Saturday, December 13, 2008

Welcome to the Collecting Vintage Jewelry Blog!

I am very excited to announce the opening of the Collecting Vintage Jewelry Blog.

Be sure to bookmark this page for a wide variety of topics under the broader heading of vintage costume jewelry. Some topics may include designer hallmarks, current fashion trends, design details, and some of our lastest finds.

My name is Carol and I am the owner of vintagejewelrylane.com an online source for vintage costume jewelry. My site has all types of vintage costume jewelry, but we specialize in Sarah Coventry jewelry, cameo jewelry, micro mosaic jewelry, butterfly jewelry, and damascene vintage jewelry.

I'll start off this blog with our vintage jewelry word of the month - Marcasites.

Marcasite is a type of stone, often used in sterling silver, and sometimes faceted - this mineral has the same composition as pyrite (fool's Gold) but has a different chemical structure. It is a gunmetal gray color with a shiny finish and is inserted in the same was as a rhinestone is.

Here is a picture of a lovely piece of marcasite jewelry from designer Kenneth Jay Lane for Avon:


The stone sometimes acquires a multi-colored tarnish that is the result of oxidation. The stone has a luster and is opaque. Occasionally, a sulfur smell is detectable. See more information and pictures here.

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