Five Reasons to Buy Vintage Jewellery
1. It’s sustainable - the notion of a circular economy for fashion is widely discussed and everyone ‘gets it’ but it’s much the same for jewellery. Buying vintage jewels means that you’re giving new life to something that already exists instead of buying into the creation of yet ‘more stuff’ we don’t need so much of.
2. The craftsmanship great - obviously not all costume jewellery is created equal, there are levels to it for sure, but a lot of the vintage pieces have just been made with a lot more care. They took time with the weight and feel of the materials, thought about intricacies of a link and spent time creating stylish clasps. You’ll especially find this with signed pieces from the likes of Napier, Monet and Coro etc..
3. There is much more originality - Of course they didn’t just make one of every piece, so most vintage costume isn’t a ‘one off’ but there will be considerably less of the same thing and it’s highly unlikely you will see anyone you know with the same piece. Even with deadstock pieces (I will talk more about this in a future post) the production runs were smaller and sometimes they have sat in storage for decades so even though there are maybe 10 - 50 pieces it still feels like you’ve found something really special.
4. It tells a story - anything that’s been pre-owned has a story whether it’s an unearthed piece of Jakob Bengal, a necklace that was made in the style of Egyptian Revival for a 70’s crowd or whether you just make one up in your head for a piece that you love and can imagine what it was used/worn for. You know your piece has had a history and now you’re giving it a future - yeah I know, but it’s true.
5. It’s affordable - again there are levels and vintage designer can be super pricey (although much better value and craftsmanship IMO than new designer), but most great vintage costume can be had for under £100 and that includes the signed pieces. Vintage fine pieces can be slightly more pricey as they’re harder to come by and obviously gold/silver has it’s value, but the upside is knowing that you are choosing a more sustainable option. To achieve true sustainability in jewellery production nowadays you need really strong activism and a commitment to sourcing that most producers can’t afford. There is a distinct difference between ethical, or responsible and sustainable.