Archive for Seasonal
Vintage Valentines Day Jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsLooking back over the years Ive been writing this blog, it seems that every year I’ve had something to say about Valentines Day and Valentines Jewellery. This year Ive decided to pull all these posts together so you can find them all in one place.
antique silver angel brooch
Love Jewellery gifts for Valentines day
Vintage Jewellery for Valentines
Most Vintage Jewellery is romantic and so is a suitable gift for Valentines day however some have special sentimental meaning attached. Hearts, Cherubs, Flowers. Engagement rings and Mizpah brooches.
The word Mizpah comes from the Bible, from it follows the agreement between Laban and Jacob in Chapter 31.49 of Genesis:
“This mound,” said Laban, “shall be witness from now on between you and me.”
That is why it was named Galeed – and also Mizpah, for he said:
“May the Lord keep watch between you and me when we are out of each other’s sight.”
This paragraph has been condensed to just the word Mizpah and that has been given to be a symbol of agreement between lovers
Lockets are often given as gifts between lovers as they can hold a lock of hair of photos. Whichever piece you choose you can order from www.antiquesavenue.co.uk up until February 12 mid day for delivery on Feb 13 this year.
antique heart brooch
Vintage jewellery for Chistmas
Posted by: | CommentsStill looking for Christmas presents? AntiquesAvenue has a selection of over 2000 lovely pieces of vintage jewellery ranging in price from £20 to over £400. I am accepting orders for Christmas delivery up to 9.00 am on December 20th.
Heres a few vintage jewellery suggestions by price and remember prices include world wide delivery
Stocking fillers under £30
Vintage brooches, glass necklaces and vintage silver charms . Brooches can be worn all year round with a variety of outfits, a glass necklace is very colourful for party time and its great to give a charm which has meaning.
£50 and under
How about a locket, a silver ring, or a silver brooch? Silver lockets start from £35 and theres a choice at £50 and under. Lockets are a timeless piece of jewellery . They are given by friends and loved ones and tend to have a sentimental attachment as you can hold a special photo or memento inside.
£100 and under
At this price range you have a huge choice of pieces of vintage or antique jewellery. A cameo brooch? A gold brooch? A pair of earrings, silver bangle or a piece of amber jewellery. Cameos are popular gifts as they are eternally popular and will be passed through a family from one generation to the next.
A most attractive antique Victorian cameo brooch. The brooch is carved with a
pastoral scene of a mother and child playing with a dog. The carving is in shell
and the cameo is set into a gold toned mount. This is quite a large piece of
jewellery measuring about 6.2 cms long. The frame is gold toned metal. Minor
cosmetic signs of age but a very decorative and wearable piece
The sky is the limmit
An unlimited budget or £500 limit? A gold bracelet, a charm bracelet maybe? Theres a huge selection of vintage cocktail rings made of gold and set with diamonds and other precious stones.
antique wedgwood ring
What ever gifts you choose the Christmas , a piece of vintage jewellery will delight and be treasures for many years.
Top ten jewels for Christmas
Posted by: | CommentsEvery lady loves to receive jewellery for Christmas. There is sparkle, a hit of extravagance and romance behind the gift of jewellery. Its a gift that lasts and is appreciated for many years. Vintage jewellery has an additional benefit of coming with a touch of mystery from the past. Here’s AntiquesAvenue’s guide to the top ten piece of jewellery you could give a lady this Christmas
Brooches A brooch is always my top suggestion for a jewellery gift as one size fits all and there is such a huge range that there is a piece everyone will love. AntiquesAvenue offers antique and vintage brooches in gold, silver and costume jewellery as well. Vintage brooches in shapes of animals and abstract brooches. Enamelled, designer and gem set brooches.
Vintage Brooch
Charm Bracelet An interesting choice of a gift as a charm bracelet can be added to over the years and tailored to personal taste. You could give a blank charm bracelet ot one with a few charms already attached but still with space to add you own. A charm bracelet with a few charms on already is normally a great bargain over buying all the pieces together
Cocktail Ring The ideal cocktail ring is big and bold and bright. It is meant to add glitz to an evening outfit. Its a ring you can give at Christmas without getting it confused with an engagement, wedding or eternity promised. Find a cocktail ring with a bright stone such as an amethyst, citrine or smokey quartz. For a budget option a cocktail ring can be set with sparkling stones which imitate diamonds such as cubic zirconia.
