It’s graduation party season! Hats off to the new graduates for all of their hard work and achievements. 🎓 Finding the perfect gift to celebrate these accomplishments can be a struggle- so we have assembled a list of our top ten favorite graduation gifts to take the stress out of graduation shopping.
Navigate Your Own Future
One of our favorite gifts for milestone occasions is our Compass Rose necklaces, earrings, and bracelets. Starting at $85, these beautiful pieces feature the symbol of the compass, representing direction, guidance, and trailblazing.
Each Compass Rose piece comes with a card connecting the compass symbol to the occasion. One of the standard cards expresses that we are not just travelers, but navigators of our future. This is a great way to remind the graduate that they have been instilled with the tools that will help them journey towards success and the achievement of their dreams. There is also a graduation themed card that uses a quote by Emerson that tells the graduate “do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
The Compass Rose collection includes sterling silver, two-tone, and 14k gold versions. Several of the sterling silver necklaces are available with gemstone accents to add a little color or sparkle to this beautiful symbol.
You can find our Compass Rose collection here.
Symbols of Success
Another great way to symbolize the achievements of the new graduate is our Talisman collection necklaces. These dainty necklaces feature either a meaningful symbol or phrase and come packaged with a card that explains the meaning of that symbol.
We particularly love the Star of Bethlehem, Dragonfly, and Snake symbols for the graduate, symbolizing an inspiring path forward and the pursuit of new dreams. The Going Places and Explore Dream Discover word talismans are also great choices!
You can explore all of the Talisman Collection here.
Because She’s a Gem
One of our newest favorite things are our WinterLemon Wellness necklaces. These dainty necklaces, which are handmade locally in Bethlehem, each feature a set of three natural gemstones.
Each necklace is packaged on a card that talks about the properties of the gemstone.
We love the “She Believed She Could, So She Did” Lapis Necklace, “Make It Happen” Pyrite Necklace, and “Carpe Diem” Apatite necklace for the new graduate!
Thanks for the Memories
A new Pandora bracelet is always a great gift for a big occasion. With their ever-expanding repertoire of both meaningful and beautiful charms, it is easy to start a stunning bracelet that captures the graduation moment. Starting a new Pandora bracelet gives your graduate a piece of jewelry that she can use to memorialize the next big steps in her life- whether it be finding her dream career, continuing her education, or creating her own home and family.
We love the new Dreamcatcher charm, inscribed on the top with “Follow Your Dreams” as the centerpiece of a new bracelet. For the girl who prefers more of a fashion look to the traditional charm bracelet, the Essence collection is the perfect solution. The Essence Collection features a daintier bracelet with smaller charms that are more uniform in size and shape. Each charm is associated with a different attribute, such as wisdom or dedication, which is engraved on the side of the charm.
Find out more about the Pandora brand here.
Reach for the Stars
Next on our top 10 picks for the recent graduate is our celestial-themed jewelry from WinterLemon. These diamond accented pieces are a wonderful way to tell your graduate to keep reaching for the stars.
Handmade locally in Bethlehem, these pieces stand out from tired old styles of mass-produced jewelry. We love the use of oxidized sterling silver and rose gold to add a different style to a common symbol.
Many of our WinterLemon celestial necklaces feature starbursts that remind us of the Moravian Star- a perfect way for the graduate to honor her time in Bethlehem.
You can see more of our WinterLemon collection here.
Turn the Tassel
One of the biggest symbols of graduation is the graduate turning the tassel at the end of the ceremony. We think a great way to honor that moment is with tassel themed jewelry!
Many of our brands include tassel jewelry within their offerings- from fashion jewelry such as Sorrelli and Brighton to sterling silver offerings from Pandora, WinterLemon, and Officina Bernardi.
Watch Over Her
Graduation is an exciting and life changing event. Much of the time, it means that the graduate is going to be going off into the world and leaving home. We love the idea of an Angel Whisperer necklace as a gift that reminds them that they will always be watched over with love.
Each Thortiuda necklace opens to reveal a colored chime. This chime is meant to “call your angel” to watch over you. This representation is very symbolic for the graduate, who may be spreading her wings and living on their own for the first time. Each color is representative of a different value and has a slightly different sound. Grey symbolizes wisdom and decisions, great for the new graduate!
The Thortiuda pendant comes in sterling silver, dark ruthenium plated, rose gold plated, and yellow gold plated styles. In addition to being meaningful it is very stylish- it is one of the jewelry items in our store that our customers come back to tell us they get the most compliments on!
You can explore our Thortiuda collection here.
Make Her Shine
The classic gift for the graduate is an heirloom piece of jewelry that they can cherish their whole life as a symbol of their great accomplishment. For a piece that will last a lifetime and never go out of style, there is no match for fine jewelry. Gold jewelry, either yellow, white, or rose, is much more durable than silver fashion jewelry and can stand everyday wear and years of love. Fine jewelry also holds its value and will be something that your graduate can someday gift to her children.
We love simple gold and diamond necklaces or studs as a graduation gift. While stylish, they are not overly trendy and will never go out of style.
You can explore more of our fine jewelry here.
Remind Her of Home
For the graduate leaving home to go to college or a new job, a reminder of where she is anchored is a unique graduation gift. Our Lat & Lo latitude and longitude bar necklaces and cuff bracelets have the location of Bethlehem on the front and are engraved “Bethlehem” with the Star of Bethlehem symbol on the back.
Available in both sterling silver ($64) and gold filled ($69), they are a visible reminder of the graduates roots.
For the graduate who went to school at Moravian or Lehigh, it is a great way to celebrate the special place where she got her education!
Celebrate Her Alma Mater
Our last graduation gift pick is for the local college graduate. Upstairs in Haven, we have a lot of local art celebrating the historic landmarks and locations in the Lehigh Valley. In addition to our maps and photo prints, we have several antique postcard reproductions featuring our local colleges!
You can explore more of our local art here.
We hope you found our Top 10 Picks for the Graduate helpful to survive the graduation gift season with some unique and meaningful gifts! You can browse our new online store here to find some more of our unique gift items. Just as in store, we offer complimentary gift wrapping of all jewelry items in our online shop and free shipping for jewelry orders over $50! If you need a gift quickly, we also offer local pickup as an alternative to shipping through the mail so you can shop online and pick up- wrapped and ready- at Versant.
As always, we would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all of our wonderful customers who choose to #shopsmall with us. We know you have a choice with where you shop and we are grateful that you choose to shop with our local small business.