vintage-brooches

Vintage brooch selection

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 16:07:00 +0000

Wanting a vintage brooch this Christmas? Here is the latest selection available from antiquesavenue.co.uk:
Hint: Click on the pictures to enlarge.

Do you like this way of viewing all my vintage brooches? If so I will add a new view every month or so

Giving Vintage Brooches this Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 11:06:00 +0000

Have you started someone a Vintage Brooches collection by giving them a brooch as a gift? Or do you know someone who you would like to start a collection for? Here are some ideas of collectable brooches which are quite wearable too. As its nearly Christmas and we are looking at gifts I'll make a change from my normal way and look at them in price order

Budget Vintage Brooches
Looking to by lots of presents on a budget or give a great start to a collection in one go? Consider one of AntiquesAvenue's vintage brooch collections ready made. There is currently a great selection including a harlequin vintage brooch collection from circa 1940s

Here is a collection of 9 vintage brooches. These are all made of filigree metal and are set with a harlequin coloured range of diamante stones. These brooches all date from circa 1930s and are the type which were made in Czechoslovakia.

These brooches would normally sell for over £200 if they were sold individually but as I have so many brooches for sale at the moment I am offering these as a collection at a bargain price. 8 of these brooches have a standard catch on the back , one is a clip type. The longest brooch measures about 7 cms long and the smallest is just under 4 cms wide. All of these vitnage brooches are in excellent condition

I also have a vintage brooch collection in red and some great pairs of brooches from about £25.

Investment Brooches

I believe that some vintage brooches make a great investment for the future and would be suitable for a younger person who will keep and treasure them for many years and at the same time be able to see a rise in value. Investment brooches are likely to have a designer name take a look at Christian Dior, Norman Hartnell, Trifari or Yves St Laurent.

Maison Gripoix pate de verre flower brooch

Maison Gripoix are one of the most sought after names in vintage costume jewellery. This Paris based company has created jewellery for many of the leading fashion houses as well as pieces sold under their own brand. The signature style of Maison Gripoix is hand made Pate de verre pieces of jewellery such as this wonderful flower brooch.
This Maison Gripoix Patte de verre flower brooch is in great condition with no chips or crazing to the glass , it measures about 5.5 cms long. One of the best costume jewllery brooches you could wish to find.

Luxury Brooches

Gold and Opal brooch

Want to splash out on someone special? How about a gold brooch? This brooch is Set with opals and pearls. I think its one of the prettiest you will find and sure to be a favourite present this year. This gold brooch is really pretty. The flowers are set with real opals and pearls. The opals sparkle with colour. This brooch is made of fully hallmarked nine carat gold and dates from the 1980s. It measures about 3 cms diameter and is in really excellent clean condition.

5 most popular brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Tue, 23 Nov 2010 16:07:00 +0000

Ive been looking at which types of brooches seem to be the most popular on AntiquesAvenue. Here is the current top 5
5 Lava Cameo Brooch
These cameos are carved from Lava instead of the usual shell. They are much rarer than shell cameos and quite sought after by connoisseurs of Victorian Jewellery. The Lava is from the Italian volcanoes such as Mount Etna and Vesuvius.

4. Amber Brooches
I cant get enough amber brooches - these usually sell out as soon as they hit the shelves of antiquesavenue.co.uk. The most popular are art nouveau amber and silver brooches,

3 Butterfly Brooch
What is it about butterflies and jewellery? Especially butterfly brooches. So popular as gifts

2. Mizpah Brooch
The favourite of separated lovers, May the Lord watch between me and the when we are parted one from another

1. Vintage Brooch

Diamante set, big bright and bold ready for the party season

Vintage Brooches for Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 19:54:00 +0000

As regular readers know I often suggest brooches for gifts at Christmas. Antique and Vintage brooches make such excellent presents as getting the size right is not as important as it is with many other pieces of vitnage jewellery and so you can concentrate on the design of the brooch when making your choice. This year I am thinking of making all the Christmas gifts of vintage brooches I give being in the Christmas colours - red, gold and green. Here are a few suggestions from antiquesavenue for excellent red. gold and green themed brooches for you to give this year:

Red brooches, These two are both set with sparkling red diamante:

Gold Brooches - there is such a wide choice:

Green diamante Brooch

Making it easier to find vintage brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 19:37:00 +0000

The vintage brooches section on antiquesavenue has just been re-organised to make finding them easier ( I hope) . The vintage costume jewellery brooches are now in a subsection of vintage brooches. Antique brooches have their own area too.

