Vintage
Abandoned jewels and vintage nature at Doyle New York
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!What happens to jewelry abandoned in safety deposit boxes? Apparently, some of it ends up at auction. A portion of the 1,000 or so lots going on the block Thursday at Doyle New York come from the Puerto Rico-based Banco... »
Flights of fancy: Bakelite bangles
Bakelite jewelry can look a lot like modern resin, but the earliest attempts at plastic didn’t look so plastic. Celluloid was invented, in 1868, with the greenest of intentions – to replace ivory and tortoiseshell. And it had to be hand-carved because it didn’t take a mold well. Bakelite, the first entirely synthetic plastic, came... »
A celebration of really expensive tiaras
Miss America, royal weddings, red carpets, Madonna – they all have their tiara moments. But my personal favorite happened on Friday Night Lights, the TV series about high school football in small-town Texas. In a second-season episode, quarterback Matt Saracen accepts a postal delivery at the poverty-level tract house he shares with his grandmother, who’s... »
What you need to know about jewelry hallmarks
Buying antique or vintage jewelry means first figuring out what it is, where and when it was made, and by whom. That’s why the first thing an experienced buyer will do is hold a piece up to a loupe and examine it for hallmarks. If jewelry has hallmarks and they appear authentic, identifying its... »
René Lalique: ultimate art jeweler
René Lalique was born 150 years ago this month. Jewelry has been through some radical changes since Lalique abandoned it for art glass a century ago, yet many of the world's most famous designers still consider him the ultimate jewelry artist. »
Valentine’s Day gifts on a budget
Holly and Paul had only $10 to spend on a love token in Breakfast at Tiffany's. What does that buy today? At Tiffany's, nothing. But there are still ways for low-budget lovers to give jewelry from the heart, without losing much from the pocket. »
How to insure your jewelry
If your jewelry is stolen, ordinary insurance will only cover so much. So I asked collector and jewelry/gem expert Antoinette Matlins what she recommends - and learned all kinds of useful things. »
What to call old jewelry: vintage or collectible?
In my first post on the shifting sands of estate jewelry terminology, experts set us straight on the terms estate, antique and vintage. Two well-known Manhattan jewelry dealers, Peter Schaffer and Janet Mavec, weigh in on the estate debate. Collectible jewelry. Here’s one that really drives jewelry dealers crazy. Schaffer participated in a symposium once with... »
How to wear jewelry like a gent
"I'm duding up my shirtfront, putting in the shirt studs, polishing my nails..." Fred Astaire was steppin' out. Proper accessories were required. Today, Johnny Depp continues his legacy, while other Hollywood style icons follow Cary Grant's lead. »
How to build a great antique jewelry collection
Should you build a collection by theme or period? Is it better to buy through auctions or dealers? Where can you go to try on one-of-a-kind masterpieces - like jewelry by Lalique - without spending a dime? »