Mood Rings

How are you feeling today?

In 1975, all it took to find out the answer to this question was a quick glance at a person's ring finger.

Like its ‘70’s counterpart the Pet Rock, "Mood Rings" burst onto the jewelry scene, enticing those who wanted to know how they - and people they cared about - were feeling at any given moment.  Containing a thermochromic element such as liquid crystal, Mood Rings changed colour based on the body temperature of the person wearing the ring.

The initial price of the jewelry was $45 which also included a “mood chart” that one could consult to find out how they were feeling, based on the ring’s colour. As you can imagine, this magical "ability" of the ring soon made it the must-have item of the year.

At the height of their popularity, $1 million worth of Mood Rings were sold within a three month period, with famous fans of the jewelry item including such high-profile icons as Sophia Loren, Barbara Streisand and many others.

And while the novelty of the rings wore off over time, their lasting image as one of the benchmarks of an era – the 1970’s – continues on today.