I’m really excited to share with you all my savvy jewelry knowledge I’ve acquired for many years. This first article breaks down what to look for when buying costume jewelry.
My love of jewelry started at age 5 when my dad would come home from being on deployment in the Navy and bring me gifts from places he visited. Most of the time my gifts were jewelry mainly silver, some with a few gemstones.
I remember my dad pulling out a tray of rings all for me in small sizes that I could actually wear from ages 5 to 8. My mom also had some amazing pieces from Taiwan and Japan. She had rings designed in yellow gold with pearls, opals and diamonds. She also had necklaces and bracelets made with jade.
As an adult I started educating myself with the help of experts and a few friends about jewelry history, vintage pieces, designers old and new, gemstones, diamonds, cuts, color, metals, you name it. I love that a piece of jewelry always has a story to tell.
Now that you have a very brief backstory, let’s dive into how to buy quality costume jewelry and what to look for.
Costume jewelry has been around for 300 years and was traditionally made with semi-precious materials. It was made to complement outfits as part of fashion as opposed to fine jewelry which was regarded as sentiment.
The first thing you should look for when buying costume jewelry is the type of materials it’s made from. Let’s start with metal. There are several metal combinations that tend to last longer than others. I would look for 18K gold over silver or brass, rhodium plated over brass or silver and platinum over silver.
Secondly, look at how it’s made and put together from jump rings, clasps to chain links and solder work. Make sure that the craftsmanship is made like a piece of fine jewelry. I’m not talking about checking the flimsy junk jewelry from fast fashion you get at Target or Forever 21.
It’s better to buy costume jewelry that’s made with semi-precious stones or other semi-precious materials like lucite, bakelite, tortoise shell, crystals, manmade gemstones, real semi-precious gemstones, pewter, silver, leather, etc.
Lastly, inspect the latches, clasps and hooks on a piece of jewelry. Make sure they’re solid and not split anywhere. This is where good welding comes into play. You don’t want to lose a bracelet, necklace or earring because of a poorly made clasp, latch or hook.
My next article, I’ll share how to care for your costume jewelry and how to store them properly. Don’t want to miss this next post? Signup for my email in the pop-up or home page and get it directly to your inbox.
Below I’ve rounded up a few of my favorite costume jewelry designers. I own pieces from all of them and they’ve lasted for many years.
Earrings
Bracelets
Necklaces
Rings & Things
P.S. My Style Guide has many valuable tips on editing your wardrobe, shopping your closet, styling outfits, how to mix-n-match colors and prints and more.
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