regards to this bracelet say they completely disregard the brand, and they only place money offers based on the bracelet weight.
- The price is rapidly increasing. A few years ago before the whole Cartier hype, you could purchase these bracelets for what they actually are worth: around $1,000. But because celebrities are racking these up, and everyone following the hype, these bracelets shot up to over $6000. And when you actually go to the Cartier store, sellers will try to convince you to “buy it today, because it might increase the next time you come.”
The Wear Test: On my arm, I wore two love bracelets. One real, and one fake. Asked my friends to try and tell me which one they think is authentic. Out of 45 friends, 7 guessed correctly which one was authentic. The responses were based on scratches, which both had. In addition, most responded based on shine.
So… Splurge or Ditch? In my opinion, it is just an item that is really in the spotlight right now. Not only is it extremely overpriced, but most of my friends just took blind guesses to differentiate between the two. If you really are after the style, the stainless steel duplicates are found all over eBay from $1.99 – $30, and even if they do rust, you can either buy another one or wipe the bracelet down with some polish!