Here is a preview of some of the special brooches and pins you can find:

Marcasite Brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Sun, 14 Nov 2010 15:01:00 +0000

Have you seen vintage brooches set with marcasites? These little gemstones make silver sparkle and shine especially under artificial light. Marcasites are a form of iron pyrite ( or fools gold) and look similar to cut steel jewellery which was popular in Georgian times. Marcasite set brooches were particularly popular during the 1950s and they come in a wonderful range of shapes and forms.
Marcasites can be set both into real silver and silver tone costume jewellery. As well as being set into brooches other vintage jewellery forms with marcasites include necklaces and bracelets. Here are a few quality vintage brooches with marcasites available from antiquesavenue:

Gold hand with jewellery vintage brooch

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 15:12:00 +0000

Is this the most wonderful old vintage brooch you have ever seen. This gold hand has a laces cuff, a real charm bracelet style bracelet ( complete with diamond ring) and it holding an inscribed calling card. Hand jewellery is quite collectable. This brooch has full nine carat gold hallmarks and can be dated to the Edwardian era. This a genuine one off antique vintage brooches are available at http://www.antiquesavene.co.uk/

Vintage Brooches Collections

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 13:28:00 +0000

I've recently purchased a lifetimes collection of vintage jewellery and in it were so many vintage costume jewellery brooches that I have bundles some of them together in lots which are offered at a much cheaper price than they would be if offered individually.

Most of these brooches date from before the 1950s - many of them being the Czechoslovakian type with filigree metal and coloured glass diamante stones. I have collections of pink brooches, Victorian Brooches, blue brooches, flower brooches and animal brooches to name just a few.

Here are a few pictures to show some of the collections of vintage brooches which are available:

Blue collection

Pink Collection

Victorian Collection

Maison Gripoix Brooch

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 16:07:00 +0000

WOW! This brooch is so wonderful and so rare. Made by Maison Gripoix from Pate de verre or in English glass. The company was based in Paris and only made the highest quality pieces.

This Maison Gripoix pate de verre flower brooch is in great condition with no chips or crazing to the glass , it measures about 5.5 cms long. One of the best costume jewllery brooches you could wish to find.

Take the opportunity to acquire this brooch now - they dont turn up very often

Tussie Mussie Vitnage Brooch to hold flowers

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 14:22:00 +0000

Have you ever seen a Tussie-Mussie? These are very special form of vintage brooch made to hold a small posy or sprig of flowers. Originally Tussie-Mussie was the name given to the posy of flowers its self but during the Victorian era brooches were developed which pinned the flowers to the clothing and protected the clothing from staining at the same time. The Tussie-Mussie brooch also hides the flower stems.

Vintage Tussie-Mussie brooches are very collectable now. AntiquesAvenue has one available at the moment :

Here is a Vintage Tussie Mussie Brooch, a brooch meant to hold a posy of real flowers. This Tussie Mussie is in the shape of a flower basket with the basket top being open for you to pin your own fresh flower posy into.
Vintage Tussie Mussies are now quite rare and collectable. This brooch is made of silver toned filigree metal, the silver tone is a little faded and I have priced this accordingly. This Tussie Mussie brooch probably dates from the 1930s - there is a trombone type clasp on the back

Here's another tussie mussie brooch is probably from the 1950s and with the stag and acorn decoration were most likely meant to hold something like a sprig of heather onto a tweed jacket.

