Costume jewelry makes a comeback
THOMAS MANN designer earrings designer jewelry. Thomas Mann earrings silver and goldtone. Thomas Mann earrings with fish hook wires. Signed by Thomas Mann 2006. Long oblong earrings with engraving. One earring says Do you believe in luck? The other earring says Or is it just fate?
JOANNA SMILEY
For The Times Leader
Trend-watching Northeastern Pennsylvanians who paid attention to the news out of Fashion Week might have sighed a little wistfully.
• After all, what was paraded as most desirable during the recent eight-day wardrobe-palooza in New York City is a bit beyond the common budget.
• Locals with an appetite for style, though, also can breathe a sigh of relief. Budget-conscious alternatives are everywhere, and that applies to fabulous accessories. Retro made a big showing at this year’s Fashion Week, which is good news for fans of costume jewelry.
• Great finds, from antique vintage to eco-friendly funk, are for sale all over town. The trick is knowing where to look.
• Ever been to the area near Insalaco’s Shopping Center in West Pittston? It’s home to a Chinese buffet, a car wash and an electrical supply company. Not exactly a presumed hot spot for fashion.
But nestled in this busy plaza, an unassuming shop called Accessorize & More reminds fashion bugs that sometimes the best finds turn up in the most unusual places. “I’ve been coming here for years. Just about everything is 50 percent off. They have very unique stuff, stuff you would never find in malls,” said Philomena Nardella, a customer from Scranton. On a recent Saturday, Nardella scoured the shop’s aisles. She had no clue what she was looking for, but she knew the perfect piece would catch her eye.
Ruby-red rhinestone necklaces and earrings flashed from the shelves. Gold bangle cuff bracelets -- for less than $5 apiece -- dangled from a bright magenta plastic hand, an art piece also for sale. Near the register were Maggi B knockoff purses and heavy-metal pocket mirrors engraved with the words “Fashion Slave.”
But it was a copper-rimmed, multi-layered chunk necklace that landed in Nardella’s purse. “I love the brown, and this is so vintage,” she said, smiling as she completed her $12 purchase. Typically, for a bracelet, necklace, ring, brooch or hair accessory to be considered costume jewelry it has to be fake in some way. Its value derives from its design and craftsmanship and not the material, said Clare Sauro, assistant curator of accessories at the Fashion Institute of Technology’s museum in New York City.
Costume jewelry doesn’t always have to be intricate. “One of the greatest pieces we have is a molded plaster brooch with ribbon you could literally make at home,” Sauro said, noting the museum displays about 800 pieces of costume jewelry. “Most costume jewelry is timeless, but there’s been a definite split in the last six to eight years. Costume jewelry has become associated with the high-fashion world. You see seasonal trends on the runway. But there is also a world of costume jewelry that is personal and emotion-based and not at all dependent on trends,” Sauro added.
Popular styles right now include affordable and earthy, eco-friendly pieces “with a renewed emphasis on the leaf,” said Jean Thompson, spokeswoman for the Buyers Market of American Craft, which just put on a trade show at the Philadelphia Convention Center. As the fashion industry prepares for the looming recession, Sauro also has a trend prediction. “With the economic downturn, people are tending to wear simpler clothes. Costume jewelry adds that flair you crave. If your outfit is from the Gap, you can still dress it up,” she said. Without even knowing it, 16-year-old Gabriella Corridoni of Pittston nailed three key trends with her recent purchase of an earthy, eye-catching, economical necklace.
“I don’t like to wear things everyone else is wearing,” the Pittston Area High School student said. Corridoni spent a recent Sunday afternoon at a house sale, perusing a Kingston family’s superfluous belongings. She stumbled upon an antique sterling-silver necklace. It had a chunky-looking design and real daisy flower encased in glass. She paid $1.50 for the piece. “It was the best buy. I only purchase costume jewelry when I see something really special,” she said.
Many of Corridoni’s hipster friends, however, stop by Details by Gloria in Wyoming on a weekly basis for its cheap, imitation-designer items. “It’s very trendy jewelry and purses. Knockoffs that are exactly like what you’d find on the streets in New York City,” Corridoni said. On a road dotted with row houses not far from Details by Gloria stands a 4-year-old gem of a shop. Blink once, and it might blend into the rest of the neighborhood. Though this Kingston store, Studio M Designs, carries precious gemstones and crystals, costume-jewelry shoppers craving bright colors such as turquoise can still spot great finds.
“We have tons of turquoise. It’s one of those great stones people buy all year round, year in, year out,” said Randy Knappman who runs the store with his mother. Above the shelf that displays dozens of ocean-blue rings, a sign reads: “Turquoise Dispels Depression.” “Years ago, my mom had a virus, and the doctors didn’t know what was wrong with her. She turned to alternative medicine and the healing powers of stones. It became her business, and I made it fashionable,” Knappman said pointing to a rack of sparkling cuffs. Northeastern Pennsylvania may not be red-carpet land, but so what? Kate Beckinsale and Beyonce wore exactly these types of bracelets stacked on their wrists at the recent Screen Actors Guild and MTV Video Music Awards.
Definition of costume jewelry:
“Affordable jewelry made with the design aesthetic of finer jewelry and sometimes outright copycats of designers’ work.”
