Necklace lengths, visualised on a real neck

Pendant listings sell you the charm and whisper the chain. Here's the map: choker 30–40cm sits on the throat; princess 45–50cm hits the collarbone; matinee 50–60cm lands mid-chest; opera 70cm+ goes over everything including sweaters.

Pendants live at matinee and below. A coffin or skull charm needs drop room to swing and catch light — choker-length pendants sit awkwardly high and read as brooches.

Measure with the string trick around your neck, not your wrist math. Necks vary more than people think, and 5cm is the difference between collarbone and cleavage.

When in doubt, size up the chain. Extenders cost little and a pendant worn slightly long looks deliberate; slightly short looks like a mistake.