Way back in middle school, I (Lori) remember talking one day to a friend as we sat on the gym bleachers during PE. I thought she looked different, better somehow. I tried to figure out what had made the difference, and finally it hit me: Her hoop earrings. Today I don’t remember her name or even what she looked like. But I’ve never forgotten her hoops.
A dream was born. I wanted to wear hoops, too.
Alas, at that time I was not allowed to have pierced ears, and clip-on hoops just weren’t cool. Plus, they hurt.
For reasons unknown to me even now, at Christmastime during ninth grade, our parents relented and Amy and I were both allowed to get our ears pierced. In fact, our mom and grandmother went with us to an Orlando-area mall where three generations of us all had our ears pierced for the very first time. The family that pierces together stays together, you know. I recall the lady in the shop commenting that nice lobes ran in our family. It makes me laugh to type that.
It was hard to wait the six weeks you have to keep the original stud in your ears before I could experiment with other earrings, including hoops. But I had already been waiting a long time. My hoop dreams went back even further than middle school.
Here I am at around age eight sporting some hoops I must have lifted from our mother’s jewelry box. Clip-ons, of course. And a little large for a third-grader, don't you think?
Amy’s love for hoops goes back even further, and I’m afraid it’s a much darker tale. You see, when she was about five, I recall her begging our parents to buy her some hoop earrings at Gibson’s, a department store in Panama City, where we lived. Never mind that they were very large and for pierced ears. Who can understand the kindergarten mind?
Of course, she was denied, but I suspected she had pocketed them anyway. After she refused to confess, I began a quest for the truth as only a tattle-telling big sister can. Eventually, I discovered those thin metal circles embedded in the orange shag carpet of our bedroom closet. I knew it!
I took them to our mom right away. You bet I did. Amy had to return them to the store, of course, but I don't remember any punishment beyond that. Whatever it was, I was sure it was insufficient for a crime so serious. But I’m happy to report that Amy is now a law-abiding adult, and, to my knowledge, never shoplifted again.
This story highlights some serious spiritual truths that are worthy of time and attention, but the (much, much less serious) point I’m making here is that we’re all just looking for the perfect hoop earring, right?
And who can blame us? They’re versatile, universally flattering, and their multiple variations provide endless accessorizing options. We’ve had so much fun curating our selection of hoops for you.
If big hoops are your jam (please note I’ve never before written or said “your jam”), check these out. If you’re looking for a featherweight twist on a classic hoop, these are what you need. Need some color? Here you go. These or these are great smaller, everyday options. And if you really want to go small but cute, these are for you.
Little Lori and Amy would be surprised at how their hoops dreams have come true. Head over to the earrings and let us help yours come true, too.