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Costume Jewelry

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Costume jewelry is manufactured using simulated gemstones and precious metals. Costume jewelry is a cheaper alternative to complimenting fashions with decoration, and thanks to modern design it is often hard to spot the difference between a costume jewelry piece and expensive “real” jewels.

The golden age for costume jewelry was the mid 20th Century. This coincided, by no coincidence with the industrial revolution. Many believe that the machine ruined the skill and tradition of jewelry making, and this may be true to a point, but the fact of the matter is that the use of machines in jewelry production meant that jewelry became widely available to all and the price of owning a piece of jewelry dropped. It became something that the middle classes could afford, not just exclusively for the upper class.

Today, there is a considerable market for vintage costume jewelry. Retro style is gaining popularity and costume jewelry of the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s is highly desirable and can fetch high prices. The irony being that these pieces that were designed to be affordable are now being sold for prices often more expensive than real jewels.

Coco Chanel popularized costume jewelry in her time as a fashion designer with her fine work with faux pearls and gold. Style icons Audrey Hepburn, Jackie Onassis and Elizabeth Taylor have also worn the high-end of costume jewelry. This was mainly due to the unique designs and styles being created by Kenneth Jay Lane. Kenneth Jay Lane’s work can be found in The Museum of Natural History, the Bush Presidential Library but also on QVC. Lane proved that design and inspiration mean more to jewelry than the precious stones and metals it is made out of. His pieces are more collectable than precious stones and his vintage pieces are often being sold at Sotheby’s and Christie’s.

Hollywood movies had a profound effect on fashion in the 1940’s and 50’s. Some call it the “golden age of cinema,” and the stars of the screen such as Elizabeth Taylor and Bette Davis were admired for what they wore. The leading ladies of the screen were not just beautiful and talented they were also smart businesswomen. Stars would endorse jewelry pieces produced by designers and if the public admired that particular actress and particular piece, they could buy a copy. Stars would appear in adverts for the pieces and the distribution in stores such as Woolworths made it possible for the everyday woman to own and wear the jewelry of the stars.

In our modern age, costume jewelry is produced on mass, and is designed to be a disposable alternative that you pick up to match your outfit in the mall. But there are unique and tasteful pieces being made by up and coming designers who do not have the resources to work with precious metals and stones. Thanks to the internet, you can find these pieces via the designers website and you can purchase something really unique, something away from the mall, something you won’t have to worry seeing somebody else wearing, something individual just like you.