Romancing the "Stones" in Vintage Costume Jewelry
It is our desire to develop a blog that is fun, informative, and can also be be used as a reference tool. With that goal in mind we are going to take a quick look at the most common stones used in costume jewelry design and manufacturing. By no means are we experts on this subject, but we did some research and learned some things along the way. We know that there are members on TeamLove with much more knowledge on this subject than we have. So for those of you who are GIA certified, etc. we risk boring you. . . . but we hope that you enjoy seeing the jewelry we've selected from our team and beyond to highlight each part of the article.
First, we need to define what glass is -- it
is a substance made of a mixture of silicates created by a fusion of sand and flux. There are over 200 different types of glass on the market, but only a very few of these can be used in jewelry making. The process of making glass d
ates back at least 3500 years. Very early glass was used for making beads and talismans.Types of Glass
Venetian Glass -- a type of glass made in Venice, primarily on the island of Murano. It is world renowned for being colorful, elaborate and very skilfully made. By the 15th century Venetians were producing some of the world's most prized glass -- known as "cristallo". Venetian glass is still very popular today.
Poured Glass - This is a term that is often used incorrectly. For example the metal framed glass petals used by Trifari in the 1950s in white and opaque colors are often referred to as poured glass. While beautiful and collectible they are not poured glass. Poured glass pieces can look a bit rough from the back of the piece; because it is created by actually pouring molten glass into a metal frame .
It is both rare and expensive. The most renowned poured glass is the that which was developed and produced at the House of Gripoix (see Gripoix below). Most of their early pieces were created for European Royalty and Couture Houses and they are gorgeous and of course quite valuable.
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Gripoix Glass: In 1869 a Parisienne glass worker by the name of Augustine Gripoix developed this sophisticated technique for setting colored cast glass in intricate metal mountings. "Pate de verde" or glass paste is formed when molten glass is poured into a mold, instead of kiln firing a paste of ground glass and binding agents. Since this time Pate de verde has leant itself to very high end jewelry pieces in a wide range of shapes and colors. Initially, it was Royalty that drove these creations as they were asking for replicas of their precious jewels to be made.
Unfortunately, a significant number of the glass stones that are being identified as Gripoix are just pretty glass cabochons but are not Gripoix glass. It was just too expensive (and still is), to use this type of handcrafted French glass in less expensive pieces. The House of Gripoix stones will be found in jewelry crafted by Couture Design Firms. A very small amount of jewelry has ever been produced bearing the Gripoix name. You can find their stones in these Couture houses -
- Chanel
- Dior
- Karl Lagerfield
- Balenciaga
- Givenchy
- Cardin
- YSL, and more
Glass Beads - The oldest and most common element in jewelry. The beads are often named after the process used to create them. Glass beads are one of the most diverse decorative effects used in jewelry. Beads can come in almost any shape and color, or combinations of colors, making them fundamental to the making of costume jewelry.
A few types of beads:
- Cut beads
- Lamp beads
- Drawn glass beads
- Molded glass beads
- Wound glass beads
Crystal - This is a top quality type of glass. The process of making crystal dates to ancient times -- quartz, sand, soda, and potash are mixed and heated to 1500C, then lead oxide is added. The result looks very much like natural crystal, thus the name. In ancient Egypt this beautiful glass was considered a luxury with as much value as precious gemstone jewelry.
Common Cuts used for Crystal
Conventional cuts - round, baguette, spherical, oval, conical, antique-square, antique-rectangle, triangluar, bear form or drop form, and navette or marquis (and more)
Fantasy Cuts - unconventional forms such as hearts, coat of arms, crescents, rivolis (see below), a 32 faceted cut for a round or rectangular (rivoli carre') cut, and many others.
Bohemian Crystal Glass - is a glass that is hard to melt and lends itself to luxury glass goods and glass beads and stones.
Two hundred after the Venetians developed cristallo the glass industry in Bohemia was becoming a serious rival. Early Bohemian glass was less fragile and more suited for bowls and objects with curves than in small cuts for jewelry. |
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Lead Crystal - Also known as English crystal, this crystal is hard to melt and has a high light refraction and iridescence. It is used for luxury glass goods such as fine stemware, and glass stones and beads.
Lead crystal was developed in 1676 England by George Ravenscroft, a glass maker. His discovery led to a strong transparent glass that rivaled the Venetian cristallo. Ravenscroft's discovery of lead crystal began to dominate the glass market. Just like with diamonds "raw" crystal requires cutting and polishing of the facets to bring out the brilliancy.
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Rhinestones
Also known as paste or diamante (most often used with European pieces), these sparkling jewels are used to imitate diamonds and gemstones.
These beautiful glass stones have their origins in Austria, (Swarovski), Czechoslovakia, and Germany. Austrian stones are widely held to have the most brilliance, and believed to experience less loss of foil and discoloration with age. However, it should be said that storing any rhinestone jewelry in excessive heat, cold, or damp environments can lead to damage of even the highest quality stones.Made of rock crystal, acrylic, and leaded glass, the earliest "fakes" were originally called paste or diamante, as well as strass after their originator. In the late 18th century Georg Friedrich Strass first mimicked diamonds by coating glass with metal powder.
In the early years (1800s - early 1900s) paste stones had a smaller diameter table or top and were often taller than later stones. You should remember some of these older stones have survived and been re-used in more recent pieces. (If you use the table and height of a stone for dating a piece, you also need to consider the item in totality -- all of the construction and materials -- for the rhinestone could be older.) Other rhinestones of this period had multiple facets on the top with flat backs. These stones were rarely used after the early 1900s.
