If you are a hoarder or a sane collector of jewelry you must have a box or drawer full of it in your wardrobe. A jewelry collection can comprise everything like opal, diamonds, silver, and gold, and another unique type of jewelry that is very common – costume jewelry.
As much as the value of costume jewelry is underrated, it is the go-to option for completing your daily look or just getting something at the nick of time. The reason why costume jewelry is underrated is because of the constant comparison of it with valuable and expensive jewelry that is like something made out of diamonds and gold.
But if you are really into vintage jewelry, then for the buyers and sellers it is a very valuable market when it comes to costume jewelry. You get to acquire costume jewelry in many ways like a string of imitation pearls or some rings that your grandma left you as an inheritance.
Also known as fashion jewelry, costume jewelry is most popular because it is mass-produced. The best part of costume jewelry is that it can be made out of any material like plastic and precious materials like diamonds or platinum are rarely used to make it.
The term costume jewelry became popular in the late 1930s when women used to adore good-looking jewelry but wanted to be able to afford it at the same time. Just think of these times as when women wanted to literally dripping in jewels and it contained all the good quality imitation stones and gems like turquoise and jade, making it look all fancy.
Costume jewelry, especially old ones, can always be worth something. What really contributes to its worth is the name of the brand and the designer who made the costume jewelry.
If your costume jewelry is stamped or named by the designer then it is probably going to be worth more than the actual price but again if it is vintage too.
While shopping for jewelry at a store where there are so many vintage and new options, you need to be careful about what is really vintage and new. There can be a lot of ways to determine what kind of jewelry is authentic and vintage so that you can estimate its value.
Table Of Contents
How Do I Know That My Old Costume Jewelry Is Valuable?
Whenever you see something in the costume jewelry box do check it and carefully examine the entire thing. Some of the costume jewelry might have some precious stones in it and that is rare to happen but if you see any, that is going to be valuable.
Since vintage costume jewelry always comes in abundance like in a box, going through it piece by piece might be exhausting. But even if it is, there can be a chance that you might get a hold of something that is actually 14 Karat Gold for real.
Such pieces can be worth anywhere between 50 dollars to a thousand easily. All you need to make sure is that you get the right material and make sure that a vintage costume jewelry piece is marked as well.
You should also remember that once you get a valuable jewelry piece, take it to any trusted jeweler. Most of the time jewelers take a close look, inspect the thing and give you a good price depending on the kind of jewelry material there is.
What Makes Vintage Costume Jewelry Valuable?
There is always significance attached to every vintage piece of anything for that matter. Such value like anything from the early ages or from war times would be considered vintage and would have a value determined accordingly.
The same goes for vintage costume jewelry, you need to make sure what is the level of significance of the costume jewelry you own or are about to purchase.
The details on a costume jewelry piece always can be a big help with its value factor of it. The more detail a vintage jewelry piece is going to have, the chances are you would be getting more out of it.
Is There A Market For Costume Jewelry?
There is definitely a huge market for costume jewelry and accessories, vintage or not. Costume jewelry is a very common type and when people run out of options to spend more and more money on jewelry, then costume jewelry saves the day for the lot.
You can always have so many options to choose from when it comes to this type of jewelry, from something that is sustainable and also that lasts you a lifetime. Brands now mainly focus on manufacturing costume jewelry out of sustainable and biodegradable materials so that it’s easy on the environment and budget at the same time.
What Can I Do With Unwanted Costume Jewelry?
There is always an option to pass it down to your next generation as a vintage jewelry piece or you could simply share it with your friends and family. Other ways can be donating your jewelry collection to the local jewelry shops where people with budget constraints can get them for half the price.
Selling your unwanted costume jewelry can always be worth your while and to be honest a good use of your jewelry. Extra cash doesn’t hurt anyone, so setting up an online platform where you can sell your costume jewelry can really help you with it.
Costume jewelry has been around for a long time now. Actresses and people of noticeable stature wear this kind of jewelry and there is nothing better than going for something that is affordable and you get to choose from a whole massive collection.