Kaleidoscope effect

Garden flowers in a basket. 24 K gold plated metal alloy. 4.3 cm. 1995. Inspired by Jan Brueghel the Elder’s painting. National gallery of arts NGA vintage costume jewelry

National gallery of arts NGA vintage costume jewelry

Amazing detailing of a basket brooch with luxurious garden flowers and berries, inspired by a 17th century engraving from the National Gallery in Washington, one of the ten most visited museums in the world. Produced in limited collections, all NGA jewelry is distinguished by quality of workmanship, and individual, recognizable style.
For several decades, many large museums have been producing extensive and varied collections of jewelry, based on old jewelry, paintings, decorative and applied arts kept in the collections and funds of these museums. Some of the most famous are the collections of jewelry of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (MFA), the Metropolitan Museum of art, or MMA, and the National gallery of Art (NGA). Earrings, necklaces, brooches with the markings of these museums have long been collectible items, and some of them have turned into real collectible rarities, and are in great demand among collectors and fans of costume jewelry.
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Snowflake brooch pin. White glitter enamel, blue rhinestones, silver tone alloy. 1990s. Kim Rogers vintage costume jewelry

Kim Rogers vintage costume jewelry
Registered in the category of Leather, Clothing, and Jewelry Products, trademark Kim Rogers began its activity in December 1993. The owner of KR – one of the oldest retail companies “Belk Stores Services Inc.”, located in in Charlotte, North Carolina. In addition to handbags, purses, wallets, carves, belts, gloves, and shoes, the company produced exquisite costume jewelry. Namely, pendants, rings, earrings, bracelets, necklaces, pins and brooches. Most of these vintage pieces – Christmas theme costume jewelry. Traditionally, the craftsmen use gold tone metal alloys, rhinestones, faux pearls, crystals, lucite, enamel and art glass. Sold on brand’s cards, or in original boxes, with paper tags, these decorations have no markings. According to sources, the country of manufacture is China.
Noteworthy, the name “KIM ROGERS” is fictitious and is not the name of any particular living individual.
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Multi colored rhinestones Christmas Tree brooch of gold tone. 1970s. Signed Tancer II vintage costume jewelry

Signed Tancer II vintage costume jewelry
The history of Tancer II began in June 1970, when former Coro designer and president Michael Tancer and his colleagues registered the new brand, since Coro ceased to exist. However, the company headed by Michael didn’t work long, as he filed for deletion of registration in May 1978. Although the history of Tancer spans eight years, their vintage pieces are popular, loved by jewelry lovers and highly collectible.
Traditionally, the designers of the company made Christmas costume jewelry using gold and silver tone alloy, multi-color rhinestones and glitter enamel.
Noteworthy, among the designers who contributed to the manufacture of Tancer jewelry were founders of Mylu Designs Co., former Coro designers, two sisters, Marge Borofsky and Lynne Gordon.
New York designer Michael Tancer had a long and heroic life. In particular, he was a veteran of WWII serving in the US Army Air Force Intelligence Unit. He had been happily married with his wife Francine Tancer for 55 years, until his death. He passed away on March 24, 2004.
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Black enamel gold tone abstract design brooch. 6 cm. 1980s. Nina Ricci vintage costume jewelry

Nina Ricci vintage costume jewelry

French fashion designer of Italian descent, born Maria Adeland Nieli, she became known to the world as Nina Ricci. In 1904 she married Luigi Ricci, a gardener and flower seller. They had a son – Robert. But the marriage did not last long. Soon Luigi dies and Nina Ricci is left alone with her little son in her arms. She will marry again only in 1916 for Gaston Morel. After the death of her first husband, Nina Ricci spent days and nights behind sketches and threads with a needle. In 1908, she was accepted into the Rafen fashion house as a designer. At the House she will work for over twenty years and even become a business partner. But Rafen House went bankrupt by the early 1930s and ceased to exist. Nina Ricci was going to retire, because she was already 50 years old.
But in 1932, at the insistence of her son Robert, she opens her own Fashion House – Nina Ricci. Dresses from Nina Ricci were certainly elegant and feminine. They had a certain sophistication and romance. Initially, the Nina Ricci Fashion House dealt exclusively with wedding dresses, and until now, wedding dresses from Nina Ricci are known all over the world.
Nina Ricci died in November 1970. Then her son Robert headed the company and worked there until his death in 1988. After him the management passed into the hands of her son-in-law – Gille Fuche.
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Cameo brooch. Metal alloy, rhinestones, art glass. 1990s. Lee Angel NY vintage costume jewelry

