Best web sellers of vintage jewellery inc Ebay sellers!

[ArtDeco]

Hello all,

Wasn't sure whether to post this under the Ebay section but thought the people who might be able to help are more likely to be found in the Bling section! And also I'm looking for info on sellers outside of Ebay too.

I love vintage jewellery, especially Art Deco stuff (I know shocking isn't it? :wink. I've bought a few pieces on Ebay and so far had great service. The people I've bought from and been impressed with are BJ Antique Jewellery, Idawise and Denise Jewellery (Ebay i.d. is dennicass, it's Denise Pickering who is really lovely!) Has anyone bought anything from Frederick3519 by any remote chance? Just wondered if anyone has any experience they'd care to share, either Ebay sellers or other sites, good or bad?

Many thanks :handshake:

 

[Vienna]

I`ve never bought any true vintage pieces but have been lucky enough to inherit a couple from relatives. I have bought vintage style new pieces from an american jeweller who specialises in making true reproductions ( Art Deco is her forte and she`ll make whatever u want ) and also from a Uk seller who does the same. The websites are www.colorsymphony.com and www.london-victorian-ring.com who do victorian, edwardian and art deco styles. Both pieces I had made were wonderful so if ever you`re celebrating a special birthday or anniversay etc and want a piece made for you they`re both worth looking at.

 

[ArtDeco]

Thanks for replying Vienna :handshake:. I'm looking for original vintage rather than reproduction to be honest, although I'm not completely dogmatic about it - one of my deco rings is almost certainly 1940s reprisal rather than original 1920s/1930s, it's a bit too good to be nearly 100 years old! I've been wondering if there's a forum for lovers of antique jewellery anywhere so I could cheep on about my passion to others who are obsessed as me :grin: but can't find one anywhere...

Thanks again for your reply, enjoy your jewels :nod: :wave:

 

[Vienna]

Art deco go to a forum called Pricescope, its american but lots of brits post on it, i`m sure they have a section for antique jewellery lovers

 

[Vienna]

Have just checked AD and they do have a section on antique jewellery with over 7000 posts on it, you should find plenty of eye candy to drool over lol

 

[Tinkerbelle]

I love vintage pieces and am lucky enough to own quite a few bits and pieces. But I have either bought them locally or inherited them. I've done quite a bit of research into the pieces I have and the oldest piece I have is 179 years old!

I can't help with eBay sellers though but I would be interested to know how you get on.

 

[ArtDeco]

Thanks Vienna I'll have a look at that . Lovely to find like-minded obsessives :grin:

Tinks I'll let you know how I get on! So far so good with Ebay purchases though, bought a platinum ring with trilliant diamonds from Bev Jopson nearly three years ago, she's a mine of info on vintage and antique jewellery and is very professional. Denise Pickering is a really nice lady, we hit it off over email and she accepted an offer I thought she'd reject from me on a higher priced item which had been her own, she wanted me to have it to mark my completed family which is lovely. We've chatted since which has been grand. I also bought a diamond brooch from Idawise who again accepted a lower (perhaps even cheeky!) offer. I believe are a really well respected Ebay seller (think they've just been voted one of the top sellers in the field by customers - there's a note saying something like that in my Saved Sellers!) Bizarrely all three of them are located in Yorkshire, turns out Idawise are based just up the road from my Mum. Probably a good thing I don't spend too much time there or we'd be bankrupt :grin:. I have my eye on a ring from Frederick 3519 I think he's called, but will have to do some major saving (or Ebaying!) before I can secure that...

