| It is important to understand that not all costume | | | | earrings, and bracelets from Miriam Haskell. Potential |
| jewelry is the cheap, worthless stuff that can be | | | | investors only need to do a little homework on the |
| discarded after wearing a few times without much | | | | Internet to find which designs are hot and thus |
| regret. Costume jewelry got its start in the dazzling | | | | drawing larger asking prices. Remember, the most |
| theatres of Europe in the early 1900's, giving it the | | | | popular designs are not necessarily the prettiest or |
| lasting name of "costume", but popularity really took | | | | most unique, but they will tend to be more profitable |
| off when Americans fell in love with it after the end | | | | to collect. |
| of the First World War. Soon after, U.S. companies | | | | Many vintage costume jewelry makers are notorious |
| began dominating costume jewelry design and | | | | for producing collections that do not bear a jeweler's |
| manufacturing from the late 1920's onward. | | | | mark. Ultimately, these unsigned pieces often prove |
| Even when talking about the collectible costume | | | | more profitable, because they are less recognized by |
| pieces, all of the jewelry is mass-produced using | | | | sellers. A large portion of the entire vintage jewelry |
| gemstones and gold or silver plating, rather than | | | | market is filled with unsigned pieces, making it |
| more expensive diamonds and solid metals. Yet, in | | | | imperative to recognize well-designed and valuable |
| spite of their humble origins, the vintage pieces | | | | pieces. In most instances, simply being able to |
| produced in factories using semi-precious materials | | | | identify a quality design will help you expand on your |
| are now considered collectibles worth well beyond | | | | valuable collection. |
| their original price. Some popular American | | | | Craftsmanship and stone quality have also directly |
| manufacturers include: | | | | influenced the overall success or failure of any design. |
| - Coro | | | | Gemstone quality, in particular, plays a key role in |
| - Eisenberg | | | | determining the value of a particular piece of |
| - Weiss | | | | costume jewelry. Some companies have become |
| - Trifari | | | | famous for using gemstones of exceptional quality, |
| - Barclay | | | | although none of them would be considered precious |
| As with any vintage or antique item, the rarity of a | | | | gems. Some of the best manufacturers to seek out |
| certain costume design will greatly determine value. | | | | if you are looking for superior quality are: |
| Vintage jewelry was produced by large, medium and | | | | - Hollycraft |
| small companies, creating both a lot of diversity, but | | | | - Weiss |
| also leading to dramatic differences in supply levels. | | | | - Bogoff |
| Profits tend to be lower when talking about pieces | | | | - Bergere |
| made by the larger players like Coro and | | | | - Boucher |
| Accessocraft who produced jewelry in large batches. | | | | With some treasured pieces of vintage costume |
| But this does not mean that ever piece of jewelry | | | | jewelry nearing 100 years old, it is quite common to |
| from large manufacturers is worth relatively the | | | | find many items showing significant signs of wear. |
| same amount of money. In fact, special editions or | | | | Still, even vintage necklaces, bracelets, and other |
| limited batch productions exist from almost every | | | | pieces are coveted by investors and collectors as |
| design company. | | | | they are worth big money even in less than perfect |
| On the other hand, a piece of jewelry can be rare, | | | | condition. By knowing what to look for, seasoned |
| but command little demand for some reason or | | | | vintage costume or fashion jewelry collectors can still |
| another, greatly affecting value. Big collectibles right | | | | make great profits even off of jewelry with |
| now with strong prices are signed vintage necklaces, | | | | discoloration, rust or even missing stones. |