— Jean Thompson, spokeswoman for the Buyers Market of American Craft
Here's what's "in" with Costume Jewelry:
• Mixing and matching
• Big bold chunky rings in solid metal
• Lockets
• Long, vintage pendants
• Necklaces with an organic feel
• Yellow and gold tones
• Multi-layered stacked bracelets
• Bright plastic pieces
• The ’60s and ’80s
• Sets
• Dainty
• Anything that looks inexpensive
• Diamond circles and journey
• Chandelier earrings
• Initial pendants
• Stackable rubber bangles
• Body jewelry
• Heavy Italian gold
• “Buy versatile looks that can be worn with a variety of styles.”
• “Look at magazines, awards shows, fashion shows.”
• “For designer looks without the high price tag, shop around for lookalikes at a fraction of the price.”
But nestled in this busy plaza, an unassuming shop called Accessorize & More reminds fashion bugs that sometimes the best finds turn up in the most unusual places. “I’ve been coming here for years. Just about everything is 50 percent off. They have very unique stuff, stuff you would never find in malls,” said Philomena Nardella, a customer from Scranton. On a recent Saturday, Nardella scoured the shop’s aisles. She had no clue what she was looking for, but she knew the perfect piece would catch her eye.
Ruby-red rhinestone necklaces and earrings flashed from the shelves. Gold bangle cuff bracelets -- for less than $5 apiece -- dangled from a bright magenta plastic hand, an art piece also for sale. Near the register were Maggi B knockoff purses and heavy-metal pocket mirrors engraved with the words “Fashion Slave.”
But it was a copper-rimmed, multi-layered chunk necklace that landed in Nardella’s purse. “I love the brown, and this is so vintage,” she said, smiling as she completed her $12 purchase. Typically, for a bracelet, necklace, ring, brooch or hair accessory to be considered costume jewelry it has to be fake in some way. Its value derives from its design and craftsmanship and not the material, said Clare Sauro, assistant curator of accessories at the Fashion Institute of Technology’s museum in New York City.
Costume jewelry doesn’t always have to be intricate. “One of the greatest pieces we have is a molded plaster brooch with ribbon you could literally make at home,” Sauro said, noting the museum displays about 800 pieces of costume jewelry. “Most costume jewelry is timeless, but there’s been a definite split in the last six to eight years. Costume jewelry has become associated with the high-fashion world. You see seasonal trends on the runway. But there is also a world of costume jewelry that is personal and emotion-based and not at all dependent on trends,” Sauro added.
Popular styles right now include affordable and earthy, eco-friendly pieces “with a renewed emphasis on the leaf,” said Jean Thompson, spokeswoman for the Buyers Market of American Craft, which just put on a trade show at the Philadelphia Convention Center. As the fashion industry prepares for the looming recession, Sauro also has a trend prediction. “With the economic downturn, people are tending to wear simpler clothes. Costume jewelry adds that flair you crave. If your outfit is from the Gap, you can still dress it up,” she said. Without even knowing it, 16-year-old Gabriella Corridoni of Pittston nailed three key trends with her recent purchase of an earthy, eye-catching, economical necklace.
“I don’t like to wear things everyone else is wearing,” the Pittston Area High School student said. Corridoni spent a recent Sunday afternoon at a house sale, perusing a Kingston family’s superfluous belongings. She stumbled upon an antique sterling-silver necklace. It had a chunky-looking design and real daisy flower encased in glass. She paid $1.50 for the piece. “It was the best buy. I only purchase costume jewelry when I see something really special,” she said.
Many of Corridoni’s hipster friends, however, stop by Details by Gloria in Wyoming on a weekly basis for its cheap, imitation-designer items. “It’s very trendy jewelry and purses. Knockoffs that are exactly like what you’d find on the streets in New York City,” Corridoni said. On a road dotted with row houses not far from Details by Gloria stands a 4-year-old gem of a shop. Blink once, and it might blend into the rest of the neighborhood. Though this Kingston store, Studio M Designs, carries precious gemstones and crystals, costume-jewelry shoppers craving bright colors such as turquoise can still spot great finds.
“We have tons of turquoise. It’s one of those great stones people buy all year round, year in, year out,” said Randy Knappman who runs the store with his mother. Above the shelf that displays dozens of ocean-blue rings, a sign reads: “Turquoise Dispels Depression.” “Years ago, my mom had a virus, and the doctors didn’t know what was wrong with her. She turned to alternative medicine and the healing powers of stones. It became her business, and I made it fashionable,” Knappman said pointing to a rack of sparkling cuffs. Northeastern Pennsylvania may not be red-carpet land, but so what? Kate Beckinsale and Beyonce wore exactly these types of bracelets stacked on their wrists at the recent Screen Actors Guild and MTV Video Music Awards.
Definition of costume jewelry:
“Affordable jewelry made with the design aesthetic of finer jewelry and sometimes outright copycats of designers’ work.”
— Jean Thompson, spokeswoman for the Buyers Market of American Craft
Here's what's "in" with Costume Jewelry:
• Mixing and matching
• Big bold chunky rings in solid metal
• Lockets
• Long, vintage pendants
• Necklaces with an organic feel
• Yellow and gold tones
• Multi-layered stacked bracelets
• Bright plastic pieces
• The ’60s and ’80s
• Sets
• Dainty
• Anything that looks inexpensive
• Diamond circles and journey
• Chandelier earrings
• Initial pendants
• Stackable rubber bangles
• Body jewelry
• Heavy Italian gold
• “Buy versatile looks that can be worn with a variety of styles.”
• “Look at magazines, awards shows, fashion shows.”
• “For designer looks without the high price tag, shop around for lookalikes at a fraction of the price.”
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