Earrings Always a popular choice as a gift, a lady likes to have a selection of earrings in her jewellery wardrobe . Make sure you know if the earrings you are buying are for pierced ears or not as this will influence which earrings are available to you.
Charms You can choose between silver of gold charms, it is rare to mix the two on a single charm bracelet. Silver charms are normally cheaper than gold charms and come in a huge range of quirky and interesting shapes. There are moving , opening articulated charms. There are charms in the shape of all manner of people, animals and object. Prices for a quality vintage charm on AntiquesAvenue start from about £25 including postage
Vintage glass charm
Pearls One of the classic classy pieces of jewellery which can be worn on all occasions. Pearls come in several varieties but for most occasions I would recommend either Glass pearls or cultured pearls depending on your budget. Glass pearls are the budget choice , they are much heavier than modern plastic pearls and can be worn every day. For a touch more luxury a sting of cultured pearls with a lovely catch would be appreciated.
Cameos A true cameo is hand carved from shell or hard stone to show the picture above the background. Most cameos are carved from shell and depict a lady, classical figure or scene. Cameos can be found as brooches, pendants, earrings, charms or rings. AntiquesAvenue offers a great range of pretty cameos for you to choose from.
Necklace A gift choice with a huge range available, Glass necklace, gold necklace, silver necklaces, bead and chain necklaces. A simple gold necklace with a gemstone pendant is a classical gift not a high fashion choice today maybe layer several vintage necklaces of them together and wow.
Cross The jewellery choice for Christians, Goths and Emos.
Locket I seem to sell more vintage lockets than any other single piece of jewellery which suggests they are a popular choice The silver locket is usually used to hold photos of loved ones but can also be worn with a lock of hair or other small memento inside.
10 Vintage Jewellery gifts under £35
Posted by: | CommentsLooking for a Vintage Jewellery Christmas gift for £35 or under? . Here is AntiquesAvenue’s top 10 suggestions . Remember these prices all include postage costs and can be delivered to you in plenty of time for Christmas day.
1. Silver enamel peacock brooch £35
- peacock brooch
2 lucite brooches
3. Silver Dunce charm £26
silver dunce charm
Just one of loads of vintage charms for you to choose from on the antiquesavenue website . What a cute articulated silver charm. This is in the shape of a Dunces cat with a face on the front and the letter D on the reverse. There are a pair of legs which are articulated and so move when you wear the charm.
This charm is made of silver and measures about 2 cms ( maximum) including the O ring and legs
4. Vintage silver ring
Most rings are made of gold and this tends to push the price a little out of budget range. Vintage silver rings however can often cost less and still be most attractive. How about this ring at just £26?
amethyst ring
5. Silver Identity bracelet for the man in your life £33
identity bracelet
A chunky silver identity bracelet. This bracelet measures about 21 cms long and so is probably most suited to a mans wrist. The bracelet measures about 0.9 cms wide and weighs about 41 grams
6. Animal print bangle by Joan Rivers £28
Here is an enamel bangle bracelet with an animal print design coming from the Joan Rivers Classics Collection. This bangle stretches to allow it to fit on your wrist. The colours are enamel on gold tone metal and there are panels of diamante to give a very striking piece of costume jewellery. Before expansion this bangle measures about 6 cms diameter ( internal measurement) and about 1.5 cms deep. This Joan Rivers bangle comes in its original box .
The box is a little damaged and the bangle is in really excellent condition.
