Flower brooch. Green faux pearls orange rhinestones silver tone metal. Laila Rowe vintage costume jewelry

Laila Rowe vintage costume jewelry
The history of the Laila Rowe jewelry brand began in 1992. Its founders, Judith Schwartz, a native of the Bronx, and her partner Alexia Crawford, who came to New York from Sydney, Australia, began creating costume jewelry for the company in the early 1990s. In fact, Judith Schwartz had been involved in jewelry design long before founding Laila Rowe. She even had three of her own stores in Manhattan called Nemesis Jewelry. Alexia Crawford ran a wholesale company supplying women’s accessories to department stores, and also had a small retail store in New Haven.
The collaboration between the two friends was successful and the business grew rapidly. They traveled to Europe and Asia and spent a lot of time researching market trends. As a result, on June 28, 2003, the first Laila Rowe store appeared in Columbus, and within a year they opened eight more!. (Based on the article in The New York Times, Sept. 19, 2004)
Traditionally, all pieces are marked on the back side with five-pointed star, or “Laila Rowe”.
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Jeweled top brooch. Gold tone textured metal, faux pearls, crystals. 6.8 cm, 1990s. Signed Natori vintage costume jewelry

Signed Natori vintage costume jewelry

Born Josefina Almeda Cruz, she grew up in the Philippines. The girl was talented in playing the piano, and at the age of 9 she performed as a soloist with the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra. However, Josie didn’t continue her career as a musician. Aged 17, she moved to New York and entered Manhattanville College to study economics and finance. In 1976, Josie married Ken Natori, and in 1977 she started family business. Natori brand, in particular, included home and sleepwear, urban clothing, glasses, perfume, textiles, home and costume jewelry.
Traditionally botanical, floral, along with bold, minimal and geometric designs, these decorations are made with the use of gold or silver plated brass, fresh water pearl and rhinestones.
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Black plastic clips. Gold tone metal, crystals. 3 cm length. 1980s. Sharra Pagano vintage costume jewelry

Sharra Pagano vintage costume jewelry
Behind this Italian brand, born in Milan in 1969, is not a woman or a designer, but a concept conceived and implemented by the two founders Lino Raggio and Gianfranco Signori. Handcrafted, Sharra Pagano jewelry brings to the world a sense of elegance, a passion for beauty and the exaltation of craft.
Traditionally, when creating their fashionable jewelry, the designers use gold or silver tone metal, gold plating, resin, mother of pearl, enamel, rhinestones and crystals. Each piece has a distinctive marking Sharra Pagano stamped on the back side.
Noteworthy, Pagano brand has collaborated with such iconic designers as Giorgio Armani, Francesco Moschino and Versace. Featured at these fashion houses, Sharra Pagano necklaces, tiaras and earrings also shone in theatrical productions of Tosca and Manon Lescaut operas.
The company has been creating jewelry for more than 50 years, and continues its activities to this day. You can view and buy jewelry on their official website. According to the brand, they have created the history of fashion jewelry and haven’t finished yet.
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Chimney sweep vintage silver brooch. Length – 5 cm. 1950s. VB Volmer Bahner vintage costume jewelry

VB Volmer Bahner vintage costume jewelry (1939 – 1988)
Known for his modernist and naturalistic designs, Danish jeweler Volmer Bahner (1912–1995) founded his brand VB and opened workshop in 1939. A nature lover, Bahner drew inspiration from the flowers and plants of the Danish countryside. Handcrafted from 925 sterling silver, covered with guilloché enamel, these jewelry pieces are still in excellent condition thanks to their high quality.
A versatile Danish artist and designer, Volmer Bahner graduated from the College of Art and Industry in 1930. Having received several scholarships and awards, Bahner founded his own company, which he headed until his retirement in 1988.
Noteworthy, according to some Internet resources, 1962 is erroneously indicated as the year of the beginning of jewelry production. In fact, the jeweler started making jewelry much earlier, in 1939. Renewed and reregistered in 1988, Volmer Bahner & Co ceased to exist in 2004.
The design of his jewelry is considered innovative, especially hearts and animals design, including fish and butterflies, made in different configurations and colors of enamels. The most commonly found jewelry is sterling silver or gold-plated and enamelled in bright cobalt color. Traditionally, all designer jewelry is marked VB – these are his initials followed by STERLING, DENMARK.
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New York City Skyline brooch. Sterling silver, mother-of-pearl. Great Falls Metal Works GFMW vintage costume jewelry

GFMW vintage costume jewelry
The history of the company began in 1968, when the married couple Jan Palombo and her husband Michael Brothers founded their own jewelry workshop GFMW Inc. The Great Falls Metal Works was located in an old silk factory near historic Great Falls in Paterson, New Jersey. Their daughter Flora Anne Brothers, who has helped her parents create jewelry since childhood, later studied jewelry in Europe. Back home, she joined the family business and became the company’s chief designer.
Traditionally hand crafted, all jewelry was made from 925 sterling silver, 14 carat gold, natural stones and minerals. The company is still operating, but there are no brooches in their range for a long time. Produced in the 1960s – 1980s, these high quality brooches demonstrate a very interesting design, exquisite workmanship and are collectible.
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Abstract design brooch. Metal alloy, bronze. 4.6 cm. 1960s. Robert Zentall vintage costume jewelry

Zentall vintage costume jewelry
Undoubtedly, the jewelry of this brand is of collectible value. The history of the company dates back to 1952, when Robert Zentall founded his own jewelry company ROBERT ZENTALL, INC. in Mount Vernon, NY. In addition to hand crafted jewelry, the designers created decorations for Christmas trees.
Noteworthy, stylish and high-quality designer costume jewelry marked “Zentall” became world famous very soon. This happened in particular, in 1954, thanks to the magazine Vogue. The designers of this company used both semi-precious stones, corals and lucite, art glass, faux pearls and enamels. As a base for decorations jewelers used a textured alloy of metals, sterling silver, pewter, and sometimes used gold plating. The company mainly produced jewelry in the Art Nouveau style and abstract forms, as well as funny brooches with images of animals and birds. The company’s jewelers focused on the texture of the material. Having worked for more than three decades, the company ceased to exist in 1984.
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Two-faced Janus brooch. Gold tone alloy, faux pearls, enamel. 1980s. 4.5 cm. Signed Fendi vintage costume jewelry

Fendi vintage costume jewelry
One of the oldest Italian fashion houses, Fendi has been creating clothing, leather and fur products, perfumes and accessories for more than 100 years! However, the company made costume jewelry for a short period 1980-1990s.
Founded in 1918 by Adele Casagrande, originally it was as a leather and fur shop in Rome on Via del Plebizio. In 1925, Adele married Eduardo Fendi and they decided to change their name to Fendi.
After the end of WWII, all five daughters of the Fendi couple joined the company: Paola, Anna, Franca, Carla and Alda. The most important business decision of the sisters was the invitation of the young German designer Karl Lagerfeld. As a creative director, he came up with the famous Fendi logo for the House.
Traditionally, Fendi vintage decorations – statement jewelry of bold designs and catching eye massive earrings, brooches and necklaces. Made of textured metal or sterling silver tone, with the use of gold plating, enamel, glass and faux pearls, all pieces have logo FF on the back or front side, or just signed Fendi.
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