Showing posts with label bracelet. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bracelet. Show all posts
Monday, October 12, 2015
Monday, July 7, 2014
I Love Coro Jewelry Because . . .
By Mandy Heth, owner of VintageBaublesnBits
If you’ve been collecting vintage jewelry for any period
of time, you’re sure to have come across a piece or two of Coro. Once one
of the leading names in costume jewelry, Coro was established in 1900 in New
York, by Emanuel Cohn and his partner Carl Rosenberger, as the Cohn &
Rosenberger Company. A fun little piece of trivia, the name Coro wasn't
actually adopted by the company until 1943, when the blend of Cohn &
Rosenberger's names was officially made the corporate name. Cohn had died in
1910, only 10 years into the life of the company, but the Rosenberger family
still gave tribute to his contributions to the brand.
Carl Rosenberger continued to manage the company until his death in 1957, when the brand was taken over by Gerald Rosenberger, Carl's son, who managed the company until his death 10 years later. In 1970 the Rosenberger family sold the company to Richton, International. However, Richton was unable to keep the line profitable and in 1979 Coro went bankrupt and closed its doors for good. For vintage collectors this means that any piece of Coro jewelry you find is at least 35 years old and is definitely vintage.
Carl Rosenberger continued to manage the company until his death in 1957, when the brand was taken over by Gerald Rosenberger, Carl's son, who managed the company until his death 10 years later. In 1970 the Rosenberger family sold the company to Richton, International. However, Richton was unable to keep the line profitable and in 1979 Coro went bankrupt and closed its doors for good. For vintage collectors this means that any piece of Coro jewelry you find is at least 35 years old and is definitely vintage.
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| Coro double strand red mottled bead necklace from Vintage Baubles N' Bits |
All Coro pieces are marked, making them easy to recognize and collect. The company had many different jewelry lines with Coro, Coro Craft (Corocraft) and Vendome the most popular. In addition, the logo went through many iterations, the two most popular versions being the script “Coro” and Pegasus Coro, with the image of a flying horse next to the company name.
To find out more about Coro marks visit this great reference site: http://www.illusionjewels.com/costumejewelrymarkscoro.html
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| Coro ad from the 1960s |
Adolph Katz became the
company’s design director in 1924 and although his name is on most Coro design and
mechanism patents he did not directly design jewelry. Katz's main role was establishing the design direction of the company and hiring the many noted Coro designers including
Gene Verrecchia (Verri), Robert Geissman, Massa
Raimond, Oscar Placco, and Francois who went on to found his own line of floral
jewelry. The most successful of
the Coro designers, Albert Weiss, went on to establish his own eponymous
company concentrating on rhinestone jewelry. You can find our article on Weiss here.
Although Vendome was considered the most high end at the time, many collectors now consider the Coro Duette line one of the
most desirable pieces made by the company. Duettes had two pins or dress clips in a frame making
one large brooch. The frame
allowed the removal of the pins to wear separately or in a grouping. The
earliest designs were classic rhinestone art deco patterns. Later pieces
included more elaborate designs of plants, animals and people, incorporating
rhinestone pave and enameling.
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| This fabulous Quivering Camelia Duette Brooch from Worn2Pefection shows the construction as well as the exquisite design. |
Another popular Coro collectible are the trembler (en tremblant) floral pins with design elements that vibrated or trembled
when its wearer moved due to tiny metal springs hidden in the piece, see the above Duette piece.
In the 1950s Coro launched silvertone and thermoset moonglow lines, both of which are very popular today with collectors of mid century pieces.
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| Mid Century Silvertone Brooch courtesy of Snapdragons Lair |
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| Beautiful Coro Green Moonglow Bracelet courtesy of MadgesHatbox |
The Corocraft line debuted in 1933 and was considered a step up from Coro. Corocraft pieces were often made of sterling or plated gold rather than the metal frames of Coro. One of most collectable of Corocraft pieces were the jelly bellies which featured animals with a Lucite “tummy” and were similar to a design by Trifari.