7. Gold earrings £35
Theres not much you can buy in the way of real gold jewellery for£35 these days but here is a pair of earrings which would be great for any gardener.
gold earrings
This pair of earrings are in the shape of leaves. They are made from fully hallmarked 9 carat gold. Each leaf earring measures about 1.5 cms long. You will need to add your own butterfly backs to these.`
7. Freshwater pearl necklace £25
pearl necklace
A very pretty necklace made of fresh water pearls and real gemstone chips. The gemstones include amethysts, aquamarines, peridots and citrines. This necklaces would be excellent to wear to a wedding or possibly for a bridesmaid? It measures about 40 cms long
8. Vintage glass necklace
There are loads of vintage glass necklaces from you to choose from for £35 and under. These are much nicer to wear than modern plastic bead necklaces and they have a better weight, colour and feel. The glass also has a better shine than plastic.
9. Micromosaic jewellery
Again there is a great selection for £35 and under. Micromosaic Jewellery, made from tiny glass pieces set into colourful patterns. This jewellery was mainly made in Italy and brought back as tourist souvenirs. Micromosaic jewellery is mainly costume jewellery although occasionally you may find pieces in silver and gold.
10 Love Jewellery for that special Lady
AntiquesAvenue offers a whole seleciton of romantic jewellery. Pieces in the shape of hearts are particularly popular.
Wear your sparklers for Bonfire night
Posted by: | CommentsNovember 5th the day we celebrate gunpowder treason and plot with things that burn, bang and sparkle. This years why not brighten you yourself for bonfire night with some wearable sparklers of your own? Bonfire night is a time for wrapping up warm with lots of layers so we need jewellery which is big , bold, colourful and not too expensive for the occasion. Here is a great selection of vintage costume jewellery brooches from AntiquesAvenue which will make you stand out on the night.
Vintage brooches
Costume jewellery vintage brooches in firework colours can be pinned to your coat or used to hold a scarf in place. Why wear just one? Several can be pinned to a hat or a bag. Suitable colours include red, yellow, crystal clear, green and blue. Perhaps not the occasion for black or brown jewellery as it wont be seen in the dark.
A huge and sparkling vintage diamante brooch .This brooch has the diamante prong set into it which is a good sign of age and quality as this method of production was very time consuming. There are three articulated tails hanging down. In total this brooch measures about 8.5 cms long and up to 6 cms wide. I believe that this brooch dates from circa 1930s to 1950s. It is in really excellent condition.
Bonfire night history.
Do you know why we celebrate Bonfire night every year? Most of use know the old rhyme from childhood
“Remember Remember the 5th of November, gunpowder treason and plot.”
It was on November 5th 1605 when a plot to kill King James 1st was foiled. The group of men who were plotting against King James had planed to use gunpowder to blow up the house of Lords whilst the king was there. Once word got out that the plot had been foiled the people of London lit bonfires to celebrate it and an act of parliament was passed to ensure the day was celebrated anualy ( is this still Law ?)
Halloween theme vintage jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsIts nearly Halloween, the time of year for celebrating all things of the night, magical, creepy, superstitious and evil. Over the years this theme has often been applied to jewellery and looking though any collection of vintage jewellery you find some piece suitable to wear at this time of year.
As with all vintage jewellery pieces with a Haloween theme can be found at at both a budget and luxury price. Here Im taking a look at the buget pieces which can be found for £50 and under.
Bugs and spiders
A real real bargain piece of jewellery , a gold bug or fly brooch for just £30 from www.antiquesavenue.co.uk. This gold brooch could also be worn as a tie pin, it dates from the earlier 1900s.
gold bug brooch
Spider in web silver pendant
- spiders web pendant
This charm on a chain is suitable for any lover of spiders or perhaps an Emo or Goth
Witches and their cats
The witch is one of the most enduring images of halloween and of course no self respecting witch goes about without here familiar in the shape of a cat.
witch charm
This vintage charm is in the shape of a witch flying on here broomstick. She is made of silver and will date from circa 1950s to 1970s. This silver charm measures about 1.8 cms high and will make an excellent addition to any vintage silver charm bracelet. This piece of vintage jewellery is quite nicely detailed
cat earrings
Apples and leaves
Apples are the fruit of halloween and its the time of year when all of the autum leaves are on the ground.
apple charm
Here is an Essex crystal charm intaglio carved from behind and hand painted as an apple. Essex crystals are quite collectable these days, they are made of glass. This Essex crystal measures about 1.5 cms diameter and will make a colourful addition to any charm bracelet.
