On a recent trip to my favorite thrift store I came across this little blue box. Of course whenever I see a box I have to open it. I am so happy I did! Inside were six pairs of sterling silver shoes. Three pairs of ladies heels and three pairs of men’s oxfords. I really didn’t care what they were for I had to buy them because I am enchanted with tiny things and these shoes were definitely tiny AND enchanting!

Being of curious nature I went about researching these shoes. What purpose did they serve? Why shoes? And why sterling silver??? Each shoe is marked with four different marks. Since the back of the box was marked Made in Britain I was pretty sure that I should start looking in Great Britain for hallmarks.  But first a little history. Over 600 years ago laws were passed to fix the purity of silver in manufactured silver articles to be at least 925 parts of silver in every thousand parts. This standard became known as Sterling silver and, in order to be struck with a sterling silver mark, any object had to be sent to, and tested by, the wardens of the goldsmiths guild at the London Assay Office. This system probably represented the first form of consumer protection world wide. In other words silver hallmarking was and is to protect the public against fraud.

It is possible to look at any piece of British silverware and find marks which show standard, town of assay, year of manufacture, and maker. This is a unique system and is the main reason, coupled with the excellence of the silversmith, that British silver is held in such high regard.

The first mark on the shoes is the makers mark- the letters C and S surrounded by what could be two intersecting circles. This is the mark of  Camelot Silverware LTD. Camelot Silverware was formed in 1973  and produces a range of the finest quality sterling silver and silver plated products .

 

The next mark is a rosette. This is the mark for SheffieldEngland.  The third mark is a lion rampant which is the mark for .925 sterling silver in Great Britain. The final mark is the year the piece was created.  

These sterling silver shoes were made in 1998 by Camelot Silverware of SheffieldEngland.  Now that I had this information and since this company still exists and I had an email address for them I sent an email asking about the shoes. I still had no idea what purpose they served. I received a very nice reply from the company. These shoes were indeed made by them and they are used as place card holders for a dinner table. If I were to purchase these new they would cost $600.

I paid $2.

 

I was a guest at a wedding recently. I had the perfect dress, shoes and handbag. I could not deceide what jewelry to wear. I was in the mood for something different. So, I went to the jewelry bench and looked over what I had on hand. This was Saturday morning, of course, and the wedding was at 3:00 that afternoon. 

After looking through numerous drawers I came across this pendant I had picked up at a flea market quite awhile ago.  It is sterling silver with some beautiful scroll work on the bail. There is a nice oval  faceted garnet on the left and beautiful natural white biwa pearl under that and a very pretty oval faceted amethyst. The focal point of the pendant is a large inverted teardrop cabochon of a honey amber chalcedony. This pendant measures 2 1/2″ long. 

Using this color pallett I created a beaded necklace for this pendant. I did not want to use white pearls and instead found some that were close in color to the chalcedony. The necklace has yellow jade, faceted garnet, amber chalcedony, gold pearl and bali sterling silver beads. I used a Bali silver “S” clasp to finish it.  I think the results are quite stunning.

For the bracelet I used a large triple strand box clasp that I had with a very large garnet cabochon in it. I have been saving it for just the right piece.  Then I went back to the pearls and found this strand of large brown/gold pearls. I like my bracelets chunky. In between each pearl I alternated amethysts and garnets. I bought these wonderful stones from The Earth Bazaar. They sell some amazing stones and very reasonable prices and when they have a sale they reallyhave a sale. I liked the cut of these stones- they are cut like a round pointed back rhinestone. I also incorporated some more of the gold colored pearls from the necklace into the bracelet and intertwined all three strands. 

Not only do I repair and collect and drool over vintage jewelry I also create beaded jewelry using semi-precious stones and sterling silver beads. One of my favorite websites to order beads from is The Earth Bazaar . I recently received an email from them about a sale they are having on beads.  Just like anyone else I can not resist a sale!

Oh my….these black sapphire beads arecalling to me…. on sale these three beads are listed at $183.00 ( full price is $816!!!!!!) but I can see them mixed with  vintage Art Deco Swarovski crystals and sterling silver cascading like a delicate chandelier around a swan necked young thing. 

….sigh……I hope they find a good home with a good designer because they are just beautiful!

I normally don’t watch talent shows and I hate reality TV but I was surfing one night and happened to catch this amazingly dressed “persona” on America’s Got Talent. His costume fascinated me and I had to watch. Prince Poppycock  had me in the palm of his hand as soon as he opened his mouth. He is everything a Rhinestone Goddess could want and more.  The wigs, the costumes, the makeup,  the shoes…and then there is his voice and his personality….I think I’m in love…..sigh…..

