Researching Vintage Costume Jewelry

Vintage costume jewelry is highly collectible today. The key to becoming a successful vintage costume jewelry collector requires researching or doing your homework before and after the pieces are acquired. Today’s consumers have access to information and resources not available to consumers in the past. I’d like to share some my tips on techniques and methods researching vintage costume jewelry.

I love vintage costume jewelry because it reminds me of the glamorous days of the 1920's, 30's, 40's, 50's, and 60's. As a child I remember my grandmother who wore beautiful pieces of rhinestone jewelry. I have a few pieces I have inherited from my Grandmother. One day surfing on the internet I came across information on vintage jewelry. I then found a piece identical to one of my grandmothers for sale and was amazed at how much it was worth! Since my grandmother’s jewelry holds more sentimental value to me I can’t possibly sell it.

Once I began looking into vintage costume jewelry I couldn’t stop! I forgot how much I loved vintage jewelry as a child. I then started to buy pieces from online auctions and local flea markets (the fun part in my book!) that I thought I could make a small profit on based on my limited knowledge and the little research I did online. Long story short my passion led to starting a new e-commerce business called Vintage Glamour at www.rubylane.com/shops/vintageglamour . As my customers or visitors I wanted to give you some tools to enable you to make better purchasing decisions.

Before I knew it I had acquired several pieces and making a decision on one or more venues to sell my inventory became a priority. I was invited to share a booth at a local antique fair with a tax client of mine who has owned a small antique business the last several years selling at auctions and antique malls. My client became an invaluable source of information. I located other vintage jewelry vendors to see what they were selling. I was able to speak to a few of them to find out what venues they currently use and what didn’t work for them. After only one antique fair my decision was easy. I chose to open an e-commerce site, but of course it took additional research to finally decide to list my online shop with Ruby Lane.

Tip #1: Learning from others who have the skills, resources, and knowledge – quick and effective.
Who do you know that has or may have some knowledge you could gain from? Is there someone you know that may know of someone you could contact? Learning is most effective by hands on, watching, and listening to others. As you do your research you will find a lot of conflicting information. One source may tell you one thing and another source may tell you something different. I always tell my clients any professional advice should be verified with the source. For example, one of your contacts tells you a specific trait or mark on a piece indicates a valuable piece. To ensure the validity of this person’s statement, try to back up the statement with a verifiable source such as the manufacturer or published book on the subject. If you made the purchase without verifying the information a collector may make a costly mistake if the information was wrong.

When I first began buying I didn’t have a guideline to go by. When I saw a piece I was interested in buying I would search the internet to find identical or like items on other vintage jewelry websites. The internet is one of the BEST places to do your research!

Tip #2 Research on the internet, the world wide web!
Sellers are no longer in the driver’s seat with today’s internet savvy consumers. With instant information available at our fingertips, we have no excuse not to do our research BEFORE we buy! Researching using internet browsers such as Yahoo.com, MSN.com, Google.com, AOL.com, and ALTAVISTA.com on one or more will give you information such as:
1. Locate and find a specific or similar piece.
2. Finding current fair market values of vintage costume jewelry. Go to online auction sites such as www.rubylane.com/jewelry.html, http://www.ebay.com/, and http://www.goantiques.com/
3. Articles and information on a vintage jewelry such as manufactures and designer marks. A great site to research costume jewelry is http://www.illusionjewels.com/costumejewelrymarks.html
4. E-Commerce sites selling vintage jewelry – go to www.rubylane.com/shops/vintageglamour
5. Pictures of jewelry
6. Books for sale about vintage jewelry
7. There is probably more, but I will leave you to find it!

In the beginning I only used the internet to do my research. I went to the book store and after looking at all of the books on vintage jewelry I decided on buying two written by Julia Carroll – Collecting Costume Jewelry 101 and Collecting Costume Jewelry 202. I would definitely recommend her books if you’re looking for a book on vintage jewelry. Go to her website at http://collectingcostumejewelry101.com/index.htm where you will find additional sources of information. In her first book beginning on page 10 she describes the GUIDE in detail.

Tip #3 Evaluate the quality and condition of the jewelry by using the GUIDE acroynym (Carroll, Julia C. Collecting Costume Jewelry 101, Second Edition. Paducah, KY; Collector Books 2008)

G – Is the piece in GOOD condition? To determine good condition you will need to examining the stones, metal, and hardware.

U – Do YOU like it? When buying for your own collection avoid buying what you don’t like unless it’s for investment purposes only.

I – Is it Good INVESTMENT? You are buying something that appreciates over time.

D – Is the piece signed by the DESIGNER? Is the piece well designed?

E Are there any EXTRAS that make the item more interesting?


Becoming a successful collector requires investing a lot of time learning and researching. I hope you find my tips on research techniques and methods a valuable source before your next vintage costume jewelry purchase.