AntiquesAvenue likes to stock vintage Tussie Musie brooches but I find it difficult to get stocks of these . please use this search to see if I currently have any in stock Tussie Mussies

Vintage Costume Jewellery Brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Wed, 12 May 2010 18:49:00 +0000

I've a lovely collection to show you, lots of vintage costume Jewellery brooches and available as one lot so that you can keep a few and probably sell the rest at a profit . There are 25 brooches in this lot for £100 which makes them just £4 each including postage.
Every one of these brooches is in excellent condition. They include gold and silver toned brooches, leaf and flower brooches, a cat brooch. There are diamante brooches, glass set brooches and brooches in the shapes of rose.

Vintage Brooches Antique Brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Fri, 07 May 2010 17:14:00 +0000

I talk a lot about Vintage Brooches and Antique Brooches but what is the difference between the two? And does it make a difference?

The terms vintage and antique are often blurred around the edges and used inappropriately and interchangeably. Where are the boundaries and what does the difference make to the Jewellery collector?

Antique Brooches
An antique legally is over 100 years old which would make any brooch dating from the Edwardian era and before an Antique. This would make all Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian Brooches antiques. I believe that we should also include all brooches dating from before 1920 as antiques as they have more in common with antique brooches than they do with vintage brooches. For example brooches from the 1910's to 1920's are generally in the same style and made of the same materials as Edwardian brooches. This is most likely die to the first world war and that during this time no real advance in Jewellery manufacture were made

Vintage Brooches
As with all vintage jewellery, Vintage Brooches date from the 1920s onwards. The Art Deco era of the 1920s and 1930s, the retro era of the 1940s, the Space age 1950s and 1960s and the funky 1970s are all vintage nowadays. The 1980s are a grey area, they are rapidly becoming vintage. Perhaps we could say that anything over 25 years old is vintage but there is no legal definition covering this

Second Hand Brooches, Estate Brooches, Nearly New Brooches
These would be brooches dating from between the vintage and new. These are not quite as collectable as Vintage and Antique brooches but can still be very beautiful and excellent for everyday wear. Top name designer brooches can be excellent value second hand as can gold and silver brooches when compared to new.

Antique Brooch:

A really beautiful antique crescent brooch set with real rubies. This brooch is made of yellow metal which tests are high carat gold about 22 carat but is not hallmarked. It is set with 11 nice real ruby gemstones . This antique brooch will date from the Edwardian ear and fastens with a simple c catch. It measures up to 0.4 cm wide and 4 cms long. It is in really excellent condition

Vintage Brooch

Amazing red diamante brooch and earring set dating from circa 1940s. Note the brooch is literally covered in diamante of differing shapes, sizes and colours. The diamante are set into gold coned filigree metal. This set will date from circa 1940s. The brooch measures about 6 cms diameter and the earrings 3.2 cms long. This vintage costume jewellery set is in excellent condition

Newer Brooch

Art Deco Brooch

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Mon, 03 May 2010 16:06:00 +0000

Brooches were as popular during the Art Deco era ( 1920s and 1930s) and they are a popular vintage jewellery collectable During the art deco era brooches followed the fashion of those times and were made in art deco materials, shapes and colours.

Popular art deco materials include Plastics including Bakelite (very new at that time), Chrome, Silver, Platinum ( for the very rich), glass, Lapis Lazuli, marcasites and Rock Crystal. The colours of the time were bright and bold black, white, green, red, orange, yellow and blue. The precious gemstones Diamonds, Emeralds, Sapphires and Rubies clearly fit well with this colour palate as does Jade and black onyx.