I just want to accessorize him! He’s like a life sized Barbie Doll come to life only he’s much more real than that plastic diva could ever be!                                            

I know it was an accidental meeting on our part but I am now an ardent admirer of the Prince. It would be so much fun to design for him wouldn’t it? Ahhh the sparkles I could use to adorn him!

He’s a little bit naughty but with just the right amount of sincerity and innocence. What does Prince Poppycock have to do with vintage jewelery? EVERYTHING!

In the early 18th century, a roman glass kiln owner named Alessio Mattioli experimented on colored glass paste and developed a high percentage of coloring agents. He made what were called ” Smalti Filati”. Depending on the shade of color to be obtained, bits of different his master tints were mixed together and then melted over an open flame. The molten mass was then “spun” or drawn by means of tweezers into threads of the desired thickness. The “smalti filati” technique made it possible for artisans to fashion pieces on very small scale, and eventually even to produce actual “miniature mosaics”, with glass tiles called “tesserae”, which were less than 1 mm thick, and which gained widespread popularity in the first half of 18th century.

As the Industrial Age dawned and intensive hand labor became much more expensive, the pieces with larger tiles became much more common. The later pieces with larger tesserae should rightfully be called Mosaics, since the term Micro refers to the very early examples with miniature tiles. These later pieces have their own beauty in the high contrasting bright colors that were used. All types have been referred to as Micro Mosaic Vintage jewelry by jewelry shops and resellers online. 

A very simple solution for cleaning vintage micro mosaic jewelry is warm water with a drop or two of dish-washing detergent. Dip an old soft toothbrush, or make up brush, into the cleaning solution. Be sure to give it a good shake to get rid of any excess water and scrub the tiles vigorously for about 10 seconds. The object can then be rinsed for a few seconds with warm water to remove the suds. After cleaning, wipe the tiles dry with a soft cloth, such as a piece of a cotton T shirt.

The cement used to make micro mosaic vintage jewelry should make the piece impervious to moisture, but care must be used, since the cement can be softened with water in some cases, which will result in some of the tiles coming loose. For this reason, the piece should never be soaked in water. Be sure not to allow the water to stay in contact for too long and don’t allow it to settle into the old cement or putty used to hold the tiles.

Over the past few years I have come across several interesting examples of cut glass Art Deco beads. I found the Art Deco movement fascinating in my art history classes. The shift from the flowery, nature driven Art Nouveau style to the architectural appearance of Art Deco. Big bold  gemstones being cut in bold geometric shapes such as the emerald cut, pentagon, trapezoid, or triangle. Another characteristic of the Art Deco movement was to combine bold, contrasting tones like black and white.  Art Deco was an industrial movement that influenced all aspects of life especially in the jewelry world.

Diamonds, along with colorful emeralds, rubies and sapphires, were common in fine jewelry; costume jewelry mimicked the same looks, but with faux “stones.” Some jewelry of the time depicted animals, vegetation and other live subjects, either realistically or in a very stylized way. Bows and other similar ornaments were reproduced as jewelry.Bakelite was a popular component for many types of costume jewelry.

Pearls and long earrings were popular, along with diamond watches, beads, and cocktail rings. Women cut their long locks and began wearing their hair short and boyish during the Art Deco jewelry period. This was the era of Jazz and flappers and Art Deco jewelry complimented the flamboyant and playful attitude of the day. Egyptian influences were strong and motifs like the falcon, sphinx and falcon were popular. New geometric cuts for gems went hand-in-hand with the symmetry and streamlined look of Art Deco jewelry. Emeralds, sapphires and rubies became the gems of choice in Art Deco jewelry. Synthetic gemstones were popular and were often used instead of the more expensive natural gems.

Here are some example from my collection.  This necklace features an interesting oriental lantern style bead with 35 facets on each bead. it is hand knotted on silk  with a silver filigree box clasp. These beads aer leaded crystal and refract light beautifully. This strand measures 16 inches and has 41 graduated beads.

This next piece has the most interesting beads. The larger beads have 32 facets in them and the smaller ones have 12. This strand has been restrung on a waxed cotton braided cord- it has been hand knotted and I am not sure it’s the original clasp. Basing it on the other necklaces I have of the same quality and age I am guessing it should be a filigree box clasp and not a silver plate over brass C clasp. This necklace with it’s condensed bi-cone shape. This necklace has a more delicate feel to it than the other two and the laergest  beads have flea bites .

The necklace below is one of my favorite shaped beads. Again these are leaded crystal- like wearing a chandelier around your neck they sparkle brilliantly in the light!