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| Colorful Jelly Belly Brooch from Our Boudoir |
Vendome, established in 1944,
upped the quality even more under principal designer Helen Marion with elaborately
foiled beads, carved Lucite, and rhinestone and cabochon pieces Due to the large number of product lines that produced many
different designs over the years there is no one signature look for Coro. This means whether you love deco, mid
century or just a lot of bling you are sure to find Coro pieces that match your
taste and budget.
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| 1970's Vendome gold tone bib necklace from Martini Mermaid |
Find the Coro pieces you will love from members of the
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Signed by Design - DeLizza & Elster's Juliana Jewelry
By Andrea Nellis, owner of Hip Cricket
Collecting
vintage jewelry has been a passion of mine since I was old enough to travel my neighbourhood and visit the garage sales and swap meets that sprung up each
weekend due to the mild California weather. In fact one of my earliest
recollections is from a yard sale where I hounded my mother for 25 cents to buy
a flocked puppy dog head bobber. Over the years, my tastes moved from head
bobbers to anything and everything sparkly and nothing sparkles quite like
Juliana.
As I grew my
jewelry collection I learned about labels, designers, styles and eras. As with
Over time I
saw that many of the unsigned pieces in my collection had certain things in
common. Was it possible that the same company made them all? The breakthrough
came with an unsigned brooch I purchased with a foil tag. The name on the
tag? Juliana! I felt the wool drop from my eyes. Gathering up all my unsigned beauties, I compared them to the "known" examples.
After ruling out about 80% of the pieces, I saw the remainder had so many commonalties such as design style, construction and quality
of materials. After all these years I finally had my answer.
Juliana was designed
by DeLizza and Elster, a high-end costume jewelry
If you
suspect you have a piece or want to be able to identify Juliana while shopping,
it is important to take into consideration the whole
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| Courtesy of Hip Cricket, Personal Collection |
piece as well as the
component parts to determine whether the item in question is authentic. First, feel
its heft. Juliana pieces have a solid build with some weight to them. Note the appeal. High quality art stones, crystals and
rhinestones were used in layered or stacked designs. Usually there is a lot
going on in these pieces. Bracelets and necklaces often have a five-link
construction. Hardware is generally built-in rather than soldered or
riveted. Clasps on bracelets may
be engraved with designs. I've yet to see a piece of Juliana which I could call
boring!
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| Courtesy of Art4U2Buy |
Second, understand
the construction details. Juliana
features built-in pin backs rather than ones that are soldered or riveted.
Open back settings may either show the stone or be foiled. On closed back
settings look for "figure 8" or "peanut" puddling, where
the solder has been over-poured or in the case of rhinestone pieces appearing
as though it were a peanut shape.
While
understanding these design traits, it is important to keep in mind that these
are simply guidelines. Other designers also used these types of construction methods
and not every Juliana followed these rules.
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| Courtesy of lauraab51 |
Now days, it is fairly easy
to verify Juliana jewelry since many books, websites and blogs exist for just
such a reason. Most importantly
Juliana pieces are very much high-end and the quality shines
through in every piece I see.
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| Courtesy of RenaissanceFair |
Regardless of
names, designers, eras or styles, the most important factor in building a
jewelry collection is, “Do I like it?” Everything else is secondary. Yes,
signed items might be more valuable than unsigned items. However as Juliana proves, it is just
as important that a piece of vintage jewelry is signed - by design.
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| Courtesy of Worn2Perfection |
Find your special piece of Juliana from the Vintage Jewelry Team.
Friday, May 2, 2014
Hattie Carnegie - A Trailblazer in American Fashion
By Anita Soots, owner of SpanishTulip
Hattie Carnegie was a fashion revolutionary truly ahead of her time. She was born Henrietta Kanengeiser in Austria-Hungary March 15, 1886. After immigrating 1n 1889, at age 13, to the U.S., she anglicized her last name to Carnegie apparently in honor of Andrew Carnegie whom she greatly admired. She also began going by Hattie, an apt nickname, since she became a top milliner in New York City.
