Antique Costume Jewelry Dealer

Antique Costume Jewelry Buyer

Costume jewelry has a long, intricate past of new styles, designs, and types of materials. In the past, costume jewelry may have been considered a junk item, but antique costume jewelry collectors have proven that these non-precious items are in the same class of beauty as many other traditional types of fine jewelry.

Furthermore, collectors and NYC antique costume jewelry dealers revel in the immense value that many New York antique costume jewelry pieces have brought when sold in the antique market today. We have been buying collections of vintage costume jewelry for over 40 years.

The Rise of Vintage Costume Jewelry

Society has a long-standing history of using jewelry to enhance one’s appearance. Fine jewelry was worn by the richest women, throughout history, as a status symbol of their husband’s wealth.

From the 18th to the late 19th century, several new items, such as paste or rhinestones, were created to imitate the stunning quality found in precious stones. However, costume jewelry wasn’t widely known until the 1920s when Coco Chanel introduced her line of statement-making, metallic pieces, which were usually in the shape of flowers or animals. These Chanel pieces were designed as an expression of art and fashion rather than a status symbol.

Types of Antique Costume Jewelry

There are many different types of antique costume jewelry, which range from pendants to rings and everything in-between.

  • Costume Jewelry Monkey BroochNecklaces, Rings and Earrings – Many antique costume jewelry pieces may be made from paste or rhinestones. As the trends of using rhinestones and the iridescent paste grew, many costume rings, necklaces, earrings, rings, pendants, and parures were created to mirror the high-class of traditional, fine jewelry.
  • Parures – This is actually a term for a matching set of jewels, and many New York antique costume jewelry pieces were created to mirror one another on different pieces of jewelry, e.g. a matching brooch and pendant.
  • Bangles – NYC antique costume jewelry buyers have seen thousands of the Bakelite bangles, which were in high-demand from the 1920s to the 1960s due to their bright, florescent colors and easy-to-manipulate material.
  • Bracelets – With the initial designs by Coco Chanel, the rise of bulky, bold bracelets was exponential.
  • Dress and Fur Clips – These pieces of costume jewelry were used to add an extra flair of elegance to an otherwise ordinary piece. During the time of the Great Depression, many people had to keep their current items of clothing appearing new with the addition of costume jewelry. The Pell Jewelry Company became one of the dominant users of rhinestones by setting rhinestones into the clasps of brooches.
  • Pins and Brooches – A new style of costume jewelry was born in 1941 when the Pell Jewelry Company became one of the dominant users of rhinestones. The Pell Jewelry Company set rhinestones into brooches instead of gluing them in place.

About Syl-Lee Antiques

Syl-Lee Antiques is a family-owned and operated business, buying and selling antiques in the New York City and Long Island markets for over 40 years. We schedule home visits for a free appraisal, you are under no obligation to sell to us. If you wish to sell us your costume jewelry, we will purchase it for cash on the spot. Our family looks forward to doing business with you.

What’s Next? Syl-Lee routinely purchases antique costume jewelry designed by Coro, Haskell, Trifari, Chanel, Monet and others.

Syl-Lee Antiques — NYC Antiques Buyer
Call us at (212) 366-9466 to schedule your in-home antique evaluation or contact us via email.