N.B. I'd like to say I'm not loaded - reading this back am wondering if this sounds like I'm buying expensive jewellery every day of the week?! It's just that jewellery is my passion. I'm not into cameras or iPhones, no interest in holidays or cars, just my jewels. They make me happy every day, so I reckon they're good for my mental health. Perhaps I should try and get them prescribed on the NHS :grin:

 

[gemcherub]

Emma is lovely and so honest and helpfull http://www.fineantiquediamonds.co.uk/20ed11/ she is also on ebay http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/edrury2005/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p3686

 

[gemcherub]

Love looking here as well although I haven't bought as they are very pricey lol http://www.friarhouse.com/
I also buy at auction, their condition reports are very good and if the auction house is local I look before I bid.
In fact I look at so many auction catalogues I see loads of the items on ebay (as thats were the sellers buy) at there marked up prices usually at least 3 times, so I go straight to source/auction and pay what they pay lol
Sometime i also see the "FIBS" sellers tell or don't tell, the condition report at auction will tell you the diamonds are chipped, fractured etc and P1-P2 clarity, then I see them on ebay as SI clarity with no mention of the fractures! Also I have seen cavity filled diamonds sold at auction then apear on ebay with no mention of the treatment! and these are top ebay sellers!

 

[Tinkerbelle]

Art Deco jewellery is my passion too. Actually it's accessories with jewellery at the top of the list.

I have mentioned on a couple of other threads I am the family magpie so I'm always top of the list to inherit jewellery. My darling mum would always give me anything she inherited because she wasn't bothered by "baubles" at all so I've had vintage pieces since my late teens.

My godmother died a couple of years ago and I was very close to her. She was my mum's cousin. She had no children and left her jewellery to me in her will. But I had no idea that would mean I would also inherit her mother's jewellery, her mother in law's and her husband's aunt's!!

There were five diamond rings, two ruby rings, two gold bands, an opal ring, a ring and the list goes on. I was stunned. There was one piece that is so beautiful it almost makes me weep to look at it. It's a cape pin. Two diamond hearts set in platinum. It is pretty and can be worn as a brooch or lapel pin but I never wear it outside of the house as it doesn't have a safety chain. I can't afford to get a platinum safety chain fitted lol.

I had one garnet brooch made into a solitaire ring and I am slowly getting some pieces repaired or remodelled.

 

[Weathergirl]

Tinks I hope no cat burglers are reading this thread...

Step away from the monitor Meg....

 

[Vienna]

I love jewellery too but I don`t have a preference as to which era. I like it all lol
My OH calls me a magpie too but between us we have 5 grand daughters so I assure him that everything I own will one day go to a loving home and be shared amongst the girls. Since being made redundant I haven`t bought anything major, just a few silver things but after my first husband died and I rarely went out, worked umpteen hours a week and didn`t spend on booze or bingo , I used to save up for 6 months then buy myself a serious piece of bling. At least with jewellery we can all cherish our pieces, love them, wear them and pass them on.

 

[Tinkerbelle]

Tinks I hope no cat burglers are reading this thread...

Step away from the monitor Meg....

lol ... actually my house was burgled a few years ago and the only jewellery they nicked was a Tiffany bracelet. Never keep expensive jewellery in a proper jewellery box on display. The toe rags will grab the box and not look at the contents. That's what the police said anyway. They didn't want jewellery though, they wanted the Subaru and picked up anything else of value on their way from the back door to the front. Barstewards!!

I'm not telling where I keep my expensive jewellery now but it ain't in the beautiful wooden jewellery box that's for sure.

 

[Tinkerbelle]

I love jewellery too but I don`t have a preference as to which era. I like it all lol
My OH calls me a magpie too but between us we have 5 grand daughters so I assure him that everything I own will one day go to a loving home and be shared amongst the girls. Since being made redundant I haven`t bought anything major, just a few silver things but after my first husband died and I rarely went out, worked umpteen hours a week and didn`t spend on booze or bingo , I used to save up for 6 months then buy myself a serious piece of bling. At least with jewellery we can all cherish our pieces, love them, wear them and pass them on.

I'm the same. I don't drink and I don't smoke. I spend my money on accessories and make them work with a reasonably small wardrobe. I love shoes and handbags but jewellery is really my passion. I work hard and earn decent money but I'm just as happy with a £30 bracelet as a £300 ring. Well I am if I love it ITKWIM.