Though she couldn't sketch, cut or sew a single stitch, Hattie quickly rose to be both a major trendsetter and respected voice in fashion. One of her innovations was the introduction of a ready-to-wear line. One of the first designers to do so, her business continued to thrive even during the depression, since her fashions were more affordable than the made-to-order pieces by other designers.
Hattie Carnegie was a fashion revolutionary truly ahead of her time. She was born Henrietta Kanengeiser in Austria-Hungary March 15, 1886. After immigrating 1n 1889, at age 13, to the U.S., she anglicized her last name to Carnegie apparently in honor of Andrew Carnegie whom she greatly admired. She also began going by Hattie, an apt nickname, since she became a top milliner in New York City.
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| Photo courtesy of http://hattie-carnegie.info* |
Though she couldn't sketch, cut or sew a single stitch, Hattie quickly rose to be both a major trendsetter and respected voice in fashion. One of her innovations was the introduction of a ready-to-wear line. One of the first designers to do so, her business continued to thrive even during the depression, since her fashions were more affordable than the made-to-order pieces by other designers.
In 1939 Hattie Carnegie introduced costume jewelry to coordinate
with her already well-known and loved clothing lines. Her jewelry encompassed many
styles and today Hattie Carnegie pieces are much sought after by
collectors.
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| Green Glass Buddha Earrings.1956 Judysgems2 |
One of her most collectable lines are the
fantastical figurals, which are depictions of objects, people or animals. The Oriental series showcased whimsical figures such as a genie riding a magic carpet. Adorable, often cartoonish rhinestone-encrusted animals were also popular.
There are also many classic rhinestone pieces, of which the demi- parures and parures, sets of two or three or more matching pieces, are highly sought after.
There are also many classic rhinestone pieces, of which the demi- parures and parures, sets of two or three or more matching pieces, are highly sought after.
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| Turquoise Rhinestones Brooch and Earrings Set, 1950s Spanish Tulip |
High quality rhinestones, enameling, design, and craftsmanship characterize all Hattie Carnegie jewelry. Many talented jewelry designers worked under the Hattie Carnegie name, including Kenneth Jay Lane, Norman Norell, and Nadine Effront.
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| Examples of authentic Carnegie marks, click for larger view |
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| Famous Lion Brooch with Orb, 1950s MadgesHatbox |
Hattie Carnegie passed away in 1956 just shy of her 70th birthday. This
tiny, 4’10” woman left a mark on the fashion world that will not quickly be
forgotten. Today we have the privilege to collect, own and
love some of the incredible pieces for which she was responsible.
This article features three of my favorite Hattie Carnegie pieces. They epitomize the styles for which Hattie Carnegie was so well known. They are all available for sale on Etsy by members of the Vintage Jewelry Sellers Team.
This article features three of my favorite Hattie Carnegie pieces. They epitomize the styles for which Hattie Carnegie was so well known. They are all available for sale on Etsy by members of the Vintage Jewelry Sellers Team.
Enter the World of Hattie Carnegie
*http://www.hattie-carnegie.info is the only website dedicated to the life, legacy and memory of the 1920's to the 1950's Fashion Editor Hattie Carnegie. Questions or comments regarding Hattie Carnegie and/or her website are welcome.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Summer 2011 Jewelry Trends
Five Looks That You Need Now!
Summer is here and these are some of the hot trends in jewelry for summer 2011. And the best part is you can find everything you need from the Vintage Jewelry Sellers on Etsy, your go-to team for the best vintage jewels on the web. Always add "VJSE" to your search!
1. Turquoise & Coral
This summer the essential mix is cool turquoise with hot corals. Paired with a crisp white dress these colors look summery and sophisticated.
2. Fringe & Tassels
Long and with lots of movement, fringe and tassels can be either bohemian when worn with a printed maxi dress and wide brim hat or chic when accessorizing a sleek club look.
3. Big Cabochon Necklaces
No better way to make a statement than with a big necklace accentuated with bright colored cabochons. A great addition to the Little Black Dress!
4. Bold Rings
Gold, silver and everything in between!
5. Bright Lucites
Colorful, clear acrylic in an array of colors and styles! Rings, bracelets, earrings!
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