Jewelry History

Cartier Tiara: The Journey from NYC to Beijing Exhibit

Michelle

One of my favorite activities in NYC is looking at the jewelry store windows. There are so many beautiful objects from different time periods and places that it feels like you are taking a trip to many exotic locations. On one of my trips I came across a window with a beautiful diamond Cartier Tiara. The tiara was stunning with perfect details in platinum and diamonds. What really made this piece special was a note accompanying the tiara. A representative of Cartier had reached out to the store owners asking to borrow the tiara for an exhibit May-July in Beijing.

This exhibit is a follow up to the 2009 ‘Cartier Treasure’ exhibit, the second Cartier exhibit held at the Forbidden … Read the rest

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Boston Arts and Crafts: Focus of MFA Jewelry Exhibit

Michelle

Paris, New York, London, these are cities you might think of when you think of jewelry being created. The kind of jewelry that withstands the test of time that you see when you look at exhibits in a museum. If you read my 4-part series on the Evolution of the Jewelry Industry in America that covered the Colonial Era through the late 19th Century. I looked at the listing of jewelers and manufacturers in Boston and talked about how this helped fuel the Boston Arts and Crafts movement. And how Boston was a one time know for its jewelry

If you enjoyed those posts then you should visit the Museum of Fine Arts (MFA) at Boston. The exhibit on … Read the rest

The Added Costs of Jewelry at the Oscars: Looking at the Taylor-Burton Diamond

Michelle

Lots of excitement surrounded Lady Gaga for wearing the Tiffany Yellow Diamond last worn by Audrey Hepburn. Several articles on seeing this stunning piece were covered by JCK, Independent, and Town & Country .   Lady Gaga’s jewelry and performance will be looked backed on for many years but you wonder if it’s worth the cost? Business of Fashion put out an article titled, Does Oscar Fashion Still Matter? (accessible only to BOF Professional subscribers) Drawing attention to some of the numbers a recent poll referenced in the article found 44% of Americans did not watch the awards show red carpet coverage. I was in those numbers. Of the 56% that did only 6% said they … Read the rest

How Jewelry: The Body Transformed Exhibit is highlighting the Public’s Interest in Jewelry

Michelle

Do you consider jewelry art? What kind of jewelry? I think of jewelry as art but only certain kinds I really enjoy viewing. The JAR exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City was an art show to me. It was also the first time I went to the Met. I made the trip again earlier in the month to see Jewelry: The Body Transformed before it ends on Sunday February 24th. It opened in November, a short time for viewing, if you had to travel to see it. Jewelry featured in museums is becoming more common. The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston has their own jewelry focused exhibit that started in November 2018 … Read the rest

Evolution of the Jewelry Industry in America: Late 19th Century

Evolution of the Jewelry Industry in America: Late 19th Century

Michelle

We will now conclude this series by looking at the 25 years leading up to the 20th century. In the colonial era,  we saw jewelry that was available only to the wealthy as much of it had to be imported for lack of skilled labor and need. For the federal period, the innovation in machines created a bigger market for jewelry to be affordable for more people but we see goldsmiths start to grow in confidence about becoming jewelers. Then in the Mid-19th century the jewelry manufacturing start to decline as the people tire of mass produced jewels and jewelers start to grow their business by establishing jewelry stores that we know today. In the next 25 years, … Read the rest

Evolution of the Jewelry Industry in America-Mid-19th Century

Michelle

On to part 3 of this series, looking at the next 50 years of American history, we are now into the Jewelry Industry in the Mid-19th Century. There are a lot of changes going on and I’d like to highlight a few with two stories. Then look at some of the changes that occurred in the jewelry industry due to what was happening in the world.

Story #1: Farewell to two patriots

It is July 4, 1826 and the country is celebrating 50 years of freedom. John Adams, 90, a major player in the founding of the country and the second president to serve the country is on his deathbed. He served 1 term as president, he was into … Read the rest

Evolution of the Jewelry Industry in America: Federal Era

Michelle

Welcome back for part 2 on my series about the jewelry industry in America. We will look at the 4 periods leading up to the 20th century to give us a better idea of what to look for in trends that are happening now that will affect the jewelry industry. If you missed the first part here is a link to see how I plan on laying out the post and what other eras we will look at.

America: home of the free

The colonists are tired of taxes and English rule. Fighting for and winning independence started a trend of patriotism with Americans living in the Federal Era of 1775-1825. Taxes on imports lowered and a new wave … Read the rest

Evolution of the Jewelry Industry in America: Colonial Era

Michelle

A lot of talk has been made about the future of retail. I cannot walk down a street or look out a window on my commute without being reminded of the shift in consumer spending. Store closing and out of business signs seem to be popping up in Boston and online. Type in ‘store closing’ and see what that search brings you the words: panic, scramble and apocalypse were in the three stories at the top of my list. Much of the retail ‘apocalypse’ talk has been pointing to the apparel part of the industry. The question I ask seeing these stories is what does this mean for the jewelry industry?

To be able to better understand the future it … Read the rest

Revival Jewelry: Highlights from the Boston Exhibit

Michelle

Spring will be here next month but while the weather is still deciding to go back to winter or move forward to warmer weather you can take in a new jewelry exhibit that has come to Boston. This new exhibit is at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. I signed up for a lecture last week to coincide with the new exhibit. The new exhibit is on revival jewelry. I was telling my dad about the lecture and the new exhibit when he asked ‘what is revival jewelry?’ My short answer was that is jewelry that is copied or inspired by jewelry from the past. Revival jewelry has a lot more history to it. I want to show highlights … Read the rest

Marie Antoinette: How a Diamond Necklace Ruined a Queen

Michelle

book-cover

Marie Antoinette has been described as a beautiful, witty, wasteful, out of touch, the list can go but in How to Ruin a Queen by Jonathan Beckman, he describes a view of the Queen I never saw her as, clueless. Beckman details and pieces together the history of Marie Antoinette and the Diamond Necklace Affair as though you are part of the jury. He presents the different angles of the story that seem like unrelated events but combined created an unbelievable domino effect that lead to the end of the French monarchy.  There were three key parts that created this incredible story. The first transports you to 18th century France where you learn about a little girl named Jeanne … Read the rest