Betty Draper's Closet

I'm not much of a TV watcher.  I will listen to it as I clean jewelry, prepare packages for shipping or work on my listings; however, I rarely just sit and watch TV.  Last summer while I was visiting my daughter we decided to make pillow cases, and since her husband was out of town, we set her livingroom area up so we could each have our own sewing machines, cutting tables and ironing board.  She wanted to catch up on a couple of seasons of  Mad Men on AMC ; and said, "Mom, you'll love this show."  In my mind, I just sort of rolled my eyes, and thought to myself, "I'll endure this because I love her and want to like what she likes."

'Betty Draper's Closet - VJSE 50/50 Friday' 

by TheJewelSeeker

This treasury is brought to you by the 

Vintage Jewelry Sellers on Etsy Team.

 All jewelry in this treasury is from VJSE Team Member shops!

vintagediva60 $159.00	Smallstones $13.99	KatcherrFancy $17.50	RedBoxVintage $300.00
VintagePoetlan... $17.00	TheVintageStud... $72.00	RococoVintage $172.00	BrightgemsTrea... $24.50
bohemiantradin... $55.00	fifisfinds $165.00	TheVintageStud... $140.00	LisaWitmerColl... $15.00
TheVintageStud... $112.00	GotMilkGlassAn... $16.88	GrandVintageFi... $15.00	vintagediva60 $165.00

Treasury tool by Red Row Studio.

As it turns out, I loved the show, and enjoyed a marathon of watching all four seasons on the internet, thanks to Netflix and Hulu!  Betty Draper reminds of of nobody that I have ever known personally, but who I would have been captivated by.  Her sense of fashion, her delicate features and her amazing way she portrays innocence in a time when the pressures for the sexual revolution were bubbling under the surface.

Betty dresses to the nines, whether she was in jeans, dining out with her husband, Don, or trying to restart her modeling career.  I can only imagine that she would be in fashion heaven to be able to shop the Etsy Vintage Jewelry section to find beaded necklaces to match the dresses in her wardrobe!  As I long to see what Don Draper is up to with his new bride; and what may have happened with Betty and her new husband; as well as how her relationship with her daughter Sally may progress, I decided to make the above treasury.  

Swarovski: Synonymous with Quality

BaubleBinBeads

Swarovski Crystals is a name that has become increasingly popular with the onset of crafters and artists creating beautiful sparkling wares.  Swarovski is actually a brand name for precisely-cut crystals produced by Swarovski AG, started by Daniel Swarovski of Wattens, Austria.

Swarovski (October 24, 1862 – January 23, 1956) worked in his father’s glass factory as a youngster, learning the art of glass cutting.  Daniel eventually designed and patented one of the first machines that helped the crystal cutting process in 1982.  

Wikapedia reports, “In 1895, Swarovski financier Armand Kosman and Franz Weis founded the Swarovski company, originally known as A. Kosmann, Daniel Swartz & Co., which was later shortened to K.S. & Co.^[3] The company established a crystal cutting factory in Wattens, Tyrol (Austria), to take advantage of localhydroelectricity for the energy-intensive grinding processes Daniel Swarovski patented.”

VintageBaublesnBeads

You can find figurines, jewelry clothing, and home decorations in high end gift stores, department stores and online shops selling signed Swarovski productions.  However, Artisians all over the world purchase loose beads and rhinestones to embellish their creations.

LaurenElise

BESEV

Artists and crafters world wide tout the quality of their jewelry by stating that they use Swarovski crystals beads and rhinestones in their designs.  The word Swarovski is synonymous with excellence and quality.

Thoselovelybeads

Swarovski rhinestones can be found in many designer signed and manufactured pieces as shown here in the following vintage jewelry pieces by Sherman, Continental and more:

GrandVintageFinery Sherman Necklace

Bodacious Jewels Sherman Brooch

GlitzyThings Continental Brooch

glitzythings Full Parure

delightfullyvintage Alice Caviness

As well, Swarovski has their own team of designers who create amazingly beautiful pieces found in higher end boutiques, department stores and online gift malls.  The Swarovski produced jewelry can be identified with the hallmark Swan stamped on the backs and hang tags of the their designs:

The Jewel Seeker

The Jewel Seeker

PurpleDaisyJewelry

The Jewel Seeker

Click here for more outstanding Vintage Jewelry!!!

