MUSINGS & MOMENTS

When looking for vintage, I am thankful when I see the dead—dead stock that is! The expression “dead stock” means old inventory from a store that has closed. Vintage dead stock Paolo Gucci earrings from the 1980s available for purchase on our website.  

Snake, insect, and big cat jewelry has been around ever since ancient times. Depending on the culture, snakes were symbolic of death or destruction, or resurrection due to the shedding of its skin. In Hinduism, the cobra is a symbol of the god Vishnu and knowledge, wisdom, and eternity.  An Art Deco silver fly necklace available on our website.

As we shift from summer to Fall fashion, adjustable outfits with layers to fit the changes in weather are a staple. Changeable jewelry also allows you flexibility with style. A 1970s Monet necklace that could convert to a shorter choker and matching bracelet.

As the world swelters in unprecedented heat, it can feel like a furnace out there. Brutalist jewelry stylistically reflected the harsh and unfinished metals created in the fires of metalsmiths and mills. A brutalist style cuff bracelet from Oscar de la Renta that sold from our collection. 

As summer is in full steam, let’s take a look at how sailing and mariner themes have been used in fashion. Besides the typical Breton French blue and white striped shirts, or Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel breaking tradition by radically wearing sailor pants in 1928, this seafaring theme also applies to jewelry. This amazing unsigned large ship necklace in our collection was probably made for a runway or costume in the 1970s.

The wedding day tradition of having “something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue” came from the 19th Century English belief that if you carried small tokens representing these good-luck symbols you would ward off the evil eye. For brides, they were meant to protect them from spells that stopped their fertility. A bride wore a blue vintage ring from our collection with her emerald engagement ring from Greenwich St. Jewelers. Photo by Sylvie Rosokoff.

Flowers always cheer me up, whether they are real or depicted in jewelry. The bright rhinestones and colors of vintage costume jewelry always lend themselves to a pretty pick-me-up for design. A vintage 1950s Stanley Hagler pin available for purchase on our website.

Religious symbols such as crosses have been worn as sacred adornment for centuries. If you were lucky enough to see the Heavenly Bodies show at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in 2018, the entire exhibit was about the influence of the Catholic Church on fashion throughout the ages. A signed ART clear glass, faux pearl and turquoise bead cross pendant necklace that has sold from our collection.

Are you getting tired of the cold and planning a warm vacation? Or do you have a favorite place to escape to the country or beach? Historically, jewelry and decorative items have acted as mementos to remember special trips.  Shop mini manicure sets and charms in the Objects page of our website.