Kaleidoscope effect

Lighthouse vintage oval brooch. 4 cm. Gold tone jewelry alloy, polymer, handpainted. Stephen Barlow vintage costume jewelry

Traditionally, Stephen Barlow made his oval-shaped brooches on ivory-colored polymer base. Stunningly beautiful hand-painted plots included motifs inspired by nature – landscapes, birds and flowers. Collectors and lovers of vintage jewelry especially appreciate Barlow’s decorations of the 1980s-1990s. They have a special poetic and extraordinary beauty.
Opened in Providence in 1978, Barlow Desings, Inc. was a small design studio that created exquisite collections of jewelry. Also, gifts and accessories depicting Stephen Barlow’s engravings made in the scrimshaw technique. Especially popular and desirable among Americans are gifts for men from Barlow Desings. Among them stylish money clips, tie pins and sets of cufflinks, pocket knives, key rings, and much more. Traditionally, Barlow brand jewelry includes high quality and original design with various themes: sports, marine, floral or retro and so on. Artfully tinted by hand, each drawing or pattern emphasizes the beauty of engraving.
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Beautiful double leaf brooch of gold tone textured metal, faux pearl. Signed Marboux vintage costume jewelry

Signed Marboux vintage costume jewelry
Although I’ve already made a publication about Marcel Boucher/, but his Marboux brand deserves separate consideration. So, Boucher marked his products Marboux in the period from 1937 to 1955, as well as MB (1950 – 1955).
A talented French designer, Marcel Boucher was born in Paris in 1898. His mother worked as a seamstress, his father died when Marcel was still a child. Being the only son of the widow, he joined the corps of the French medical ambulance, instead of the front line during the First World War.
After the end of the war, Boucher worked at the Cartier jewelry house in Paris, and he started from the very bottom — as an apprentice. In 1922, Boucher accepts the proposal to become a designer at the New York branch of the “Cartier” firm.
After the default of 1929, the demand for jewelry fell sharply and Cartier’s business suffered a lot. In general, it was a turning point for many jewelry companies. That’s why, most jewelers turned to more affordable materials for creating costume jewelry. So, one might say, thanks to the crisis, costume jewelry business has flourished.
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Sunburst 1980s brooch. Gold tone metal, faux emerald cabochon, aurora borealis, marked Claire Deve Paris. Claire Deve vintage costume jewelry

Claire Deve vintage costume jewelry
Undoubtedly, France is one of two great countries (with the United States), which made the greatest contribution to the history of costume jewelry. Up until the end of the 20th century, many beautiful items came out of designers’s hands and are now welcome trophies of collectors. And it is quite a rarity when, during the life of a designer, his works become on par with Yves Saint Laurent, Chanel or Dior. This is the kind of fame Claire Deve has. Noteworthy, prices for her works from the 80s-90s start from 100 euros for small clips and go up.
Decorations by Claire Deve belong to the high fashion of the 1980-90s. The designer created jewelry for the most prestigious fashion designers, including Chanel, Jean Paul Gautier and Claude Montana.
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Easter bunny vintage brooch pin. Jewelry alloy, enamel, Swarovski crystals. 5 cm. Marked AS with a copyright sign, the first brand marking. Alfred Sung vintage costume jewelry

Alfred Sung vintage costume jewelry
Born on June 14, 1948, Alfred Sung grew up in Hong Kong. Canadian couturier of Chinese origin, Sung began his career in Paris and New York. In the early 1970s, he moved to Canada and created his own empire of fashionable clothes and accessories. Produced in small editions, Alfred Sung jewelry is quite rare.
In 1972, Alfred moved to Canada. There he gets a job as a designer in a company that produces sportswear. Gradually, Alfred begins to create their own small collection of clothes. And later, with the support of friends and with little savings, he founds his own business.
By 1989, Saul and Joseph Mimran, along with Sung, founded a company that was destined to change the world of the Canadian fashion industry. In the Alfred Sung product line, among other things, there were perfumes, glasses, wedding dresses, jewelry, fashion accessories and men’s clothing. The designer received a large number of awards at prestigious competitions and ceremonies of the fashion world.
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Thermometer brooch. Jewelry alloy, multicolor rhinestones, gold plated. Little Nemo vintage costume jewelry

Little Nemo vintage costume jewelry
You never get tired of being surprised by the fantasies of designers, inspired by completely unexpected things – from bicycles and televisions to books and a set of golf as the design of a future brooch. Just look at this brooch, with a working thermometer, by the way!
American company Little Nemo produced jewelry from 1913 to 1978 in Providence, RI. Its founders – Benjamin Brier and Sam Magid named the company after the Disney character popular in those years. The design of the jewelry Little Nemo has changed over time, yet, the most famous line of jewelry was so-called Czech style. Once, Little Nemo was a very successful company due to the quality stones (imported from around the world) and detailed, “old world” designs. According to sources, Little Nemo was the second largest costume jewelry company in the world, just behind legendary Coro. Noteworthy, the company made custom jewelry for Helena Rubenstein, Revlon and Walt Disney. About Little Nemo labeling. Most of the jewelry was sold only with paper tags, but some decorations included marks “Little Nemo”, L/N, LN, and LN/25.
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Basket on flowers gold tone brooch, multicolor crystal, glass cabochons. Signed Dodds 11 W 30 CT Inc. Dodds vintage costume jewelry

Dodds vintage costume jewelry
The history of the American company Dodds began in 1952. William Dodds was the successful owner of a plastic factory in Newark, New Jersey. Inspired by the jewelry boom in the United States, he, together with his partner, decided to open a subsidiary. They called it “Jewel Creations”. Noteworthy, in the mid-60s, William Dodds became the sole owner of the company and since then only Dodds mark has been used in his jewelery.
Located in close proximity to West 31 Street, Dodds’ production was on 11 W 30 Street. That’s explains such a strange marking “11 W 30 ST INC”.
Creating their jewelry pieces, Dodds masters used colored rhinestones, multi-colored stones and lucite. Traditionally of high quality, some Dodds jewelery has a voluminous design. Appreciated by collectors, Dodds vintage costume jewelry is quite rare.

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Gorgeous sunflower brooch of gold tone textured metal with large pearl insert in the middle. Carol Dauplaise vintage costume jewelry

Carol Dauplaise vintage costume jewelry
Marking Dauplaise – high-quality jewelry and original design first saw the light in 1979. 1980s. Produced in small collections, these decorations are rare and popular among collectors and lovers of vintage costume jewelry. The company founded by Carol Dauplaise in 1978, exists and and continues to produce jewelry to this day. Noteworthy, Carol Dauplaise worked with Mariam Haskell for a long time, from 1959 to 1978.
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