Collecting Sterling Silver

The Jewel Seeker

Sterling silver will always be my first love, I have a nickle allergy, and so I struggle to wear anything but fine jewelry (gold, silver, platinum). I pick up vintage jewelry whenever I can find it. This past week-end I found a beautiful, like new, retired Judith Ripka Bracelet that offers a fabulous combination of Diamonique faceted onyx and sterling silver.

Elsewind

I was checking out other sterling silver designers on Etsy, and found a fantastic variety of designers: Dancraft, Jay Flex Sterling, Cini, Bell and a host of other Designers. Countries like Denmark, Normay, Germany, and the United Kingdom are also well known for their Sterling Silver Craftsmen.

Antiquing Online

As a collector and seller of vintage jewelry, I enjoy researching designers and companies. Discovering makers and designers can be a challenge, because in of the way various countries hallmark sterling. The United Kingdom used a picture code; as well as other European Countries.

Taxco and More

Mexican sterling silver is very popular, and designer Mexican Sterling silver is highly desired in the collectors world. It takes are real dedicated researcher to be able to identify the marks on Mexican Sterling, but one of my favorite resources for identifing it is Bille Hougarts The Little Book of Mexican Silver Trade and Hallmarks  This wonderful soft back book explains the differences in eagle marks, and gives examples of numerous hallmarks.





Vintage Native American Indian sterling silver jewelry is often unmarked. Some of the marks are easily identified and others are very difficult because the artist only signed the jewelry with their initials or a symbol.  The complication in identifying a specific Native American Indian craftsmen is that the silversmith often past his trade to family members.  The result is that there may be several  artists using the same or similar initials, only different font.  This can be very challenging to a seller who wants to attach a name or brand to a specific piece of jewelry.  Barton Wright's Hallmarks of the Southwest can be very helpful in learning more about identifying the works of many Native American Indian craftsmen.

Past Splendors

VintagePoetlandia

The Jewel Seeker

For more details about the sterling silver jewelry in this article, please click on the Shop name below each picture.  All jewelry provided here is courtesy of  The Vintage Jewelry Sellers Team on Etsy.

Make your Photo's POP! - Photoshop for clarity

This tutorial will be helpful to those of you who are looking to create clarity in your photo's and improve color.  I hope it is helpful.  I'm still a beginner at making these video tutorials, and so I'm nervous, yet excited to share this kind of knowledge.  My own photos could use some improvement - but what better way to learn than to teach, right?  So, play around a little and have fun - you can't make a mistake, because you can always delete the picture and retake it or hit the "undo" button!  Have fun!

Do You Pin? Pinterest - Show your stuff!

I threw together this Pinterest Tutorial. Hopefully it will inspire you to get a pinterest account and start having some fun!+

Treasury Making Is more fun using Shmetsy Treasury Making Tools

I love to make treasuries - especially treasuries using items of the members of my favorite team, The Vintage Jewelry Sellers on Etsy! When making a treasury, this is what I look for:

KEY WORDS:

The most important part of a treasury, in my opinion, is finding the items that I want to include in it. So, sometimes I will search origin of item (ie: European, Scandinavian, German, Russian, Alaskan, Polynesian, Japan, Asian) or I will search colors, metal type (silver, gold) or gemstone (ruby, sapphire, amethyst). I will also search for styles (modernist, victorian, art deco), or dates (1950's, 1920's, 1800's). I also use terms like figurals, hearts, womens, childrens, mens, or sports terms. So, the words you use in the key word section of your description is vitally important in being found. I also specifically search for Etsy Teams, so if you belong to Vintage Jewelry Sellers on Etsy, make sure you have the key word "VJSE Group Team".

PHOTOS:

Another important feature that I look for is that the feature picture of the item I choose is clear (not fuzzy or blurry), and that the item in the picture is close enough that it is well defined and easy to identify. I also make sure that if I am searching for a specific color, that the color is accurate in the picture as to the key word used.

Vintage Jewelry Sellers on Etsy ROCK!!!