 

[ArtDeco]

I love jewellery too but I don`t have a preference as to which era. I like it all lol
My OH calls me a magpie too but between us we have 5 grand daughters so I assure him that everything I own will one day go to a loving home and be shared amongst the girls. Since being made redundant I haven`t bought anything major, just a few silver things but after my first husband died and I rarely went out, worked umpteen hours a week and didn`t spend on booze or bingo , I used to save up for 6 months then buy myself a serious piece of bling. At least with jewellery we can all cherish our pieces, love them, wear them and pass them on.

Vienna I am saved from certain bankruptcy by my fussiness! I absolutely adore what I love, and can appreciate other people’s jewels, but wouldn’t consider buying or wearing 99.9% of what I see. I love really stark geometric pieces, clean lines etc. Can’t get on with anything floral, nor hearts, butterflies etc. I keep telling my OH that now we have a daughter it's my duty to buy jewels to pass on to her!

 

[ArtDeco]

lol ... actually my house was burgled a few years ago and the only jewellery they nicked was a Tiffany bracelet. Never keep expensive jewellery in a proper jewellery box on display. The toe rags will grab the box and not look at the contents. That's what the police said anyway. They didn't want jewellery though, they wanted the Subaru and picked up anything else of value on their way from the back door to the front. Barstewards!!

I'm not telling where I keep my expensive jewellery now but it ain't in the beautiful wooden jewellery box that's for sure.

Oooh Tinks where do you keep your jewels? Am not looking for your postcode and a detailed internal layout of your house with map references and compass points or anything like that, really. What? No, that bag marked ‘swag’ is just the last Kipling TSV, honest... My building society said that any piece valued at over £5000 would have to be kept in a locked safe bolted to a concrete floor! Am thinking maybe a safer bet would be my knicker drawer as no-one but me goes in there :rock:

 

[ArtDeco]

Love looking here as well although I haven't bought as they are very pricey lol http://www.friarhouse.com/
I also buy at auction, their condition reports are very good and if the auction house is local I look before I bid.
In fact I look at so many auction catalogues I see loads of the items on ebay (as thats were the sellers buy) at there marked up prices usually at least 3 times, so I go straight to source/auction and pay what they pay lol
Sometime i also see the "FIBS" sellers tell or don't tell, the condition report at auction will tell you the diamonds are chipped, fractured etc and P1-P2 clarity, then I see them on ebay as SI clarity with no mention of the fractures! Also I have seen cavity filled diamonds sold at auction then apear on ebay with no mention of the treatment! and these are top ebay sellers!

Oooh gemcherub you are a dangerous person to know :grin: . Thanks very much for all the info. There are no auctions that I know of locally (am in Lancaster, just south of the Lake District), and I can’t get around quite as easily since the little ones came along. I used to travel such a lot, based in London and passed through Glasgow, Birmingham, Leeds regularly etc and got to see so much more then. I *totally* agree about the misleading nature of many gradings of diamonds and other gems, I used to work for a GIA trained diamond merchant so know something of grading and it is shocking the claims that are made. I think I still have the eye but am much better with colour and cut than clarity (as many women are I think, it used to be understood that male eyes were better with clarity, don’t know how much sexism comes into that mind you!) Mistakes are also often made in terms of period dating too, it never ceases to surprise me how even good jewellers can’t spot reproduction even when it seems obvious even to me. (Maybe the same ones QVC claim can’t tell Eeek from diamonds – the ‘DQ CZ’ on the hallmark has always been a give-away to me!)

