WEC: Thoughts about Jewelry

Ivory is a hard white substance from the teeth and tusks of mammals. Most ivory jewelry is fashioned from elephant tusks, walrus tusks or whale teeth. In recent years, the commercial trade of ivory, particularly elephant ivory, has been banned in the U.S. Because of this ban, many online sellers now call their ivory "ox bone." eBay and other venues are catching on to that trick and those listings are often pulled. But, how can you tell if it's ivory or bone? Under magnification, you can look for these: Ivory has cross-hatched lines.There should be parallel lines (with slight irregularities) running...

Costume jewelry is a wonderful collectible for beginners. There is a great deal to choose from so everyone's tastes can be accommodated and you can start a collection with a modest budget. RULE #1Buy what you like.  All the other rules are simply suggestions and guidelines. For the purpose of this guide, when I speak of costume jewelry, I'm speaking of vintage costume jewelry. If it's available at a department store such as Macy's or a discount store such as TJ Maxx, it's still costume jewelry, but it's not the subject at hand. Basically if it's from the 20th century,...

I grew up during The Age of Aquarius. It was a time of hippies, peace, love and the popularity of the zodiac. A song, The Age of Aquarius, was written for the 1967 Broadway musical HAIR and soon after it was released onto the pop charts by The 5th Dimension. The zodiac became a part of everyday life. "What's your sign" was a common introductory remark at social events and everyone knew the answer to the question. So, it's not surprising that the late 1960s and the 1970s saw the production of an abundance of zodiac themed jewelry. ZODIAC JEWELRY Sterling Silver Pin from...

Brown? Yep, there is brown jewelry and for this post, I'm going to post photos of what I can find. It will be a short post though. I happen to like brown, but I don't have much in the way of brown jewelry.  Unsigned Pin and Earrings Set Carved Bakelite Pin Brown Beads (possibly seed pods) Enamel Pin Pale Beads Necklace Strands Plastic Pin Vintage Pn Plastic Pin Destino Cuff Links Matisse Renoir Set Trifari Earrings Pin and Earrings from Germany Unsigned Pin Bangle Bracelet Looking for brown jewelry? Please check my shop to see what's available.

Fleur-de-Lis is a decorative design or symbol which may be religious, political, or emblematic depending on its use. It's shape is a stylized lily flower. The word is French and translates to lily flower. We've all seen fleur-de-lis on European crests, coats of arms and flags It is often associated with the French monarchy but also appears on the coats of arms of other European countries. Additionally, the symbol has military references including the United States Army's 2nd Cavalry Regiment. Educational references includes use of the fleur-de-lis in university coats of arms including University of Louisiana, Saint Louis University and Washington University. Local municipalities including my own...

For this post in my series Color in Costume Jewelry, I'm focusing on multi-colored jewelry and defining multi-colored as three or more colors. I hope you enjoy the photo selections.  Trifari Pin Hollycraft Bracelet Michael Golan Pin Unsigned Pin Monet Pin Unsigned Set    Unsigned Clip Earrings Unsigned Bracelet Set from Austria Pin from Czechoslovakia Unsigned Pin Unsigned Set Unsigned Necklace Czech Pin Unsigned Set Unsigned Set Unsigned Bracelet Watch Fob Czech Pin Pin from Original by Robert Silver and Enamel Pin by David Andersen Pin from Israel Unsigned Set Necklace and Earrings by Vogue Unsigned Pin Be sure to check...

Reading an article about the history of circuses, I learned that the Mattel Toy Company owned Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus from 1971 through 1983. Mattel owns Barbie Doll and Barbie was created by the Handlers who previously were co-owners of the Elzac Jewelry Company. Did you follow that? I found it interesting and this odd connection of circus and costume jewelry got me thinking. I decided to see what costume jewelry pieces I could find with circus motifs.    CLOWNS Unsigned Mixed Metals Pin Unsigned Enamel Pin Unsigned Pin Sinister Lisner Pin Silver Pin by Lang Unsigned Pin Boucher...

There are hundreds of shades of blue. Just check a Pantone color guide or a Porter Paints color fan-deck and the blues jump out at you. My focus today will be on primary blue, azure, bright blue, cobalt blue and all those other tones that are saturated with color. Symbolically, blue represents both the sky and the sea, and is associated with open spaces, freedom, intuition, imagination, expansiveness, inspiration, and sensitivity. Don't know how accurate that is; I leave it to the color experts. I just know blue jewelry catches my eye every time I see it. I hope you...

On any list of highly collectible jewelry, the names Jomaz and Mazer will likely appear. Known for great design, quality materials and first-rate construction, pieces from Jomaz and Mazer have stood the test of time. Mazer Bros, founded by Lincoln and Joseph Mazer in 1927 in New York. produced fine costume jewelry until the late 1970's. Early pieces were signed Mazer Bros, later pieces were signed either Mazer or Jomaz. Early success can in part be attributed to the company's designer, Marcel Boucher, who would leave to open his own successful jewelry design company in the 1930s. Additionally, the company used high...

Curly Howard, one of the Three Stooges, said: "I shoot an arrow into the air; where it lands I do not care. I get my arrows wholesale."Curly is my inspiration for this blog post about arrows in costume jewelry. ARROWS Silver Pin by Georg Jensen Scottish Pin in Silver with Agate and Citrine Antique Pin with Bohemian Garnets Vintage Pin Vintage Pin Arrows in a Quiver (or is it a bouquet of flowers?) Silver Navajo Pin (this design predates Nazi Germany) Eisenberg Silver Set from 1940s Archery Charm Unsigned Pin Silver Pin by Lenore Doskow  Silver and Enamel Puffy Heart...