Shapes were angular and geometric, just look at this art deco clip its geometric, yellow and made of plastic - a typical art deco brooch:

This vintage clip type brooch is a super piece of art deco jewellery. This is made of an early plastic not sure what might be Bakelite. As this is a clip type brooch it can be worn attached over the neckline or lapel of a piece of jewellery. This art deco clip measures about 5.8 cms long

The art deco brooch had a popular range of themes bold art deco geometrical shapes, travel ( airplanes and boats), Animals ( stylised gazelles for example). Other themes include the crinoline lady which is more 1930s than 1920s.
Here's a typical art deco brooch made of silver, set with marcasites and with a stylised boat design:

vintage brooch silver marcasite art deco brooch

This silver and marcasite brooch will date from about the 1950s. This is in the shape as an art deco boat and it measures about 4 cms long

You can find these and more vintage brooches on AntiquesAvenue shop

Askew London Teddy Brooch

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 15:39:00 +0000

Does any one have information on Jewellery made by Askew London? I believe that this was made by Sue Askew and was made during circa 1980s. The jewellery appears to be vintage in style, there are some wonderful 1920s revival pieces of Egyptian style brooches and necklaces and I also detect Haskel style influences. Other than that her Jewellery appears to be quite collectable fetching high prices on eBay.

Here is a super special Teddy vintage brooch made by Askew London :

Here is a very sweet Teddy Bear brooch which has an articulated head, arms and legs. This teddy brooch is such high quality that you can sit him down like an ornament if you like. Teddy measures almost 4 cms high

Antique Brooch of Hope, the Anchor

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 12:58:00 +0000

Antique BroochThe Antique Brooch comes in many shapes, sizes and materials and a collection of Antique Brooches is often made along a theme. All Georgian Brooches, Mourning Brooches, Silver and Enamel Brooches for example. Vintage Brooches blog is taking a look as some of the more interesting themes you might like to consider for your Brooch collection starting today with Anchor Brooches.

The Anchor is the Victorian symbol for Hope and as well as being found on its own the Anchor can be found in Antique Jewellery along side a heart and cross as "Faith hope and Charity". The anchor is usually showing with an entwined rope. Victorian anchor brooches are most usually seen made of silver however they can also be made of gold and costume Jewellery. The Anchor can me pain metal, highly decorative or set with precious an semi precious stones. Most original Victorian Anchor brooches will fasten with a simple C catch so do check this out to ensure you have an original piece of antique jewellery.

Here are a couple of antique anchor hope brooches available from AntiquesAvenue:

Antique silver brooch anchor symbol of hope

A lovely antique brooch dating from the Victorian era. This silver brooch is in the shape of an anchor with a silver rope entwined round it. The Victorians saw the anchor as the symbol of hope. This silver brooch measures about 3 cms long and fastens on the back with a simple C catch

Victorian silver brooch agate set anchor

An attractive Victorian silver anchor brooch set with Scottish agate panels. To the Victorians the anchor was the symbol for hope . This piece of antique jewellery measures about 4 cms long

The Anchor symbol in history:
The anchor has been interpreted in different ways throughout history. Early Christians used the anchor as a disguised cross, and as a marker to guide the way to secret meeting places. Often set amongst rocks. It can also be an occupational symbol in sea-faring areas or the attribute of Saint Nicholas, patron saint of seamen, symbolized hope and steadfastness. An anchor with a broken chain stands for the cessation of life.

Amber brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Wed, 21 Apr 2010 18:59:00 +0000

Amber Brooches
Popular nowadays, Amber is one of the materials used in brooches which has been used since the earliest prehistoric times. Our ancestors in the Bronze age or possibly before, The Greeks, Romans and ancient Celts all treasured amber set jewellery. More recently into Victorian Jewellery, in the Art Deco era and of course the amber brooch is very popular nowadays. Amber tumbled into beads or as a cabochon is how we normally see this sort of jewellery.

A bit about Amber

Amber, the fossilized resin of pine trees, in the main it has been under the sea for 60 million years. It is found in a range of colours, normally we see it in honey shades but it can vary from a pale whitish or lemon colour through to almost black. Cherry red amber is very sought after and a natural amber in shades of blue is most rare. Natural amber is cut, carved and polished into the required shape. As it is very soft for a gemstone is is possible to carve it quite intricately or alternatively it can be faceted. Most often we see amber polished smooth. If you find a piece of antique jewellery set with amber you will sometimes find that it has become opaque a sort of butterscotch colour . Modern amber tends to be more translucent often with imperfections inside.

