PastGems Vintage Jewelry Blog

Happy Thanksgiving

Like many American holidays, it is so easy to become caught up in all of the shoulds, oughts and musts of the holiday that it takes some conscious effort for me to remember what the holiday actually is supposed to signify.  Thanksgiving and Christmas are two of the biggest culprits of the phenomenon of excess.

Thanksgiving isn't just about the turkey and loading your plate with tons of carb-rich foods and watching football. 

It is about taking some time to gather with family and friends and reconnecting on a different level than we do throughout the year.  A deeper level, a forgiving level, a remembering of the threads that connect us level.  

On an even quieter, more personal note, for me, it is also about remembering to be grateful for all of the many blessings in my life.  These last months -- years even -- there has been a lot to be upset, fearful and negative about.  There are wars that we are involved in, there is a downward spiraling economy, there are people losing their jobs in all sectors and walks of life, there was an election that created a lot of strife and uncertainty -- the list goes on an on.

Well, the election part is over for the time being and I, along with millions of other Americans, are hopeful that our new President will lead us into a time of prosperity and peace.  Meanwhile, sleeves need to be rolled up and hard work needs to be done. 

But I digress.  Gratitude is the real point of my note today.  I try to take a little time each day to remember what in my life I am grateful for.  When things are tough, sometimes its harder, so I start with something little: like "the alarm went off."  Throughout the day, when I think about it, I add to my mental list of gratitudes.

I'm healthy
My children are healthy
The guys at my favorite coffee shop like me (even if they haven't chosen me for Customer of the Month yet!  What does a girl have to do?)
I have a job
I have a wonderful website of vintage costume jewelry, which I LOVE!
It doesn't snow where I live
The car started right up this morning
The heat came on (and the lights too!)
Email is working
My computer is behaving!

You get the idea.  In order to attract more abundance into our lives, I believe that we have to stop and be grateful for the abundance that is already there.  If all we think about is the lack, we will only attract more lack.  On the other hand, recognizing and acknowledging and being grateful for the abundance that is already there, will attract more of those things into our lives.

So that is my little soapbox philosophy for today.  That said, I want to wish everyone a blessed, mindful and very Happy Thanksgiving, whatever you are doing and whoever you are with.  And even if you're all alone, take a moment to be grateful for the blessings in your life and feel the connection with the people you know and smile!

xoxo,
Karen

November 2008 - How to Care for Your Vintage Costume Jewelry

I would like to apologize in advance for the length of this newsletter.  There are entire books written on this subject.  There is so much to say and while I feel I have only touched on the most important points of cleaning and caring for your precious little beauties, there is still quite a lot to convey.  If you've made the investment in vintage costume jewelry, I encourage you to also invest a few minutes of your time to read through and learn how to care for the little guys.

Here is a little summary:

• Keep dust-free
• Avoid moisture at all costs
• Store them in such a way that they are protected from banging against their neighbors.
  

If you are a long time collector of vintage rhinestone jewelry, you probably already know how to care for your little beauties.  But if you have just recently discovered vintage jewelry and perhaps are just buying your first pieces – lucky you! – then you are probably wondering how best to clean and care for them. 

There is a lot of information out there about how to care for your rhinestones and I would just like to take this opportunity to add my two little cents to the mix.

First of all, rhinestones have two main enemies.  Dust and Moisture.

Before undertaking any cleaning procedures at all, you should attempt to remove any dust.  Rhinestones only have a hardness of 6 or 7 on the Mohs Scale, compared to the diamond’s 10.  They WILL scratch.  An aside:  They should be stored in such a way that they don’t bang up against each other or other pieces of jewelry.  And back to the initial cleaning.  First things first.  Get the dust off.  There are a couple of ways to do this.  A commonly accepted method is to use a very soft makeup brush and simply dust it off.  I like to also use a little Blower Brush, repurposed from cleaning my computer keyboard.  It looks like a little bellows (the brush part is missing).  It just has this little point where air comes out when you squeeze the bulbous part.  This works well for cleaning loose particles from around the settings.

So that takes care of dust.  Now Moisture.  First of all, never, ever, ever submerge your rhinestones in any type of liquid.  Take your rings off before you wash your hands.  Remove ALL rhinestone jewelry before showering, swimming or otherwise getting wet.  Moisture is not your friend. 

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve come across a piece of jewelry in dire need of cleaning and how tempted I’ve been to simply stick it under a running stream of water and go at it with a toothbrush.  I know I could do the job that way in about 5 minutes. Refrain from taking this approach. Bad.Bad.Bad. 

