So a few years ago my mother sent me a bunch of jewelry she had that was her mother’s and I recently pulled it all out to have a look. There are some stunning pieces and some crazy stuff, all of it costume from what I can tell but I thought it would be fun to share and document what all I have here.
There might be a couple of things my mother passed to me that were hers mixed in, hopefully she will shed some light in the comments or share a story about any of the bits she may have memories attached to.
If you follow me on Instagram or notice my side panel Instagram widget you may recognize a few, I was posting some a few months ago.
Also, a quick disclaimer and apology on the quality of the photography, I’m certainly not anywhere near a professional photographer and I was using my phone so I apologize for the quality … many of the pieces were very sparkly which made the shots difficult as well. Moving forward…
We begin with earrings, these are almost all clip on style (ouch!):
Necklaces, pins and charms:
Rings and bracelets:
Next we have the Rhinestone and faux pearls:
And finally we come to the watches, a couple of which I found are wind up and still work!
All of these should easily qualify as vintage if not antique but I have no idea if there is any value to any of them. This site describes the difference and it’s saying antique generally is anything over 100 years old…I wonder if some of these pieces might be approaching that range.
It was fun going through them, admittedly I have worn several pieces and intend to take good care of these for years to come.
Life Notes 
Fun! I especially like the wind up watches. It’s cool that you have these things. The memories of the person attached to those objects must also be precious.
I don’t have many memories of her other than receiving Christmas and Birthday cards and a visit now and then, in fact the only memory I have of going to see her was when Grandpa died when I was in high school but I’m sure we did visit when I was younger and I just doing recall it – my memory sucks.
She lived in another state and passed away many years ago. So I think of it more as a way of honoring her. From my Dad’s side I have the China set from Grandma. So, it’s nice to have something from each side and I can possible pass them down to someone.
I love the craftsmanship of great vintage jewelry. The baubles and bling of days long since past make me envious. The time of women accessorize get and dressing with taste and detail has faded into the sands of time. I wish we could hold these pieces and catch glimpses of where they were worn, purchased, loved and displayed!!! This is a beautiful piece of family history. I hope your mom chimes in too!
Thanks, and I so agree. Dressing up was more thoughtful in previous generations. I love that statement necklaces are a thing now and hope that stays around as a trend.
It would be fantastic to see photos of her wearing some of it but I don’t recall seeing any photos of the Grandparents at all.
That would be awesome to see the outfits she dolled up with these beautiful pieces. I believe that once we find a trend that speaks to us, it never goes out of style. I’m just happy that the “culotte” phase was not it for me!
Indeed, culottes should stay in the 80’s.
I think I would have liked grandma. We have similar taste. Luck you!
What you have here is excellent. I am a vintage seller/and hoarder. Vintage costume jewelry is actually very desirable. What you have is worth a decent amount of money beleive it or not. Look for pieces that are designer signed. A Miriam Haskell set can sell for up to or around $400.00 …. anything with a lot of gemstones is worth something reguardless of it being designer signed. I love this post.
Thank you for sharing the info and appreciating.
No problem if you have any questions about it go on ahead and ask. In general the sellers on Etsy have the most accurate prices. Ebay is o.k. but mainly it seems the sellers are just trying to get rid of stuff, and consumers are looking for a bargain. Just my opinion 🙂
Thanks, at this point I am not looking to sell though.
Oh no dont. Never sell it, you will feel very sad if you do. It is best to buy the stuff elsewhere, and sell that.
My reply didnt post
Lets try this again…
What you have is excellent. Beleive it or not vintage costume jewelry is actually very desirable. Look to see if any of it is designer signed and google it. For example a Miriam Haskell set can go for up to, or around $400.00. Even if it only says “Japan” on it, something like this is worth something as well because it was handmade in occupied Japan post WWII.
Thank you for sharing the info and appreciating.
….pieces that are not designer signed can be worth something also assuming it has lots of rhinestones and is in good condition.
Hey I loved seeing your Jewelry!!