This is a concave faceted round bead in graduated sizes hand knotted on silk with the original silver filigreebox clasp. This necklace measures 17 inches in length.  This necklace has some weight to it!

And finally- I found this beauty in two separate bags of broken jewelry at the thrift store. This lovely measures 45 inches in length with no clasp. it is hand knotted on silk cord. The large faceted  beads are in the shape of a very boxy octagon. The three small spacer beads are all faceted roundels. I do not believe the large beads are leaded crystal I think they are polished glass which leads me to believe they are Bohemian or Czechglass glass beads. The roundels, however, really capture and reflect the light.

What I like best about this strand of beads is the orange color. 

This beauty recently landed on my work bench. It’s a MiriamHaskell of course.  The owner of the necklace wanted all of the pearls replaced. Most of them had lost their lustre and looked tired next to the beautiful center piece. Finding over 250 glass pearl beads of the same size and patina as this vintage Miriam Haskell piece was not easy. It took three months of searching but we finally found the right beads.

And here it is.  Can’t you just see this piece on the neck of a willowy brunette at the opening of the opera season a few decades ago….ahh the history in these vintage pieces.

I am a frequent thrift store shopper. I love looking for treasures! The thrill of the hunt and the excitement when you find something. It makes me very sad when I stumble across one of those icons of 1970′s crafty – the Jewelry Christmas Tree. YIKES! I will admit my mother had not one but three of these lovelies in our house when I was a kid. Taken out each November and dusted off with the rest of the holiday decorations. We had a large one with a string of tree lights worked into the design and two smaller companion pieces. I would sit on the love seat and look over every square inch of the large tree.It hung in a place of honor over the love seat and this gave me an up close view of it. The two smaller ones hung on another wall further out of reach. I tried to imagine what each broken, mutilated piece of jewelry looked like when it was new and shiny and whole. How could someone do that to all those wonderfully sparkly treasures???? 

 

I tried to dismantle one once. Who knew Elmer’s Glue could be hard as a rock and practically impossible to remove? Now whenever I see one I say a little prayer of forgivenessto the Rhinestone Jewelry Goddess and walk quickly by.  A few years ago I had someone come to me with a box of grandmother’s old jewelry, three gilded picture frames and red velvet. She wanted me to make one for each of the granddaughters. I tried to talk her out of it. I even quoted a price I thought she would balk at. Nope- she insisted on three and that I was the perfect person to assemble these tress after all- I was sooooo creative! I am grateful they were only 8 x 10′s and even then it was painful.

My apologies to Coro, Haskel, Eisenberg,Lisner, Weiss and all those other wonderfully talented costume jewelry designers. Please know that I am doing my part to rescue as many pieces as I can. To restore them to their former glory and find new and deserving homes for them.

Oh and by the way…I prefer my jeweled Christmas trees to be small enough to wear. On my person not on the wall.

What do these Swarovski pearls and this vintage rhodium plated rhinestone necklace and earring set have in common? Green. 

This year my youngest daughter wanted to do something different for prom. We found this wonderful designer on  Etsy. The name of her shop is  PriscillaDawn and her dresses are tea party dream dresses.  I found this strand of Swarovski pearls on Etsytoo! If you have not looked into Etsy is a handmade person’s dream!

Back to Biz’s jewelry- I am going to remove the chain from the vintage necklace and put a double strand of pearls on it instead. Then I am going to take these two pair of earrings and combine them into something a bit more contemporary and less painful than screw back earrings. I will remove the screw backs and file away any rough places. This will leave me with a pendant that I will attach to the ball post earring to create a new earring.

As soon as I can get Biz to sit down for 5 minutes I will have her model them for you and get a picture! Prom is April 28th!

I had a young lady set up an appointment with me today for jewelry for her attendants. She showed me a picture of the dress and a fabric swatch of the accent color.

The dress is a very basic black lace strapless cocktail dress with a satin sash at the waist  that ends off to the side with about three inches of sash hanging down. Simple and elegant. The bodice has a ruffle of lace along it to soften the line. She is accenting the dress with a bouquet of silk flowers with the main color olivine green.  At first she was thinking strand of pearls in olivine green for each attendant. BORING! But I would do it. But after we started talking and really looking at the BM’s dress I threw out a few suggestions:

What if: instead of the pearls we found vintage brooches that reflected the personality of each bridesmaid and pinned them at the waist where the sash ends?

What if: we made each BM a pendant of a single Swarovski crystal pendent in an inverted tear drop with a simple sterling silver ice pick bail?

Hmmm……she loved the idea! And after that was settled her Mom fell in love with my Lisner pearl necklace and took it home to see if it would work with her dress.