Kaleidoscope effect

Pansy Flower brooch. Silver, gilding, central decorative oval – guilloche enamel. 3.5 cm. Late XIX century. Norwegian Art Nouveau – Marius Hammer jewelry

Norwegian Art Nouveau – Marius Hammer jewelry
Marius Hammer was one of the rather famous masters of the Scandinavian Art Nouveau. He lived in Bergen and belonged to a family of hereditary Norwegian jewelers, many generations of which have preserved the traditions of northern goldsmithing. However, Marius himself, whose life years (1847 – 1927) occurred in a turbulently innovative period in decorative and applied art, experimented with traditional and new styles. Terefore, his decorations have a unique author’s look. This is undoubtedly modern, but the Hammer style is radically different from the typical Scandinavian modern style, with its simple lines and cool range of enamels. Marius Hummer usually filled the simple and symmetrical outer contour of the frame with filigree and additional decorative elements.
In his jewelry, he used the motifs of traditional Viking ornaments, but creatively transformed them, and, at the same time, managed to preserve the harmony of the ornament in his transformations. Undoubtedly, this testifies the master’s great talent and impressive knowledge in jewelry.
Read more »

The colors of the autumn leaf perfectly conveyed by garnets of different shades, as well as green and yellow diamonds. On the reverse side there is a tiny snail made from sapphire and diamonds. Japanese jewellery brand Gimel

Japanese jewellery brand Gimel
Talented Japanese designer Kaoru Kay Akihara founded her firm “Gimel” in 1992. She received an excellent education, studying, along with the economy, jewelry design and painting. In addition, studied the traditional Japanese art of ikebana and the laws of the tea ceremony. The latter clearly had an impact on the design of products of the firm “Gimel”. With the inherent subtlety of Japanese art, they embody elusive moments of the changing seasons, where ephemeral features of seasonal changes are noticeable. So, delicate pink spring buds, rich yellow tones of summer flowers, purple autumn leaves turn into jewelry with the help of carefully selected gems. According to Kaoru Kay Akihara, “history should be behind the decoration,” and many of her works are decorated with tiny details, for example, a small snail crawling on the inside of the brooch leaf – a secret that the jewelery owner can possess. Thanks to such details, Gimel products are unique and very special.
Japan’s natural beauty is a source of inspiration for Gimel masters. Someone wonders what is unusual in these familiar images: a leaf, a flower, a frog, a bird … The answer lies in the details – amazing precision and charm. Noteworthy, Akihara herself selects the smallest pebbles, because paints and shades are very important for her. With her work, she tries to capture the beauty of nature at its best moments, while the fire of life burns in it. The jeweler uses gems as a palette.
Read more »

Beautiful Angel Brooch. Silver tone metal, rhinestones, enamel. Kenneth Cole KC vintage costume jewelry

Kenneth Cole KC vintage costume jewelry
The American company Kenneth Cole KC appeared in 1982 named after its creator, Kenneth Cole, a brilliant American businessman and designer. Although Kenneth Cole deals mainly with clothes and footwear, but sometimes it pleases customers with new lines of costume jewelry. The main themes are Christmas, Halloween, St. Valentine’s, Independence and Thanksgiving Day. In addition, angels – one of the favorite stories of past collections. The main materials in his costume jewelery are jewelry alloy of silver and gold tone, pearlish enamel, as well as multicolor crystals and art glass.
Read more »

Natural stones, carved bone pendant-brooch. 1980s. Unique handmade Sajen costume jewelry

Unique handmade Sajen costume jewelry
In the mid-1980s, American jewelers Richard and Marianne Jacobs, inspired by Indonesian and Balinese ethnic ornaments, created their own Sajen line of jewelry. Translated from Indonesian, “Sajen” means “offer”. An amazing brand of jewelery, Sajen has grown into a whole stylistic direction, combining the European vintage style and aesthetics of Indonesia.
Jewelry is completely different from what was done in the 1980s. No cheap chic, plastic and pompous. Yes, the decorations are all rather massive, but the masters use only natural stones, and both stones and their combinations are quite rare. Also, beautiful cut and author drawings, and engravings. Everything together gives a feeling of something lunar, alien, and at the same time very organically accepted here on Earth.
Read more »

Kenneth Jay Lane clown brooch. Metal gold tone, enamel, rhinestones, Lucite. 6.4 cm. Clown jewelry symbolism and meaning

Clown jewelry symbolism and meaning
Every thing we wear carries on a certain symbol. This is especially true for jewelry. And in particular, brooches. Here is a little about CLOWN as a symbol.
The clown is a symbol of the mind. The clown scoffs at everything serious in the world, he is cynical and uses humor to show people that they are too serious. He reminds us that to be a man is to make mistakes, to laugh and fool around.
However, the clown is a dual symbol. On the one hand, he reminds that you need to laugh and not take all things very seriously, on the other – the clown is an ominous character.
Like the jester, the clown is the mystical sign of the transformed king — the inversion of the possessor of higher authority. Thus, the clown is a substitute victim (with a close astrobiological and primitive idea of ​​the ritual murder of the ruler). The clown is the last, while the king is the first, but in the mystical order of things the last becomes the second closest to the first.
Read more »

Tiger tulip bracelet. Vintage gold bracelet with diamonds and green garnets. 1994. Joel Arthur Rosenthal precious art JAR jewellery

Joel Arthur Rosenthal precious art JAR jewellery
The name JAR is actually an abbreviation of Joel Arthur Rosenthal. Meanwhile, in the biography of Joel Arthur there are a lot of white spots and mysterious circumstances. Being modest by nature, Joel never advertised the details of his personal life and never engaged in self-promotion. Born in New York, Rosenthal studied history at Harvard, worked in the film industry, and then with Bulgari, then settled in Paris and began producing his own jewelry.
JAR jewelry includes items in the form of flowers and branches, recreated from metal and covered with small precious stones. The blossoms of apricot, flaming camellias are in all their glory. Clover, carnations, pansies, lilies, lilacs and freesias.
Read more »

‘After the rain’ vintage brooch. Gilded brass, art glass. 5 cm. Stella and Dot costume jewellery

Stella and Dot costume jewellery
The American company for the production of costume jewelry Stella and Dot appeared in 2003. Its founder Jessica Herrin named her company after her grandmothers, Stella & Dot. Besides, she set a goal for herself to create a company that would help women make a good career, producing goods also for women. Since childhood, making jewelry for herself, she decided to turn her passion into a profession and very soon achieved amazing success. In particular, just a year and a half after the creation of Stella and Dot, its sales exceeded half a million dollars. According to sources, the company now entered the list of the 500 fastest growing US companies. Exclusive jewelry and accessories by Stella and Dot are created by famous designers in New York and presented in the series “Gossip Girl”, magazines “In Style” and “Lucky Magazine”.
In 2007, Blythe Harris became Jessica’s partner. The rebranded company began a new round of growth. Even the difficult years of the crisis did not stop its rapid development, and today the sales figure is more than one hundred million.
Read more »