Here are the things that are acceptable for cleaning rhinestones.  A bit of alcohol or Windex on a Q-tip or soft toothbrush (a baby toothbrush would be great).  You may moisten the Q-tip or soft brush, but it is very, very important to blot them almost completely dry.  If you flick the brush with your finger and you see little droplets spray off, it is too wet.  If you start working on the jewelry with the brush or Q-tip and it starts to get foamy – it is too wet. 

Toothpicks are good tools for cleaning in the nooks and crannies because they are less likely to scratch than say, dental picks.  I have a set of dental picks (intended for cleaning jewelry, not teeth), and they definitely have their uses, but cleaning around rhinestones with them is a bit risky, due to the scratch factor.  I used to have a Corvette which I dearly loved and I have to tell you, when I detailed the inside (even the outside), guess what I used?  Lots and lots of Q-tips and toothpicks.  People thought I was nuts, but I think those are two of the best tools around for any kind of close detail work.

Some people say that a mild soap and water solution is okay, but I don’t happen to agree with that.  Soap can leave a residue and how are you going to rinse it off?? 

It is important to remember that you can cause damage to your rhinestones that won’t show up right away.  Moisture damage is progressive.  Whenever you are considering doing something to your rhinestone jewelry, always keep in mind the long-term effects on your precious little darlings.  You know those beautiful pieces of jewelry you see that have a “dark” stone or two?  Those are referred to as “dead” rhinestones.  And you know what happened to them?  They got wet.  Moisture destroys the foil backing that is placed on most rhinestones to reflect light.  There are a few designers who mounted their rhinestones WITHOUT foil backing to allow the light to shine through – cleaning those rhinestones would be a different story.  But the damage we are talking about here is what actually happens to the foil backing. 

A final word of caution:  Be very, very careful with Aurora Borealis rhinestones. You know, those rhinestones that have been iridized to reflect prisms of light? They are prone to scratching very, very easily.

Last but not least, when you are all done and your rhinestone jewelry is sparkling like new, lay it on a towel and turn your blow dryer on it for a couple of minutes on COOL setting.  To be extra sure it is dry, leave it lying out for at least an hour before putting it away.  And remember, when you put it away, protect it from rubbing and bumping against other stuff.  Who knew you had to be so careful?  I’ll bet our mothers didn’t take that much care with their rhinestones!

An additional word about moisture:  It isn't just rhinestones that can become damaged.  Many designers, such as Miriam Haskell and Hobe did a lot of work with fine wire into which they worked tiny beads, pearls or other stones.  This wire corrodes easily, the beads fall off and the piece is essentially ruined.  I once had a beautiful demi-parure from Hobe that had an extensive amount of damage of this sort.  I had to sell it "as is" and believe it or not, it still fetched about $65.  But it would have been worth a lot more, obviously, without the corrosion.  Here is an example of some corroded wire work from Miriam Haskell.  This is a lovely brooch; sadly, the wire work is corroded and the little seed beads are falling off.  This can happen from spray perfume, hair spray or just moisture on your hands when handling the jewelry.  So put your jewelry on AFTER you put on your cologne or hair spray or whatever other spritzes you might be using.  The back of this pin is still in excellent condition, leading me to believe the damage probably came from sprays.  Just a little word to the wise.

That said, Enjoy your Vintage Costume JOOLS, wear them with pride and bask in the compliments and admiration of your friends.

And now a short word  and a little history about one of my favorite vintage designers: 

Kramer of New York

Kramer of New York was a company founded in New York in 1943 by Louis Kramer and was in operation until 1980.

The company produced some of the world's leading costume jewelry, using sparkling Austrian crystals. Kramer of New York also used high quality rhinestones. The company produced a wide array of necklaces, bracelets, finger rings, earrings, jewelry clips, brooches, lockets, charms, charm bracelets, fobs, and more.  PastGems is fortunate to have several lovely pieces from this well-known and highly collectible designer. Simply type "Kramer" into the search box to bring up all of them; or scroll through our "Designer Signed" category.  Here is one of my favorite necklaces from Kramer:

Kramer marketed its jewelry under a variety of marks including "Kramer of NY", "Kramer of NY City", "Kramer", and when it made jewelry for Christian Dior, "Christian Dior by Kramer". Trademarks owned by the company included "Amourelle", "Perles De Lune", "The Diamond Look", "Dura-Gold", "KJC" and "The Golden Look".

So that's it for November's newsletter.  What an auspicious and eventful month.  There is the election (I hope everyone voted!), Thanksgiving is right around the corner and then the mad dash to Christmas and the end of the year.  Take some time out this month to consider the things in your life for which you are grateful.  If you're like me, the list will always end up being longer than you think it is.  One of the things for which I am grateful are my wonderful PastGems customers -- without you I wouldn't be here doing what I love! Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

xoxo,

Karen