Mr. John vintage costume jewelry

31.03.2021

4 1 minute read

Mr. John vintage costume jewelry
The history of the company Mr. John Inc. began in New York in 1948 and ended exactly forty years later, in 1988. Born John Pico Harberger on March 14, 1902 in Munich, the son of a dressmaker, he received a versatile education, however, not related to jewelry or fashion design. As a teenager, he studied medicine at the University of Lucerne, Germany, and then studied art at the Sorbonne, France. At the age of 17, he immigrated to the United States with his mother. Madame Laurel taught her son a lot and actually introduced him to the world of fashion. The undoubted talent of an artist and designer, exquisite taste and craftsmanship allowed him to found his own company for the production of hats “Mr. John, Inc.”, New York, in 1948. Noteworthy, helping his mother, he made hats decorated with jewels long before the official registration of his own company.
Originally, brooches and pins with a shimmery brilliance were part of the hat design. Also, Mr. John made men’s cufflinks from metal alloy, silver and gold. Traditionally, the stylized markings “Mr. John” and “Sterling” were on the clasp of such cufflinks. Traditionally unmarked, his superbly crafted costume jewelry had original paper tags and was sold in boxes. Today, these jewelry pieces are extremely rare and have a high collection value.
The company ceased to exist in 1989, and John P. John died on 25 June 1993 in his apartment in Manhattan.

Called Christian Dior in the world of hats, he became famous Hollywood hat couturier of the 1940-80s. His hats graced the cover of Vogue many times, in 1943, 1944, 1946 and 1953. Many Hollywood divas and celebrities of the time preferred his hats. In particular, Mary Pickford, Greta Garbo, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Gloria Vanderbilt, Gloria Swenson, and the Duchess of Windsor. He made hats for Vivien Leigh in Gone With the Wind. Marilyn Monroe wore his hats in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and Marlene Dietrich in The Shanghai Express.