Glam rocks
Words | Virginia Blackburn First worn by the very rich while they kept their genuine jewels under lock and key, costume jewellery is now highly collectable WHEN IS A WORK of art more than just a work of art? When it’s a piece of vintage costume jewellery. There has been a phenomenal rise in acquiring old and glamorous beads, [...]
Words | Virginia Blackburn
First worn by the very rich while they kept their genuine jewels under lock and key,
costume jewellery is now highly collectable
WHEN IS A WORK of art more than just a work of art? When it’s a piece of vintage
costume jewellery. There has been a phenomenal rise in acquiring old and
glamorous beads, bracelets and gems, etc, over the last 20 years, partly on the back of the growing
interest in vintage clothing, but also because jewellery has an almost unique place in the sphere of collecting.
“Vintage costume jewellery is very unusual, in that you
can wear it but it’s also a piece of art in its own right,”
says Monica Turcich, a specialist in costume and design at
Christie’s.“It’s more accessible, touchable and wearable than
most forms of art, and it’s also practical. Many people don’t
have room to store furniture in their home, but they do
have room for a necklace.”
In 1995, Christie’s held its first Street Fashion Sale in
London which included vintage costume jewellery, with
a similar sale in New York the same year, and interest in
the subject is such that now it holds two sales annually of
20th century fashion and accessories, as well as single owner
auctions. Prices, meanwhile, have risen accordingly.
“A Kenneth Jay Lane floral brooch worth £100 in 1995
would now be worth around £250,” says Turcich. “Essentially,
the market has doubled in value in the past 12 years.”
Costume jewellery is nothing new: some Georgian
jewellery was made of glass, and such items extend back
centuries before that. But the jewellery that is inspiring
investors in recent years is almost entirely 20th century
in design and came about as a consequence of social
upheaval, Hollywood’s influence, the desire for glamour
after two world wars and a higher disposable income.
alt="A Victor Carranza sanded glass bead necklace">
“Until World War I, jewellery had only been a status
symbol for the very rich,” says Susan Mundy of Genre
Vintage Jewellery. “After the war, jewellery began to be
mass produced, which meant that ‘downstairs’ could have
jewellery as well as ‘upstairs’. But ‘downstairs’ could not
afford precious metals and stones, and so the jewellery
produced was made of paste.”
Then French designer Coco Chanel came on the scene
and everything changed. “It was Chanel who made
wearing costume jewellery acceptable to everyone,” says
Turcich. “Aristocrats had always worn copies of their jewels
in public while the real thing was locked away in a safe, but
by the 1920s and 1930s, people were beginning to wear
big, flashy pieces that were not only obviously fake but
that were attractive in their own right.”
Simultaneously, the rise of filmmaking made costume
jewellery even more popular. “People were impressed by
what film stars were wearing in the movies, and so copies
began to be mass produced commercially of what had been
seen on film,” says Mary Turvil of the specialist vintage
jewellery dealers Glitz Guru. “A lot of this, which is now
very sought-after, was made by Joseff of Hollywood.” Other
clothes designers, as well as Chanel, got in on the act: most
of the major designers of the 20th century also produced
paste jewellery, which is as sought-after as their clothes.
Vintage costume jewellery can be broken down into
numerous categories but buyers tend to divide into two
camps: those who are after specific designers and those who
want to buy a certain style. For example, one of the most
popular designers with collectors today is Miriam Haskell,
whose prices have doubled over the last decade and interest
in her pieces shows no sign of abating. On the other hand,
there are those who are interested in, say, Bakelite jewellery
from the 1930s, or white paste (this is very popular for
weddings), or perspex flower brooches from the 1950s.
There are societies that hold tea dances in 1940s’
dress and need the correct accessories and ditto those
with a particular interest in the 1960s.
The field is as varied as it is wide, and so are
the prices. Entry level can actually be quite
low: according to Mundy, a carved Bakelite
bracelet – which would have sold for between
20 cents and $3 when it was first made
– could cost as little as £35 now. But for the
best pieces the sky is the limit: recently, a Bakelite
bracelet sold in the United States for over £1,000. Cocktail
jewellery can start as low as £10, but if it is signed prices soar.
Vintage Chanel jewellery can be astronomically expensive:
as far back as 1987, four Chanel Bakelite bracelets broke all
records when they sold for £900 each in the United States.
Their value would be considerably higher than that now.
As interest has grown, however, so has the scarcity of
the most sought-after pieces. “Jewellery from the 1930s
was extremely popular for some time, but it is getting very
expensive and increasingly hard to find,” says Mundy.
“It comes in two different categories: up to 1935 when it
is quite geometrical, and post-1935 when plastics became
popular. The other area that is now becoming more popular
is the 1950s and 1960s, when cocktail jewellery decorated
with rhinestones first caught on in the United States
and then over here. The film Breakfast At Tiffany’s had
something to do with that. It was elaborate, big jewellery.
By the end of the 1960s, the jewellery, reflecting the times,
was increasingly space-aged.”
alt="An unusual Miracle brooch with faux opals, late 1950s, price £20 to £25, from Glitz Guru.">
Modern buyers really began to flock to the market in
the late 1970s and early 1980s, when, for the first time,
art-world insiders began to recognise these pieces as works
with an inherent value in their own right, not least because
of the care and craftsmanship with which they were made.
At the same time, a flood of books about the subject came
onto the market, probably the best known of which was
Costume Jewelry: The Great Pretenders by Lyngerda Kelley
and Nancy Schiffer, which awoke the investing instinct in
the buyers and created what is now a collectors’ field
in its own right.
To reflect this trend, there has been a huge
rise in the number of vintage fashion fairs,
where this jewellery is also found. The best
advice is to buy a piece in perfect condition,
with no missing stones, and if possible, buy
something that is signed. Check with the dealer
for its authenticity and history. But above all, buy
what you like, so that even if it doesn’t rise in value
you’ll still be able to wear it for years to come, thereby
remaining an investment.
GETTING STARTED
- Read up on the subject: there are many books about vintage costume
jewellery on the market. One of the best is Costume Jewellery by Judith
Miller, one of the Dorling Kindersley Collector’s Guides. - Vintage fashion fairs are an excellent place to start looking for
costume jewellery. Anita’s Vintage Fashion Fairs (AVFF) organises six
such events a year. Find details at www.vintagefashionfairs.com - Carole Tanenbaum has built up one of the best collections of costume
jewellery in North America, and her pieces have been regularly worn
by Sex And The City star and style icon Sarah Jessica Parker;
www.caroletanenbaum.com - Good UK sources and reference websites include
Genrejewellery.co.uk, Vintagemodes.co.uk and Glitzguru.com
Some costume jewellery names to look out for
- Joseff of Hollywood
- Christian Dior
- Boucher
- Chanel
- Miriam Haskell
- Coro
- Eisenberg
- Hobe
- Kramer
- Trifari
- Weiss
- Vendome