Here is a super Amber brooch, modern but still very attractive, you can see the imperfections. These may be remnants of prehistoric petals and seeds:

Care of Amber Brooches

Take a look at the material the amber is set in. Often this is silver but look for hallmarks to be sure of this or ask your jeweller.

As Amber is quite soft it needs to be handled with some care, store it separately or protected from other brooches so that it does not scratch. Also avoid leaving your amber brooch in direct sunlight for a long time. Solvents in perfume and hairspray can damage your amber, the best thing to do is to use these first and put your amber jewellery on after. Perhaps clean it as soon as practicable after wearing.
When cleaning your amber please do not use an ultra sonic cleaner or harsh chemicals and do not use a jewellery dip or a silver dip. A soft cloth and a very tiny drop of pure olive oil are often recommended. If the jewellery is set into gold or silver you could try and clean the metal without touching the amber.

How to tell an Amber brooch from costume jewellery Faux Amber

As Amber is so popular these days the price is rising and so fake or faux amber brooches are being produced. How can you tell a real piece of amber from a piece of plastic or resin jewellery? The traditional method was to make a saturated salt solution, amber will float in this where as glass or plastic would sink. This method does not work on pieces of amber which are set into metal as they would sink with the weight of the metal. I have heard that if you stick a hot needle into amber that it smells of pine trees. I am not going to try this on a piece of amber jewellery as it would be damaged.

Here are two tests that you can try on your jewellery. Rub it against a piece of wool, its electrostatic properties produce static electricity which will attract dust. Secondly amber can glow a greenish yellow under an ultraviolet lamp

Valuing an Amber Brooch

Amber brooches can be purchased from about £30 upwards depending on the age, setting, size of the piece and craftsmanship. Very occasionally a piece of amber is found with an insect trapped into it and such pieces if genuine would fetch a few hundred pounds or more. Beware of fakes if the amber is set with an insect though and only buy from a very trusted source. Please pop over to my vintage jewellery shop at www.antiquesavenue.co.uk where I like to have one or two pieces of amber in stock.

Locket brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 15:36:00 +0000

About Locket brooches
Lockets are a very popular form of antique jewellery and vintage jewellery. Normally we think of a locket as a piece of jewellery which hangs around your neck however if you are lucky you can also find antique and vintage brooches which have locket compartments.

Types of locket brooch:

Mourning Brooches
In Georgian and Victorian times locket brooches were popular for holding a memento of a departed loved one, they were given away with a lock of hair inside. With mourning brooches the locket compartment is usually at the front of the brooch and the hair can be quite ornately worked into a plait or scroll. This sometimes has gold initials or pearls decorating the hair. Georgian locket brooches are quite small and delicate in comparison to Victorian ones. Just look at the difference in these two examples of locket brooches:

Georgian Mourning Locket Brooch

Victorian Mourning Locket Brooch

Victorian sweetheart locket brooches
The Victorian Sweetheart locket brooch had the compartment hidden at the back of the brooch. From the front the brooch appears to be a normal piece of jewellery but the lady wearing it knew that there was a secret inside the brooch which only she and her love knew about. Young girls and servants were often forbidden to have boyfriends and so they needed to keep their love a secret. Inside the secret compartment would be a photo, a lock of hair or perhaps a small pressed flower with special meaning.
Here are a couple of examples of Victorian sweetheart locket brooches which both have covered compartments in the back:

Picture locket brooches;

Some locket brooches are specifically meant to hold photographs rather than hair. These tend to have a large display area with little frame. Many of these picture lockets date from around the first world war when a lady would wear a picture of her favourite soldier.
Here is an Edwardian picture locket brooch which could hold a photo in both sides with the picture swivelling so that you can choose which side to display:

Antique porcelain brooches hand painted beauty

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 11:16:00 +0000

Hand painted porcelain is a popular material in antique and vintage jewellery, it is most usually found in brooches although I have seen earrings and necklaces set with porcelain plaques too. You can often find older brooches , especially Victorian brooches, set with porcelain plaques which have been painted or printed. These brooches are quite decorative and very collectible.

