Back to Basics: Tennis (Bracelet) Lessons
The story of how the diamond line bracelet, a jewelry staple dating to the Art Deco era, came to be known as the “tennis bracelet” is one of jewelry’s best apocryphal tales. Most versions trace the moniker to tennis star Chris Evert, who famously lost a diamond-and-gold line bracelet—traditionally, a flexible form of wrist wear featuring a row of square-cut gems set in white metal—during an early round of the U.S. Open one year, and halted play while she looked for it. Regardless of how the style came upon its name, there is no debate about its enduring popularity.
The story of how the diamond line bracelet, a jewelry staple dating to the Art Deco era, came to be known as the “tennis bracelet” is one of jewelry’s best apocryphal tales. Most versions trace the moniker to tennis star Chris Evert, who famously lost a diamond-and-gold line bracelet—traditionally, a flexible form of wrist wear featuring a row of square-cut gems set in white metal—during an early round of the U.S. Open one year, and halted play while she looked for it. Regardless of how the style came upon its name, there is no debate about its enduring popularity.