PastGems Vintage Jewelry Blog

Juliana Earrings

I was very excited to recently discover a couple of Juliana pieces in a recent estate lot that I bought.  One of the pieces sold right away in my eBay store.  See the lovely earrings that are still available here:

These were my first Juliana pieces, so I did my due diligence, even tho the seller told me they were and came to the conclusion that they were indeed genuine Juliana pieces. 

Have fun browsing!

xoxo,

Karen

After a long hiatus...

I'm back!  It's been several months since I've written anything for my blog and I apologize to my customers and those few who might check in once in awhile to see what's happening.  Life just kind of took over and the blog and my newsletters sort of took a backseat.  I now commit to staying more current -- both with the blog and with newsletters -- returning soon!

First big news I want to share is that our website has a new look!  Check it out here:  www.pastgems.com.

Same wonderful vintage jewelry, same great affordable prices.  But new features, easier (hopefully!) navigation and search, the ability to create special sales (check this month's out here: March Specials.)

We're pretty happy with the new design.  At the same time, we would welcome any constructive feedback, while we are still in the support stage with our web designer -- if there are tweaks or changes that you think would improve things yet further, please let me know.  I've give every suggestion consideration.

I hope 2010 is getting off to a great start for all of you.  Mine is!  Busy as ever and busy is a good thing.  More about the busy-ness later!

Best wishes,

Karen

Wedding Gift Idea

A customer recently placed a huge order for many, many pieces of jewelry from PastGems.com.  Huge.  It got my attention.  Appeared to be legit in every way so I started packing things up to send her.  A couple of days later, she placed another significant order.  Not as huge as the first, but still. 

Curiosity got the better of me.  What is she doing with all this jewelry?  She bought things in every price range, from the Bargain Basement, up to $200 emerald brooches.  I just couldn't imagine.  I didn't think it was a dealer because it wouldn't have been cost effective -- even though my prices are not extremely high, they're not dealer prices.  Maybe she is simply a collector?  But the styles and tastes were all over the board, so that didn't seem right.  Oh, maybe she just likes a lot of things but wants to see them in person before making a final decision.  She might be ordering all these things, keep two and return the rest(!)  Arrghh. 

So you can see how I really wanted to know what she was up to.  So I emailed her and asked her.  Got a very nice email back from her right away.  Turns out she is a friend of the groom's mom for an upcoming wedding.  Her idea was to make little "treatments" as she calls them, from vintage jewels (I think she packages them up in little baskets) as gifts at the reception for all of the "Baby Boomer Ladies" that will be at the wedding.  Wow!  What a charming idea!  And sure to bring smiles to the faces of the recipients when they are gifted with these little blasts from the past!

She said she would send photos when she had them done, so I'm hoping for that.  When I get them I'll post a follow-up note with the photos.

I'd love to hear of other unique ideas along these lines, so if you have any or if you've seen something done like this, post a reply, please.

Meanwhile, where ever you are in the world, I hope you are enjoying the beautiful month of May.  And oh yes, Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!  Don't forget:  Our Mother's Day gift to you is FREE SHIPPING all month long!

Best wishes,

Karen

 

New Gift Idea Categories at PastGems.com!

I know a lot of us go shopping for gifts with an idea of what we want to spend on certain people.  $25 for that person, $10 for that one -- unlimited (well, almost) for this one -- and so on.  You know what I mean.

So rather than having to plow through all my items (over 1200 now, I think) to find something in your price range, I've set up some new Gift Idea categories for $25 and under, Under $50, Under $100, $100-$499 and Over $500 (there's only one item in that category and you've got to see it to believe it -- it's well over $500.  It's a handcrafted 14K Gold & Turquoise Bolo Tie by the Arizona artist, Elias.  Truly amazing. P.S.: The original price of $8500 is still on the bolo.)  This is a perfect gift for That Guy Who Has Everything.

Not EVERYTHING in the store is in these categories -- its just a sampling, so if you don't find what you're looking for there, continue  browsing elsewhere.  And don't forget our Bargain Basement and Jewelry Grab Bags (which we're running low on) for some true bargains. 

And if you STILL can't find exactly what you're looking for, there's always our Gift Certificates, which you can buy in the amount you choose -- you can either print it out and present it yourself -- or you can email it to the lucky recipient.  Personally, I LOVE getting Gift Certificates -- it's like getting a License to Shop!

Thanks for being a friend of PastGems!  We heart you!

xoxo,
Karen

FREE GIFT with Purchase for PastGems Customers!

