A Brooch Beyond Reproach

This big beautiful antique brooch in shimmering sterling is the epitome of art nouveau design, featuring a lovely lady framed by her flowing tresses and sinuous flowers. Art nouveau was an artistic movement from the 1890s through 1910s that looked to nature for inspiration and is exemplified by undulating lines, giving the feeling of movement. It was a reaction against staid academic art and the overdone and eclectic Victorian decor. The term, meaning "New Art," was first used in the 1880s, but was popularized by the opening in 1895 of the Maison de l'Art Nouveau, an art gallery in Paris. 

The brooch has a "C' clasp, so-called because the pin is held closed by a simple curved piece of metal; this type of clasp is generally found on jewelry from the 1850s through the 1910s, before the safety clasp came into wide use. On the back, the pin carries the intertwined "U" and "B" mark of Unger Brothers, surrounded by the words "Sterling 925 Fine."

Unger Brothers was founded by Herman Unger and his four brothers in the early 1870s. The company is renown for its intricate and beautifully crafted art nouveau sterling jewelry, as well as dressing table sets , perfume bottles, pocket knives, cigarette cases, belt buckles, and other luxury ware. Unger Brother was sold in 1919.

Glamor Puss

Cast in crystal that seems to glow from within, this beautiful brooch features a fancy feline.

On the back it carries the name of its maker, the famed French firm of Lalique.

 Lalique, renown today for its fine crystal and jewelry, as well as other luxury goods, was founded by René Lalique in the 1888, who began his career as a jeweler creating delicate and striking art nouveau designs. In 1905, he opened a new shop that offered not only jewelry, but elegant glass objects as well. Lalique soon began producing elaborate perfume bottles for makers such as Coty and by the 1920s, Lalique glass was considered some of the finest in the world. After René's death in 1945, the company passed on to his son, Marc, who began manufacturing Lalique's glass designs in fine lead crystal, as well creating new jewelry designs. This pretty kitty is a retired design and is no longer available from Lalique.

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

15659-1811

Terrific Trifari

This pretty pussycat pin with gleaming green eyes is a very collectible piece from Trifari, an American company renown for its beautifully crafted costume jewelry. 

As big as it is beautiful, this vintage brooch displays the solid construction, meticulous detail, and creative craftsmanship that Trifari was famous for. This fascinating feline would enhance any outfit.

Trifari was founded in 1919 by Gustavo Trifari, who came from an Italian family of goldsmiths. Collectors agree that the force behind Trifari's quality and creative designs was designer Alfred Philippe, who joined Trifari in 1930. Philippe had previously worked for high-end fine jewelry companies Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels and he applied the same craftsmanship,  fabrication techniques, and quality control to Trifari's pieces. Philippe remained with Trifari as the lead designer until he retired in 1968, and collectors consider the pieces produced during Philippe's tenure among some of the finest and most desirable pieces of collectible costume jewelry.  Trifari designed custom pieces for Broadway and Hollywood stars and Mamie Eisenhower even wore Trifari to her husband's inauguration. 

Philippe introduced the famous Trifari crown brooches, enhanced by shimmering stones, and the pins were so popular that Trifari added a crown to its signature mark around 1937. This classy cat carries the Crown Trifari mark with a copyright symbol, dating it from 1955 to 1969. 

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

15725-4

A Collectible Costume Gem

This big beautiful brooch is a scarce vintage piece by designer Gray Kingsburg. Working in New York  from the 1920s through the 1940s, his pieces are know for their bold design and meticulous metalwork, especially his use of delicate filigree details. Kingsburg adorned his works with art glass gems and beads. Many of his designs incorporate Asian or Oriental elements, such as as the finely carved cinnabar beads bedecking this brooch.

The precious pin carries Kingsburg's plaque on the back. This unusual hand-crafted creation would be the perfect gift for a collector of costume jewelry or for an enthusiast of vintage couture.  

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

15634-185

Pretty Kitty!

This big bold vintage brooch is signed by the renown Mexican jewelry designer, Margot von Voorhies Carr, also known as Margot of Taxco.   Of shining sterling silver, with glowing amethyst eyes, this fantastic feline is a purr-fect example of Margot's creative and eye-catching designs. Her jewelry is highly sought after by collectors.   Born in the United States, Margot arrived in Mexico in 1937, where she met and married Antonio Castillo.  They settled in Taxco, a center for the production of sterling silver jewelry, flatware, and objects.  There Castillo opened Los Castillo Taller, where Margot worked as the atelier's principal designer.  After the couple divorced, in 1948 Margot set up her own taller (workshop).  Her pieces incorporated designs inspired by pre-Columbian artifacts and Mexican art.  However, following a fire in 1960 that forced her to move her studio, Margot began to suffer financial difficulties, closing her workshop in 1978. 

On the back, the brooch is clearly stamped "Margot de Taxco." The eagle stamp was issued by the Mexican government and identifies either the city of assay or the manufacturer. In the piece, the eagle carries the number "16" on its chest, the assay number registered to Margot. Other marks are "Sterling," and "5220," with is the production number.

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

15145-49

Extraordinary Eisenberg

The holidays are a time to shimmer and shine, and is big, bold, and beautiful brooch certainly does that!  This vintage brooch is by Eisenberg Jewelry, one of the most respected producers of fine quality high-hind costume gems.  Eisenberg and Sons started in 1914 as a clothing company, but began to create costume jewelry to complement its clothing displays.  However the finely-crafted jewelry was so popular, retailers and customers began to clamor more for the adornments than the outfits.  Eisenberg took the hint and began to sell its jewelry.  Although the earliest pieces are unmarked, beginning in 1935 the company stamped its creations "Eisenger Original," using this mark through the late 1940s.  These early Eisenberg pieces used fine crystals from Austria and Czechoslovakia and catered to an upscale audience, with some pieces selling for almost $100!  Eisenberg is still a renown name in costume jewelry today, but its vintage pieces, like this large and lovely pin, are highly sought after by collectors.

The brooch is stamped "Eisenberg Original," dating it from the mid-1930s through the 1940s.

All posted items are for sale at Next-to-New, but things can sell quickly!

1993-843

Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries. . .

. . . especially when you go through it wearing this big beautiful vintage brooch by famed jewelry designer Guglielmo Cini (1903-1979). Born in Florence, Italy, Cini opened the Сini Jewelry Company in 1922 in Boston, Massachusetts, later moving the company to Laguna Beach, California.  Cini created an opulent tiny toiletry set of gold, platinum, and diamonds for actress Colleen Moore's Fairy Castle, as well as a platinum engagement ring, adorned with a full cut diamond, so diminutive it would not slide over a straight pin.  Created between 1928 and 1935, with contributions by over 700 artists and craftsmen, the Castle was displayed throughout the United States, raising money for charity (it is currently on display at the Museum of Science + Industry in Chicago).

Of shimmering sterling silver, this pretty pin displays Cini's extraordinary skill in sculpting delicate details and capturing natural forms.  It is signed on the back of one of the leaves.