Kaleidoscope effect

Ancient dancer (Egyptian motif) articulated legs vintage brooch. Jewelry alloy of gold and silver tone, enamel. Polcini Ledo vintage costume jewelry

Polcini Ledo vintage costume jewelry
The founder of the future jewelry brand Ralph Polcini moved from Italy to America at the beginning of the last century. In 1911, he founded the Polcini Company in Mamaroneck, not far from New York and began producing expensive jewelery. By 1949, Ralph renamed his company into a “Leading Jewelry Manufacturing Company” and changed the mark to Ledo. Thanks to these renames, you can quite accurately determine the age of a particular decoration. So, in 1949 the decorations had Ledo marks with capital letters. Decorations made from 1949 to 1962 had the name of the brand and year of manufacture. Since the beginning of the 1960s, decorations are beginning to be marked with the Polcini stamp.
Undoubtedly, jewelry marked Polcini and Ledo are genuine rarities. Made only by hand and with great skill and hign quality, his jewelry works surpassed many competitors. The basis for jewelry were expensive jewelry alloys and silver, often with a real gold coating, high-quality rhinestones, and natural stones.
Ralph Polcini died in 1954, having bequeathed the family business to his son Damon. Proud of his family business, in 1960, Damon returned the name Polcini to the company. However, in the early 1980s, the company Polcini ceased to exist.
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1970s vintage brooch with charms. Brass, silver tone jewelry alloy. Cara Stimmel costume jewelry

Cara Stimmel costume jewelry

Before starting to manufacture costume jewelry, Cara Stimmel created jewelry by hand in her home workshop. However, deciding to start the production of jewelry in larger quantities, Stimmel founded the eponymous jewelry company Cara jewelry LTD in 1987. Thus, having worked in the jewelry market for more than thirty years, Stimmel has achieved some success in business. She tried to keep up with fashion trends and created her own, unique designs using a new approach to her jewelry. In particular, along with the traditional jewelry alloy and glass, she uses found objects, details of watch mechanisms, creating steampunk jewelry. Thus, her products have become recognizable and loved by both collectors of vintage costume jewelry and fans of steampunk jewelry.
Exquisitely crafted, her artful original design make Cara Stimmel jewelry real work of art.
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Don’t hate me cause I am beautiful. Vintage brooch of Jewelry alloy of gold tone, enamel. 1980s. Tanya creations TC costume jewelry

Tanya creations TC costume jewelry
Noteworthy, this year has become the anniversary for the American company for the production of costume jewelry and accessories “Tanya creations”. Founded in 1978, Tanya Creations began its operations as a small workshop in Providence, Rhode Island. However, for forty years of successful work, this company has become one of the largest private-label costume jewelry designers and distributors in the United States. In addition to the offices located in the United States (New York), Tanya creations has offices abroad, for example, in China.
Traditionally, jewelers use jewelry alloy of gold and silver tones, and decorate their products with rhinestones, crystals and enamels. And this post, in particular, features TC vintage costume jewelry – seasonal and holiday decorations produced in 1980-1990-s. Marked TC, the handmade products have excellent workmanship, beautiful and creative design and reasonable price. All this makes them popular among lovers of costume jewelry.
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Alexis Bittar glowing costume jewelry

Alexis Bittar glowing costume jewelry
Created by Alexis Bittar jewelry – fantastic shining world, where exotic flowers and animals, ethnic ornaments and classical motifs easily coexist.
Bittar began acquaintance with the fashion world in 1983, when he got a job as a seller in a New York vintage clothing and jewelry store. Fascinated by Art Deco, René Lalique glass, Bakelite, lucite, semiprecious stones and metals, Alexis created his first jewelry collection (1988).
Meanwhile, his work began to bear fruit, especially, when Bergdorf Goodman, the fashion director at the department store, noticed him. Subsequently, Bittar developed jewelry lines for such famous companies as Saks Fifth Avenue, Harrod’s, Barneys New York, Burberry, Takashimaya, and more. Besides, he created decorations for the Cooper-Hewitt Museum and London Victoria and Albert. Noteworthy, the designer opened his first boutique in New York (2004), and the same year his decorations appeared in Estee Lauder advertising.
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1960s collectible brooch. Jewelry alloy of antique gold color, pendants with bezel crystals, inlay with intaglio of warm honey color. Intaglio – profile of the virgin goddess in glass. Goldette vintage costume jewelry