Beginning, October 15, we will be including a free gift of a mini handmade ornament with every purchase  from PastGems.com!  These are handmade, many of them knit and just adorable!  Need I say:  "while supplies last."  When they're gone, they're gone, so get in there early so you be sure to get one! Meanwhile, I hope that the Fall weather wherever you are is as gorgeous as it is here in Beautiful Northern California!

xoxo,
Karen

Update Your Wardrobe with Vintage Accessories

I was talking with my friend, a well known Bay Area clothing designer last night.  Her designs sell internationally in very high end stores -- very expensive.  Needless to say, her business has suffered a bit of a decline in the last year as the economic situation has worsened.  She still does okay because the people who can afford her designs still have money and are still buying, but its not as good as it has been.

However, she had an interesting insight.  She says that people are more likely to spend their money on accessories (like wonderful vintage costume jewelry!) to update their wardrobe rather than spending it on whole new outfits.  Of course.  Brilliant!  Just like when the housing market takes a downturn, people tend to stay where they are and remodel their existing houses rather than selling them and moving on.

Its so uplifting to receive a "brand new" trinket and its so much fun to play around with accessories -- you can change the entire look of an outfit or a dress with the way you put together your jewelry -- an entirely different style and color of necklace, a brooch, a bracelet or a sparkly pair of earrings.  And the thing is, accessories such as jewelry can be so much more affordable than buying a new dress or an entirely new outfit.

So if you're feeling the cash crunch, don't despair.  Treat yourself to a new piece of glitz.  At PastGems we are sometimes appalled by the exorbitant prices we see out there for vintage jewelry.  Sure, some true collectibles are worth the inflated prices and might even be considered an investment of sorts.  But some of it is just simply overpriced.  We try to keep our pricing reasonable and affordable to all.  Our little vintage jewelry shop has items in every price range -- starting as low as $5 and running all the way up to $5000!    With lots to choose from in between.  So if you're feeling some deprivation these days, stop by PastGems.com and treat yourself to a new trinket -- it will brighten your day for sure!

Keep your spirits up -- its all gonna get better!
xoxo,
                                           
Karen

Vintage Pendant with Sanskrit(?) Symbols

I recently listed an intriguing vintage pendant with a beautiful topaz colored faceted stone.  The back has these symbols and while I spent quite a bit of time researching, I was not successful in figuring out the meaning.  Does anyone out there know?  Would love to hear from you on this one.  View photos of the rest of the piece here:  Ornate Vintage Pendant with Sanskrit Symbols They may not be Sanskrit at all, but this is what it appears to me.  Love to hear from anyone on this one! xoxo, Karen

P.S. One More Trend for Fall...

I was reading San Francisco magazine a couple of days ago -- it has all the latest and greatest on the glitz and glamor of the City by the Bay, including the greatest eats, fashion and yep, jewelry trends.  I picked up from there that another trend for Fall 2008 are LARGE LINK CHAIN pieces.  Since things are always coming back around, it just so happens that there are some great vintage pieces that fill the bill -- right in my own little shop!  Like this: Extra Long Gold Link Vintage Chain.  And don't stop there -- there are many more.

This is what I love about vintage -- you can follow the trends and be in fashion with going out and buying new!  Hunt through your own jewelry box and see what you can find.  If your personal treasures don't quite provide the look you're going for, then come on over and browse PastGems --  maybe we have something.  With over 1000 wonderful vintage jewelry pieces, there's sure to be something to win you over.  And our prices are still reasonable!  See you soon!

xoxo
Karen

Gift Certificate Added to PastGems!

Well, this is exciting!  We've added a Gift Certificate button to PastGems.com!  Having trouble deciding just what to get for that special occasion or that special person?  Well, just give them a gift certificate from us and let them decide!  You can choose any amount from $5.00 up to $1,000!!  You don't need to have a Paypal account to buy the certificate, although Paypal IS the processor.  However, your recipient does need a Paypal account -- if they don't already have one, they'll need to set one up.  So if your intended giftee is Paypal-phobic, well, better talk some sense into them. 

Honestly, I don't know WHY some people are so down on Paypal.  I've been using them for YEARS and have never yet had a single problem with them. 

You have the option of having your gift certificate delivered by email, or you can print it out and deliver it yourself.  The email will have a link so they can immediately start shopping.  The printed certificate will obviously have the web url so they can shop when they feel so moved. 

Our gift certificates never expire; and you don't have to use it all at once.  Say someone only uses $25 of a $50 gift certificate; the remaining balance is held for them until next time.  If they go over, they will be asked to use an alternative method of payment to pay the difference.  PastGems nor Paypal are responsible for lost certificates, however, so take care.

So that's our news for the day.  Just navigate to the bottom of any page at PastGems.com, look for the GIFT CERTIFICATE button, click and follow the guided instructions.  Thanks for visiting -- we look forward to seeing you again!
xoxo
Karen

New Widget

Hey, check it out!  ProStores has this new widget that basically shows the featured products on my home page.  If you LIKE my store, you can actually paste this widget onto your web page, which would be cool because people would see it and maybe even pay us a visit!