Not sure if it’s happened to you before, but I’ve had several cases of exploding jewelry in my lifetime. A good example is what happened this morning:

This mainly happens to beaded necklaces and bracelets – over the years, either the knots get loosened or the strings break due to decreased elasticity.

I once had a beaded necklace break just before an important meeting and the small beads scattered all over the large wooden table. It clearly wasn’t something you could pretend didn’t happen since bouncing beads on hard surfaces make a ton of noise. Everyone, including my colleagues and bosses, had to help gather the beads. If the cloak of invisibility really did exist, I would have put it on straight away.

What I’ve learnt? Avoid wearing beaded accessories for important appointments. Especially if you’re sitting at large tables.