Goldette vintage costume jewelry
Amazing jewelry marked “Goldette” undoubtedly catches the eye and makes the heart beat faster! Its sophistication, magnificence and style are truly amazing! An incredible combination of colors, textures, materials and craftsmanship – all this speaks of the decorations of the company “Goldette N.Y.”.
Meanwhile, the history of the company began in 1955, thanks to its founder Ben Gartner. The owner of the trading company “Circle Jewelry Products Company”, he launched a line of exquisite jewelry under the brand name “Goldette N.Y.”. Noteworthy, the production of Goldette jewelry took place in Rhode Island, but the jewelry design was developed in New York.
Traditionally, Goldette jewelers used jewelry alloys of silver and gold tones, as well as alloy of beautiful antique color, known as Russian gold. In addition, complemented design with handmade cameos made from natural shells, intaglio with genre scenes, legionnaires’ profiles and neat female heads. Also, Austrian crystals of high quality, art glass, rhinestones and cabochons. To develop a unique style, Goldette N.Y. jewelers used the best traditions of jewelry art of the time. For example, gorgeous Art Deco and Art Nouveau decorations, or decorations in the style of the Victorian era.
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The king and queen paired brooch- chatelain (jeweler Urie Mandle), 1947. Sterling silver, enamel, glass, vintage rhinestones, gold-plated. 4 cm. Urie and Robert Mandle vintage costume jewelry

Mandle vintage costume jewelry

Mandle brand jewelery, produced in limited editions and executed with the highest level of craftsmanship, is undoubtedly a valuable acquisition for vintage jewelery collectors.
According to sources, the founder of the jewelers’ dynasty, Urie Mandle emigrated to America from Germany in the early 1920s. First, he began working as a salesman for the E. Cohn & Company, later renamed Cohn and Rosenberger, and then Coro. In the mid 1930s Urie Mandle joined Lisner, which at the time produced watches, gifts, hat pins, beads, etc. The task of Urie was to launch a line of jewelery in collaboration with local manufacturers. Prior to this, most Lisner jewelry was produced by European partners, in particular, Whiting and Davis made bracelets for Lisner.
Noteworthy, Urie Mandle left Lisner and founded his own company – Urie Mandle Corporation (1938), which began to specialize in the manufacture of costume jewelry. Meanwhile, for four years, the company has achieved unprecedented success, collaborated with the largest stores and became one of the most famous in its industry, after Coro. Robert Mandle, the son of Urie, also joined the family business, leaving a higher paying job of the film director.
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Black cat brooch. 1970s. Jewelry alloy, rhinestones, enamel. 4.5 cm. Steinmetz SFJ vintage costume jewelry

SFJ vintage costume jewelry
There is very little information about American jewelry company which produced costume jewelry marked SFJ. However, there are lots of beautiful vintage decorations marked SFJ, mostly brooches created in 1970s. Traditionally, the main inspiration for SFJ jewelry – Christmas, Halloween, and St. Valentine’s Day holidays. Besides, the common feature of all jewelry pieces – gold tone jewelry alloy, or brass, and enamel of bright colors.
According to some sources, abbreviation SFJ means Stephen’s Fine Jewelry. However, other sources mention SFJ as the trademark for R Steinmetz & Sons, the American company registered in Mumbai. Also, some sources mention the third person, whose original initials were S.F. and after the jeweler got married, she added the letter “J” to her label.
And I would be very grateful for any additional information about SFJ jewelry brand history.
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