Lee Angel NY vintage costume jewelry

The history of American jewelry brand Lee Angel began in 1997, although its founder, Roxanne Assoulin, began making innovative jewelry more than forty years ago. Then, in the 1970s, she created hair accessories and leather bracelets, and already in the 1980s, she began making costume jewelry using semi-precious materials.
Founded in 1997 in the heart of Manhattan, New York, Lee Angel has been producing fashion jewelry for popular retailers and brands, such as Club Monaco, J. Crew, Banana Republic, American Eagle, Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters and others. Noteworthy, Roxanne Assoulin has many years of experience working with such iconic designers as Oscar de la Renta, Marc Jacobs, and Stephen Sprouse. According to sources, among her “star” clients are Madonna and Kate Hudson.
Traditionally, Lee Angel decorations are made from metal alloy of metals, brass, 12 K gold and semi-precious stones. Also, crystals of different cuts and colors, lucite, faux pearls, art glass, enamel, etc. She signs her private-label fashion jewelry “Lee Angel NY”, or just “Lee Angel”.
Despite the fact that Lee Angel jewelry is a new vintage, it is popular with lovers and collectors of vintage jewelry.
In 2013, Roxanne registered another brand, Lee By Lee Angel.
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Pink flower brooch. Sterling silver, gold plated, art glass, rhinestones. 8.4 cm. 1930s. Bennett & Bradford. Signed BB vintage costume jewelry

Signed BB vintage costume jewelry
Very often you can get confused in the markings of vintage costume jewelry, especially if they are almost the same and consist of two letters, for example, the initials BB. In fact, these pieces belong to completely different jewelry companies. Among several such brands, the most famous are four respected jewelry companies that produced costume jewelry in the 20th and even in the 19th century with the BB mark. In particular, Bioren Bros, Bennett & Bradford, Binder brothers, and Bliss bros. They can be distinguished, first of all, by the style of marking, and perhaps, by the technique and materials.
Noteworthy, the oldest of the three is Bioren Bros, located in Newark NJ, USA, and active in 1887-1929. Their hallmark was “B B” in a rounded rectangle.
Second, Bennett & Bradford, founded by E.A. Bennett in 1892 (renamed to BB in 1898). Traditionally, this company’s products are made of sterling silver with gold plating. The markings include two capital letters BB in an oval frame, and sometimes the word “sterling”.
Third, jewelry company Bliss bros began producing jewelry in 1896 and ceased to exist in the 1950s. Located in Attleboro, MA, they marked their products, mainly lockets, charms, buttons, pins and bracelets with two letters B. However, the style of marking differed greatly. Inside the large capital letter B was a smaller B in the top half, and CO in the bottom half.
Fourth, Binder brothers, New York-based company, which began operating in the 1920s, which gold plated jewelry is highly valuable and highly collectible. They marked their pieces with with double, overlapping circles with upper case B’s inside, and this is what sets it apart from the others. In addition, their markings also include the purity of the material, most often either 12 carat gold filling or sterling silver.
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Square shaped gold tone purple rhinestone clip on earrings. 1980s. Ellen Designs vintage costume jewelry

Ellen Designs vintage costume jewelry
The history of the vintage costume jewelry brand “Ellen Designs” is closely related to another, more famous and older brand, “Fashion craft Jewelry Company NYC”, founded in 1942. In 1951, when one of the three founders of this company, Robert Jeffy, took over the company, he renamed “Fashion craft” to “Robert Originals, Inc”. Robert Jaffe retired in 1975, and his daughter Ellen Jaffe Wagman and her husband John Wagman took over the business in January 1976. Initially, her pieces had markings “Ellen Designs for Robert Originals”. Apparently, the use of the name Robert was necessary for a more successful promotion of the new brand. However, having gained some popularity, already in 1979, Ellen changed the brand name to the shorter “Ellen Designs”. Ellen Designs Jewelry Company has worked for less than two decades and ceased to exist in the late 1990s. She started new job as broker at an American real estate company Prudential Douglas Elliman in March 2004. The jewelry of this brand, mainly earrings and clips, is a collectible vintage.
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