Jewelry Lovers

Brooches of the Twentieth Century
Platinum became a popular jewellery material in the early 1900s. The Edwardian used its pale colour to offset delicate shapes and the light hues of diamonds, pearls, peridots and aquamarines. In the early 1920s Cartier set jewellery with carved coloured gems to create a multicoloured effect often described as ‘fruit salad’. [...]

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Many people jump into the process of making jewelry and take shortcuts that only hurt them in the long run. Maybe they buy tools and supplies that don’t give them the results they’re looking for. Or they don’t treat their new tools right. Or perhaps they’re worried that their great new “original” design will make [...]

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During the Flower Power era, the renewed interest in Asia and the Far East led to a return to natural materials such as bone, ivory and Indian metalwork. Western jewelers were influenced by the varied assortment of goods being imported from Asia, and leather thong jewelry hung with dyed feathers and wooden beads typified the [...]

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It was during the sixties that jewelry first ceased to be perceived as being solely for women. Jody Shields describes the way that the avant-garde idea of jewelry for men percolated through to the fashion market.
‘Fashion-conscious men tossed aside neckties in favour of necklaces. With that action, the man on the street joined the ranks [...]

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This new fashion-conscious era expanded the market for costume jewelry. Decorative and amusing ornamentation became an essential. Even Chanel had crept out of retirement to reinvigorate the market with ‘multi-layers of gilt, glass stones and pearls.’ Chanel-inspired Renaissance jewelry remained in vogue well into the sixties. Christian Dior’s jewelry designs during the fifties were increasingly [...]

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The interest of the couturiers in costume jewelry had been initiated by Paul Poiret before the war, when he produced theatrical jewelry for Diaghilev’s Ballet Russe. The bold, vivid Eastern silhouettes associated with this influential ballet were in stark contrast to the Art Nouveau styles of the time. Poiret later developed his range of costume [...]

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Very quickly novelty and trinket manufacturers began to produce copies of couturier costume pieces, which developed the market for fashion jewelry. America, in particular, was well placed to apply the new manufacturing techniques to the jewelry field, and where Paris had led the trend for costume jewelry, it was America that chiefly propagated it. Less [...]

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In the 1930s, the glamour and extravagance of the twenties gave way, particularly in America, to increasing economic hardship and to the Depression. This had a number of different effects on the jewelry trade. On the one hand, people were less able to afford expensive jewelry, and so the costume jewelry market was comparatively thriving, [...]

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In sharp contrast with this return to safe forms of design were the avant-garde contemporary art movements, known as Dadaism and Surrealism. These movements had a considerable impact on the world of jewelry. Their ideas were embraced by designers such as Chanel’s fashion rival, Schiaparelli. In addition a number of the Dadaist and Surrealist artists [...]

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The most sophisticated and chic Art Deco jewelry of the period was made in France, using combinations of materials such as coral and jade, and Japanese-inspired black enamel and marcasite. The most outstanding of the French artist-jewelers included Georges Fouquet, Raymond Templier, Gerard Sandoz, Jean Despres and Jean Dunand. There were also a number of [...]

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