The newer round rhinestones tend to be shaped more like diamonds and gems. It was in the late 19th century that Austrian jeweler Daniel Swarovski produced the first rhinestones as we think of them today. He used foil backing, which made his high-quality faceted crystals almost indistinguishable from diamonds. Demand was so great he patented a mechanical cutter so his "stones" could be mass produced. As the demand grew Swarovski relocated his business to Austria near the Rhine River in 1895, and these amazing gems have been known as rhinestones ever since.
Note: The use of the terms navette (marquis) and chaton (round) are colloquialisms used in the Costume Jewelry world that have not crossed over to the world of fine jewelry. In fine jewelry these shapes or cuts continue to be called marquis and rounds respectively.
Due to the increased availability with the advent of mass production, rhinestones were used in the Art Nouveau period, but it was in the 1920s that the real sea change occurred when Coco Chanel became a fan of Costume Jewelry. In the aftermath of the Great Depression it was Chanel's interest, as well as that of Elsa Schiaparelli, who was living in Paris at this time, that helped to launch the most inspired interest in Costume Jewelry world wide.
Fancy Rhinestones
Rivoli: This is a multi-faceted foiled glass stone manufactured by Swarovski. These beautiful stones were first used in the 1950s. Some characteristics are:
- Pointed tops
- Flat backs
- Rivoli refers to the shape not the color
- Can be solid or bi-color
- Clear rivoli stones are often called "Headlight" stones
- Not to be confused with inverted rhinestones
Rivoli Cut
Watermelon or Vitrail Medium II: Unlike a rivoli stone, these terms refer to the stone's color rather than shape. The term watermelon is derived from the fact that these stones look a bit like the natural gemstone watermelon tourmaline, and because they are pink in the center and green on the rims. Vitrail Medium II is the manufacture's name for this stone. Some characteristics and uses are:
- Used in many pieces dating from 1950s and 1960s
- Schiaparelli, signed Judy Lee, some Juliana pieces
- Can be seen in round, oval, emerald cut, and in Rivoli cut
- Colors vary since they were made by Swarovski, Czech, and German companies
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Rose Montee: These are small flat back rhinestones with a mirror finish.
- Each stone is mounted individually on a prong setting that lends itself to wiring or sewing
- Miriam Haskell made abundant use of these stones during the 1950s and 1960s
- Also used by Robert, DeMario, Eugene and other designers
- Also used by Couture houses as embellishments and fabric adornments
- You might see them referred to as roses montees, but the stone houses call them rose montees
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Aurora Borealis - Iridescent rhinestones that Swarovski created in 1955. Some characteristics and uses are:
- Pieces containing these beautiful stones won't pre-date the mid 1950s
- Used prolifically in costume jewelry
- Iridescent crystals and beads in earlier pieces especially in the 1930s are called carnival finish -- they are not true aurora borealis stones
Note: Lesser quality aurora borealis stones are now being produced in China, and are often lacking the brilliance or overall quality of the Swarovski stones.
Foiled Cabochons: These stones are often referred to as Cat's Eye stones. They are domed pieces of glass with foil applied to the back creating an art glass look. Some characteristics and uses are:
- Used by many different manufactors from the mid 1950s and 1960s,
- Used by current designers as well
- Frequently seen in pieces by Kramer and Weiss
Margarita: The name of this stone refers to the shape not the color. Some characteristics and uses are:
- Scalloped, flower like edges
- A hole in the center for a rhinestone tipped pin that holds the stone in place
- Popular in the 1950s and 1960s
- Made in both solid and bi-color by Swaroskvi
- Often seen in Delizza & Elster and Vendome pieces
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Saphiret or Sappharine: Again, the collectors' vernacular has led these unique stones to be called Saphiret, while the manufacters' name is actually Sappharine.
- This stone has a blue-brown hue that is created by adding a small amount of gold to blue glass
- First seen in Victorian jewelry- small stones in delicate settings
- In the 1950s and 1960s sapphirets were used in bigger and bolder designs
- Most frequently the stone are cabochons
- Faceted versions are used less often
- Regency often used this stone in their pieces.
Jelly Belly Cabochons: Trifari, Coro, and Corocraft made the first Jelly Belly jewels in the 1940s. These first jelly bellies were actually made from flawed arcylic airplane windshields that, if perfect, would have been used for World War II planes. Due to the shortage of materials because of the war, they were instead used to create jelly bellies and became great jewelry! To be a "true jelly belly the center area of the piece must be clear and be made of Lucite (the trade name for acrylic resin).
Mexican Opal Glass, "Dragon's Breath": The nickname of this stone, "Dragon's Breath", is now in common usage, you very rarely hear it being called Mexican opal glass. These very pretty stones are made by mixing glass with metals to induce a bi-color effect that ranges from red to blue depending on the light. They generally have a purplish cast. It's the flash of color (like fire), that is believed to have inspired people to call them Dragon's Breath.
- First used in jewelry 1900s
- Created to simulate fire or jelly opals
- Early jewelry using these stones was often Sterling Silver from Mexico
- Older stones are the most transparent
- Mid-century jewelry saw the use of faceted versions
Sources:
"Jewels of Fantasy Costume Jewelry of the 20th Century", edited by Deanna Farneti Cera "Warman's Costume Jewelry Identification and Price Guide", Pamela Y. Wiggins wikipedia.org collectorsweekly.com pinterest.com
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