Try looking out for some with classical European paintings:

Hand painted with Birds brooch :

Or how about a collection of hand painted vintage floral brooches?
These three types of vintage brooch all have the inset porcelain plaque in common. They vary in age with the top one being mid-Victorian, the central one being later Victorian and the lower one being an Edwardian brooch.

All should be treated with reasonable care as porcelain chips easily and the pictures would come off if they are subjected to harsh cleaning materials. How should you clean them - hopefully a gentle wipe with a soft dry cloth. If this doesn't work a well wrung out damp cloth or just a touch of washing up liquid if really necessary. Do not let the damp get to the setting if you can help it as most likely the settings are just costume jewellery and will tarnish and rust easily.

Porcelain plaque brooches can be found from just a few pounds upwards depending on the quality of the painting ( a named artist would increase the price) and also the metal it is set into.

Wedgwood Brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 18:56:00 +0000

Wedgwood Brooch

One of the most popular type of antique or vintage brooches I get asked for is a Wedgwood Jasper cameo set brooch ( especially a Victorian one) just like in this picture. The central plaque of the brooch is made of Jasper a high fired ceramic. The design on this brooch has been created by sprigging. Sprigging starts with an artist carving the pattern and a mould being created in plaster from that master. A piece of the damp clay is pressed into the mould and then the image created is removed and applied to the background. The jasper type clay was invented by J. Wedgwood but the clay and using it in this manner for jewellery was copied by other makers.

Jasper Jewellery was made throughout both the 19th and 20th centuries. Originally the patterns were based on classical designs however during the 1970s and the 2000's some more modern designs have been created. in fact during the last 10 years Wedgwood employed some big name jewellery designers to create up to date deigns for them.

How can I tell how old my Wedgwood Jasper brooch is?

Take a look on the back. If the brooch has an open back you may well see the word Wedgwood impressed. Wedgwood on its own without any other words could well be early to mid Victorian. "Wedgwood England" between 1880s and 1920s. "Wedgwood made in England" is usually post 1920s. Please note that on very small pieces there well may be no makers name and your brooch could still be Wedgwood.

Also take a look at the metal, this could have hallmarks which can be used to date your Wedgwood brooch or it may carry the JW makers hallmark in the silver or gold.

Care of Wedgwood Jasper Brooches.

The material is high fired ceramic and can be chipped or cracked so take care not to drop your brooch . Now take a look at the material the jasper is set into. If this is marked as silver or gold you can use a little water and a soft toothbrush to clean your brooch is it is very dirty. Pat the brooch dry and store where it cannot be damaged by other jewellery. you could wrap your brooch in a piece of acid free tissue paper.

If the metal is not hallmarked as gold or silver it could be made of a costume jewellery material and I suggest that you do not get this wet as it could become damaged. Just use a soft brush to clean.

Where to buy Wedgwood jasper Brooches.

AntiquesAvenue Antique and Vintage jewellery shop likes to carry a range of Wedgwood jasper jewelry including brooches. Other than this it is fun to hunt could your local antique fair or antiques center and you might get lucky. You can expect to pay between about £15 and several hundred pounds for your Wedgwood jasper brooch depending upon its age, the desirability of the cameo and the material into which it is set

Happy Hunting

Anne

Easter Brooches - Less fattening than chocolate

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 10:14:00 +0000

Its Easter egg buying time again. Easter is on Sunday April 4th this year and as usual I am suggesting that a piece of Vintage Jewellery is less fattening and longer lasting than Chocolate and does not have to cost any more.

Whilst you could choose any pretty brooch there are many which have an Easter related theme which would be particularly relevant. How about an animal brooch , a chick, a bird, rabbit or duck? Flowers are always a popular gift and you can get eggs in the shape of eggs, young children and for those who wish to stick to the traditional religious side of Easter a brooch or pendant in the shape of a cross.