Another problem is having my pieces valued for insurance, I tried recently but the jewellers local to me are rather parochial and just don't routinely see anything like my pieces to make a reliable comparison. Think I'll go back to Joe Ullmann in Hatton Garden when next in London (their site if you haven't found it yet: www.arullmann.com though their shop is far more impressive). Would love to see pics of anything you want to share, no worries if you don’t want to post them of course

Thanks again for replying :hi:

PS: unrelated, hope your little boy is doing well? Think he’d just been born around the time I was hypersick in early stages of my recent pregnancy, seem to remember posting that seeing pics of him focused my mind on why I was doing it all again when I felt so rotten! My daughter is nearly four months now and a delight :clapping:

 

[Vienna]

I agree about the gross misrepresentation some jewellers make about some pieces or loose diamonds. Diamond grading is like an elastic band especially when jewellers say their stones are graded " in house " and uncertificated and even between well known graders such as EGL and GIA there is a massive difference. A stone can be graded by EGL as being G colour SI 1 clarity and GIA might grade it H colour and SI 2 clarity or lower. When I got engaged to my second husband I wanted to design my own engagement ring and also wanted something a little bit from the norm. I wanted to buy and choose my own centre diamond and then have a jeweller set it for me in an antique style setting. I took great care to research loose stones and gradings and settled for a GIA certificated natural pink emerald cut diamond which I bought from Israel. It came with full certification and GIA chart and seeing as several different forums, reviews and websites all said that GIA grades were much stiffer than others I thought if GIA said it was a good stone for cut, clarity and colour, then it must be. It didn`t disappoint.

 

[Sacha]

Hello all,

Wasn't sure whether to post this under the Ebay section but thought the people who might be able to help are more likely to be found in the Bling section! And also I'm looking for info on sellers outside of Ebay too.

I love vintage jewellery, especially Art Deco stuff (I know shocking isn't it? :wink. I've bought a few pieces on Ebay and so far had great service. The people I've bought from and been impressed with are BJ Antique Jewellery, Idawise and Denise Jewellery (Ebay i.d. is dennicass, it's Denise Pickering who is really lovely!) Has anyone bought anything from Frederick3519 by any remote chance? Just wondered if anyone has any experience they'd care to share, either Ebay sellers or other sites, good or bad?

Many thanks :handshake:

Hi ArtDeco and thanks for your recommendations above. I've just been having a nosey at Denise's website, she does indeed sell some lovely pieces.


Also interesting to read Cherub's comments about where some of the ebay sellers source their items, one I follow quite regularly has masses on his listings and many diamond pieces are described as having SI/VS stones! However I must say that my one purchase from him turned out very well, though I do have the testing equipment...just to be sure! :tongue:

 

[Tinkerbelle]

Oooh Tinks where do you keep your jewels? Am not looking for your postcode and a detailed internal layout of your house with map references and compass points or anything like that, really. What? No, that bag marked ‘swag’ is just the last Kipling TSV, honest... My building society said that any piece valued at over £5000 would have to be kept in a locked safe bolted to a concrete floor! Am thinking maybe a safer bet would be my knicker drawer as no-one but me goes in there :rock:

The police basically said don't make it easy and obvious. A beautiful jewellery box is the first thing a thief will take. Which when you think about makes sense. A tatty old shoe box is more likely to be overlooked. It depends on your insurance but for most policies anything valued at £1500 or above must be listed separately and should be photographed to prove you own it. I have now photographed anything of any real value ... sentimental as well as monetary and I have a list of what I know ... value, gold/silver or whatever, details of the stones (what they are, the cut, the carat weight), where it was bought and when and any hallmark details.

My ex husband is a good carpenter (not by profession) but he has made two boxes that are hidden on the underside of furniture. You wouldn't know they were there unless you knew where they were. But the likelihood of me being burgled again is very low. The barstewards wanted the Subaru. The police were very clear about that. The scooby was used as a getaway car the next day and we never got it back. We didn't get another either.

The kicked in the cat flap and opened the bank door, picked up what they could carry and went of the front, put everything in the scooby and drove off!

I also now have an alarm and a security lights. I'm far more security conscious than I was. And I would never buy another Subaru lol.