We all know only too well that jewellery encrusted with diamonds, rubies, sapphires and emeralds costing millions apiece tends to moulder away in strong rooms, deposit boxes and various other safe places, either waiting to be put up for auction or for an executor to dispose of the estate. Only a little of it is lucky enough to see the light of day for longer than when it was on the jeweller’s workbench.
The idea of costume jewellery appeared in the 20th century. It was out of the question to manufacture jewellery from precious stones and metals twice a year for every new collection because of the eye-watering cost. Fashion houses weren’t ready to take risks like that or for that sort of expenditure. On top of that, for the exact same reasons jewellers tried not to experiment with design and produced things that they were certain would sell. That didn’t suit fashion designers, who were keen that every new garment should take your breath away. The exception was items produced for private family collections. Non-precious materials came to their aid. Initially faux jewellery was made in the form of mock-ups exclusively for closed shows intended to bring out or complement some outfit or another. The client had the opportunity of commissioning from the jeweller whatever had taken her fancy, to be made in accordance with the mock-up, only this time from precious materials. Soon both designers and clients realised that the mock-ups weren’t at all bad in their own right and the materials and stones that were used were simpler and easier to work, which allowed for new heights of design to be scaled.
Jewellery from non-precious materials made a bashful entrance to fashion at the beginning of the 20th century, along with the new wave of designers who followed in the wake of the fathers of haute couture, Worth and Doucet, and by the 1920s it had firmly established itself in the fashion pantheon thanks to celebrated couturiers of the day.
After that there followed a period of oblivion since for two decades Europe was immersed in a far from peaceful time of wars and revolutions. Women’s clothing of that era did its best to look like men’s and representatives of the fair sex were preoccupied by matters of social equality to such an extent that they forgot who a girl’s best friends are. Then in the late 1940s Christian Dior reawakened the interest in costume jewellery, which had fallen sound asleep, with a passionate kiss from the New Look. The market for costume jewellery reached its height in the 1950s-70s when it became an indispensable part of any fashionable look. Things had taken a different turn by the time the 1980s came around, although that decade also left its mark for all the right reasons.
Throughout the 20th century a huge number of people, both talented and less so, have longed desperately to inscribe their name and as indelibly as possible on the wall of honour of costume jewellery. But in my view there are three names that will always stand out – Robert Goossens,Gripoix and Jacques Gautier.
Up until the 1980s, nearly 60 percent of all costume jewellery was made by these top designers, from the sketch designs right through to the finished product. For several decades YSL, Chanel, Dior and a host of other top fashion houses worked with them. Most of the items that this trio produced are to be found in private collections and are true designer pieces by a designer with a capital ‘d’. Many of them were produced to a limited run of no more than 10.
The veteran of this Stakhanovite drive in costume jewellery was the maison YSL, but that takes nothing away even from those products of theirs, which had the longest run.
In order to work out which items to buy and what’s hot property the first thing you need to do is to get a proper sense of what has got you interested in faux jewellery in the first place. If you just want to keep pace with a trend, plain and simple, although in a way that’s anything but, to draw gazes of burning envy and to be able to elicit the odd question like “Where did you get that?” or “What’s the brand?” then buy something from the 1980s or early 90s – large stud earrings by Gripoix, say; geometrically patterned fashion jewellery by YSL made of plastic, metal or non-precious stones; crosses or long ropes from Chanel by Goossens of brass and drops of coloured crystal. If you want to delve more deeply, then look for the work of less well known producers. Although it’s not easy, it’s worth making the effort to track down the designer costume jewellery produced independently by Isabel Canovas,who used to work for Dior.
Her work – executed in a thoroughly ethnic style using warm metallic tones and semi-precious stones – is for card-carrying connoisseurs of costume jewellery. If it’s for your own wardrobe, then don’t be shy about buying unsigned pieces – they often yield nothing in design and may be one-off items by famous producers.
Opportunities to buy costume jewellery at auctions such as Auction Atrium, for example, don’t come up that all that often and the ultimate cost will be fairly high. You’re better off looking out for closed sales where private collections are being sold off cheap and you can pick up real masterpieces for a very nice price. If you have the time, it’s worth setting aside a few days or even weeks for poking around antiques markets. At the better known ones such as Saint Germain-des-Prés in Paris and Portobello Road in London you’ll pay more, but at the less famous ones on the outskirts of Brussels and Lille the prices can be pleasantly surprising. Get talking to your fellow browsers and you might get an invitation to one of those very same closed sales of private collections. If all this has engendered a desire to set up a business or invest money – as opposed to just seeking aesthetic enjoyment – then buy Art Deco jewellery from the 1920s and 30s such as Lanvin or else 1940s or Art Nouveau or Liberty jewelery.
Buy jewellery made from large crystals, of complex natural and mineral hues. A scattering of rhinestones arranged with superb artistry may sometimes weary, but will never fall in value. Check that the item has the manufacturer’s stamp, is signed on the underside or has a certificate of authenticity. If you’ve decided to cast caution to the wind, then try your luck buying costume jewellery on Ebay: it can often work out substantially cheaper, but remember – there are no safeguards against counterfeits or defects. Making a purchase on Ebay is like internet dating: it’s quite possible that things won’t go any further than the initial approach, you don’t have any opportunity to make a close inspection, you need to prepare yourself for possible disappointment and you have no recourse if something goes wrong. Then again, it’s entirely possible for every one in five purchases to be ideal. Basically it’s a lottery. If, in spite of everything, you’ve decided to go with internet shopping, then try www.beladora.com, an on-line dealer in antique and estate jewellery, as there are more guarantees to be had here. And if you do, then I advise you to be in Beverly Hills where the head office of the firm is located on the day when the sale goes through as it will make it a lot easier to return anything or to exchange the goods if that proves to be necessary.
In Russia and the USSR there was no culture of costume jewellery as such and so for the moment there are few people with a proper appreciation of the magic of this art form and, more importantly, the ability to use it for peaceful ends. Both in their own country and abroad, Russian clients are as taken aback as they always used to be and turn up their noses when they hear that something is made of materials somewhat different from the more familiar gold, platinum, rubies and diamonds. Few of them realise that rare pieces of costume jewellery can cost more than normal fine jewellery. So you have every chance of becoming a highly fashionable aesthete and connoisseur, who doesn’t just follow trends but sets them. One piece of advice: try not to wear vintage faux jewellery with vintage clothing if you find it difficult to know when to stop, as otherwise there’s a high likelihood that you’ll end up looking decked out like a Christmas tree. Play it for contrasts. Then again, there’s an exception to every rule.