Here is a nice selection of vintage brooches with an Easter Theme.

Jelly Belly duck brooch vintage Lucite and silver

This cute duck brooch is made out of silver ( impressed sterling) , It is set with a clear lucite "Jelly Belly" and has a diamante eye. Measuring about 4.9 cms from head to toe wide this sought after vintage brooch is in excellent

Pretty bird on branch costume jewellery brooch

A lovely costume jewellery brooch featuring a long tailed bird sitting on a branch. This brooch is made of gold toned metal and is set with clear and pale blue diamante. It measures about 6 cms long and is in excellent wearable condition. This brooch is thought to be about 20 years old, a quality piece of costume jewellery sure to be collectable in the future

vintage flower brooch lucite three flowers

Brooches made from Lucite date from circa 1930s /1940s. These are carved from behind intaglio style and filled with colour to depict three flowers, I think these are roses. This vintage lucite flower brooch measures up to 5 cms wide. This is an up and coming form of collectable vintage jewellery.

Are you choosing Vintage Jewellery instead of Chocolate this year? Please do leave a comment and tell us about it.

Vintage brooches news March 2010

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:23:00 +0000

Here is the March update from AntiquesAvenue.co.uk including a look at the lovely antique and Vintage brooches which have recently been added to the site .

Blog News
Over on my main blog at http://www.antiquesavenue.com/ I've been taking a look at the A-Z of antique and vintage jewellery materials and have just completed the letter A for Agate, Amber, Amethyst and Aventurine.

Have you seen my Vintage Jewellery Videos yet? They are all shown in the previous post here or you can pop along to You-tube and view the AntiquesAvenue channel

Vintage Jewellery Shop News
As always I've been adding lots of fresh stock including Vintage Brooches. Vintage Brooches have been a popular gift fro Mothers Days again this year and I am selling quite a few which are to be given as Easter gifts. Much less fattening that Easter eggs and much longer lasting too.

Vintage Brooches recently added
Taking a look at a few of the lovely antique and Vintage brooches I've added recently:

Rare gold Mizpah brooch:
Victorian Mizpah brooches are always sought after and even more so when they are made of gold like this one.

Mizpah: The Lord watch between me and thee when we are absent one from another.

This piece of antique jewellery measures about 4 cms long

Jelly Belly duck Vintage Brooch

Jelly Belly duck brooch vintage Lucite and silver
This cute duck brooch is made out of silver ( impressed sterling) , It is set with a clear Lucite "Jelly Belly" and has a diamante eye

Coming Soon:

I've a few nice Victorian brooches to be added over the next week or two including a Whitby jet cameo brooch and some sweet Victorian sentimental silver brooches. Do check back soon.

I'm going to try and update this blog a little more often to show the wonderful variety of vintage brooches available.

Vintage Jewellery Videos

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:10:00 +0000

Have you seen my Vintage jewellery Videos ? Here they all are:

Mothers Day vintage brooches

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 13:52:00 +0000

Mother Day is one of my favourite gift occasions for giving vintage jewellery and I think the best piece of jewellery you can give Mum is a vintage brooch in the shape of flowers. A lovely vintage brooch can cost as little as a bunch of real flowers and is going to last much much longer. This year mothers day falls on March 14th in the UK so there is still plenty of time to choose your perfect pin.

There is a huge variety of antique and vintage flower brooches to choose from: gold, silver or costume. You can still find some lovely Victorian silver flower brooches, a porcelain brooch which was hand painted with flowers in the early 1900s or a showy flower spray set with diamante from the 1950s or 1960s.