leaf brooch
A most attractive piece of costume jewellery made by Hollywood . The brooch is made of gold toned metal and had a golden textured finish to the leaf with creamy diamante round the edge. This nice leaf brooch measures about 5 cms long
Unique Easter jewellery gifts
Posted by: | CommentsIts that time of year again when the Easter bunny is collecting all his Easter treats together ready to hide on Easter Sunday morning. Ive had a sneak preview of this years offerings and see that the Easter Bunny is going vintage this year and handing out wonderful desirable vintage jewellery to all of us lucky ladies ( well I do hope so anyway 
). By the way Easter is late this year falling on April 24th.
So what pieces of vintage and antique jewellery are most suitable for Easter giving. Anything egg shaped, Im hoping for a Faberge egg but suspect that the nearest Im going to get is looking at these Faberge egg pictures instead:
Faberge eggs
Other Jewels suitable for Easter would be any animal or bird shaped piece especially baby animals, chicks, bunnies and baby lambs. Vintage silver charms can be found in almost any shape. For a more sophisticated lady any bird or animal shaped vintage brooch or charm would be a great idea.
Yellow butterfly brooch
Easter jewellery ?
Flowers and animals for Easter.
Flower jewellery would also be a great gift this Easter. Flowers in bunches or in bright colours yellow, white, green tend to be Easter colours or pastel shades of blue and pink. Heres some great pieces of jewellery you could give as an Easter gift.
Dont forget the men in your life either this Easter. Vintage cufflinks to be worn with evening wear or a lapel pin to add a touch of interest to their work suit.
I can still get jewelley with you to arrive in time for Easter. Please order by
Vintage jewellery for Valentines
Posted by: | CommentsAre you still looking for that perfect Valentines gift for your beloved? And do you know (or care) why we celebrate St Valentine? Heres a little look at our most romantic day of the year and a few suggestions of vintage jewellery as the perfect gift for this occasion. AntiquesAvenue is posting jewellery for Valentines day upto and including orders received by February 12 2013
Mizpah brooch
History of ”Valentines Day”
Celebrated each year on February 14th throughout the English speaking world, Valentines day is named after an early Christian martyr. It is thought that Valentine was a priest who helped Christian couples by marrying them. It was a crime at that time to help Christians and Valentine was put to death on February 14th by Claudius 11. Before he dies ( according to legend) Valentine passed a message to his jailers daughter which read ” From your Valentine”.
Another theory is that the Christian church replaced the Pagan Roman tradition of celebrating the Goddess Juno on February the 14th with a Christian festival. Whatever its history the tradition of exchanging messages between lovers on February 14th was well established in the middle ages with the fashion for “courtly love”.
It was during the 1800s that Valentines cards became commercially available, these were often very decorative with real lace attached and romantic poems inside .
There is a tradition in Wales of giving wooden Love spoons on Valentines day , these Love spoons are often carved with heart and key decoration with the meaning of “the key to my heart”. This lock and heart is mirrored on vintage charm bracelets with the heart shaped padlock having a key hole in it – if you are very lucky you can occasionally find a heart shaped charm bracelet with padlock that actually has a working key.
Flower jewellery
The fashion for giving gifts on valentines day started in the mid 1900s. These gifts included anything with hearts, cherubs and flowers. Chocolate and jewellery and of course the romantic meal out .
Valentines day gift ideas
Ive already mentioned that vintage silver charm bracelets have heart shaped padlocks. The heart theme is also found in most types of vitnage jewellery brooches, bracelts, lockets , earrings . Fancy a change from a heart? How about a cherub or angel? Silver vintage charms in the shape of Eros, A Wedgwood cameo decorated with a cherub? Flowers are also a popular theme in vintage jewellery so a floral brooch would also be appropriate.
Antiquesavenue.co.uk has an entire section called Love Jewellery which has heart and cherub jewellery. There is also a selection of gold Mizpah brooches which are given as a gift between parted lovers and a Mizpah brooch would be great for those who can actually see each other on Valentines day.
