| Costume, or fashion, jewelry sold in department | | | | opposed to the ones they know to be profitable. |
| stores and home shopping network shows will likely | | | | Seasoned investors sometimes avoid collecting the |
| never appreciate in value. Vintage costume jewelry | | | | signed vintage pieces altogether-after all, everyone is |
| from the 1900's thru the late 1960's, however, is | | | | already looking out for them, right? This is actually a |
| another story entirely. Vintage costume necklaces | | | | practical strategy because the truth is that the vast |
| produced by companies like Bogoff and Eisenberg | | | | majority of vintage costume pieces are actually |
| can literally command hundreds, even thousands, of | | | | unsigned. To identify the more profitable unsigned |
| dollars. Not too bad considering they were sold brand | | | | necklaces and other pieces, seasoned collectors tend |
| new for a fraction of what these pieces can | | | | to use design traits as the best way to locate pieces |
| command on the market today. | | | | by specific manufacturers. |
| Some vintage pieces are rarer than other making | | | | The quality of the materials and construction |
| them more valuable if other factors are held | | | | methods are another pair of factors that tend to |
| constant. The great diversity of manufacturers also | | | | greatly affect pricing. There were some companies |
| created vast differences in batch sizes. Profits tend | | | | that were famous for using gemstones of |
| to be lower when talking about pieces made by the | | | | exceptional quality with many of the pieces remaining |
| larger players like Coro and Accessocraft who | | | | unsigned. Such companies were: |
| produced jewelry in large batches. Barclays, DeMario, | | | | - Bogoff |
| and many of the smaller companies had limited | | | | - Eisenberg |
| facilities and thus tended to have far smaller batches. | | | | - Weiss |
| As they are so much rarer, those pieces from the | | | | - Miriam Haskell |
| smaller companies almost always sell for more than | | | | Vintage costume jewelry helped define the Roaring |
| something from one larger manufacturers. But be | | | | Twenties. Originating in Europe but taken to new |
| careful because even the larger players would run | | | | heights in both design and manufacture when brought |
| small batches that today command top dollar on the | | | | to America after WWI, costume jewelry became a |
| market. This is why you really need to know your | | | | standard in almost every jewelry box. Despite selling |
| stuff if you want to really want to find the good | | | | for only a few dollars when brand new, many vintage |
| stuff! | | | | costume necklaces, brooches, and other authentic |
| A piece of jewelry can be rare but command little | | | | pieces can be worth $40-$1,000-several times their |
| demand and thus be relatively worthless. The market | | | | original purchase price! So the next time you are |
| can be fickle so while some vintage designs are | | | | browsing the Internet for gift ideas for Mom, give |
| valuable in all market conditions, some are only hot | | | | her something that will not only transport her back in |
| for a moment and then relatively worthless. Profits | | | | time to another era-but may just become her next |
| tend to be highest for investors when they do their | | | | big hobby! |
| homework and avoid purchasing pieces they like as | | | | |