Here are a few favourite vintage flower brooches from antiquesavenue.co.uk

Castlecliff - huge 1940s cocktail era flower brooch silver

A stunning Castlecliff brooch dating from I believe the 1940s. This is made of silver ( sterling is impressed on the reverse). It is huge measuring about 9.5 cms long and 5.5 cms wide. This is in excellent wearable condition. Castlecliff were an American Jewellery company. Here is what I have been able to find out about them:
Founded By Clifford Furst And Joseph Bobley In New York City, Castlecliff Was A Highly Respected Name In The Jewelry Industry, And Its Beauty Was Just As Highly Prized By Women Then As It Is By Those Lucky Enough To Find A Piece Now. Sold In Only The Finest Departments Stores, Castlecliff Was Impeccably Produced In Bold Yet Startlingly Intricate Designs

Antique brooch Pietra Dura Lily of Valley Victorian

Antique brooch Dura Lily of Valley Victorian

This wonderful antique Victorian brooch made of white metal ( tests as silver) and set with a Pietra Dura panel with a picture of a Lily of the valley. The leaves of the flower are made of malachite and the flowers in white agate. This really is a superb piece of antique jewellery.

Material:Silver and hardstonesSize:5.5 x 4.3 cmsAge:Mid Victorian Condition: Excellent

Exquisite flower brooch pansy bouquet

A very pretty enameled flower brooch - a bunch of pansies. This brooch was made by Exquisite and dates from circa 1950s. I believe that this was made as part of the birthdays series and I think that this one is for May. This brooch measures about 6.5 cms long

Or you can view all of my antique and vintage brooches together.

Vintage brooches for Valentines

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 10:45:00 +0000

Have you chosen your Valentines gift yet? Here are a few suggestions from antiquesavenue.co.uk where there are lots of brooches, pins and clips with a suitable Valentines theme. Hearts, flowers, cupids and Victorian sentimental jewellery would all be suitable.

Flowers;

How long will a bunch of flowers last? A few days at the most where as a vintage flower brooch will last a life time. Here are a few pretty flower brooches:

A wonderful vintage brooch , Pietre dure brooch which will date from the Victorian era. Pietre dure is the term given to the technique of using small, exquisitely cut and fitted, highly-polished colored stones to create what amounts to a painting in stone. Here we have a typical stone painting of flowers set into a silver mount. This brooch will date from the Victorian era. It measures a little over 4 cms long and fastens with a simple C catch. This Victorian brooch is in excellent condition

A brooch from the mid 1900s:

Vintage flower brooch

A pretty vintage flower brooch made from an early creamy coloured plastic and moulded with flowers and leaves. This brooch measures about 4 cms long and dates from circa 1920s / 1930s

Large Royal Crown Derby porcelain flower brooch

Made by Royal Crown Derby in fine porcelain, this is a wonderful brooch. It measures about 5.4 cms diameter and in in excellent condition. Very delicate and very beautiful. There are full Royal Crown Derby makers marks on the reverse. This brooch will date from circa 1950s

Vintage brooch sale on antiquesavenue

noreply@blogger.com (AntiquesAvenue) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 10:43:00 +0000

As January is traditionally the time of the Sale, I am drastically reducing the price of one piece of vintage jewellery each day between now and January 10th.

Here are the the two vintage brooch reductions from Yesterday and today:
Silver brooch scottish thistles vintage
This vintage silver brooch is in the form of three Scottish thistles each set with a citrine coloured stone. This brooch is impressed WBs Sterling in the reverse. This brooch measures about 7 cms wide and is in good wearable condition. It fastens with a simple C catch
Deal of the Day 30 December reduced to £15 one day only. Was £26

Unusual vintage enamel brooch vintage jewelry

A very unusual vintage enamel brooch - I've not seen one quite like this before. The main part of the brooch is circular and domed. It has a small clear diamante at the center. There are three hanging bars each with a diamante at the end. The enamel is in shades of blue, green and a pinky mauve colour. This brooch fastens with a simple catch and measures about 2 cms diameter and 4 cms long. The enamel is in excellent condition

This vintage brooch has been reduced from £30 to £20

Check back on antiquesavenue.co.uk for more vintage brooch and vintage jewellery bargains.