Estate of the art

Estate jewelry has graced the necks and lobes of celebrities like Julia Roberts and Kate Hudson. Those infamous multi-millionaire twins — and our personal heroes — the Olsens like to pile on the antique rings. Celebrity stylist Rachel Zoe, who dresses the likes of Anne Hathaway, Cameron Diaz and Demi Moore, based her QVC line of affordable costume jewelry on her favorite bijoux, eloquently dubbing her designs “vintage-esque.” Nicole Richie’s label, appropriately christened House of Harlow 1960 (it was named after her daughter), was created in the spirit of her favored decades, the ‘60s and ‘70s. The reality TV star modeled her jewelry after the gypsy, Art Deco and bohemian accessories she adored, utilizing leather, feathers, gold-plated metals and chains.

So, what’s the difference between estate and vintage jewelry? 

YStyle turned to jeweler Macky Fah, who’s traveled extensively to source estate jewelry all over the world, for the lowdown on the latest on this big accessories trend.

“Estate jewelry can be divided into antique and vintage,” explains Fah. “‘Vintage’ includes many decades or eras. Each era has many different designs, including Georgian, Early Victorian, Mid-Victorian, Late Victorian, Arts and Crafts era, Art Nouveau, Edwardian, Art Deco and Retro. Another name for Retro is Estate Jewelry, which refers to items made after WWII.”

According to estate jewelry merchants, anything 100 years old or older is categorized as antique. All estate accessories are pre-owned, often sold as part of an estate in an auction after the demise of the resident or disposed of by the previous owner in a garage sale.

Prices for both kinds of jewelry “can range from inexpensive to highly costly,” notes Fah.

The rise of the trend appealed to celebs — and plenty of consumers — who prefer accessories with a story. “Estate jewelry is made up of special one-of-a-kind pieces from the past that are unique and not mass-produced,” she says — therefore actresses won’t be caught in a “Who Wore It Best” tabloid scenario — thus summing up the whole brouhaha over the current craze and cementing estate jewelry’s status in the annals of celebrity style.

“The beauty of owning this kind of jewelry is that each piece is different and unique and has a sense history behind it,” Fah says. Royal families have been loyal fans of estate jewelry, amassing scads of priceless jewels and handing them down to each younger, more fashionable generation who have no problem flaunting their kin’s wealth.

Famous estate jewelry, she cites, includes the Hope Diamond (currently on display at the Smithsonian, it was once owned by King Louis XIV and is reputed to be cursed), the Hooker Emerald (donated to the Smithsonian by James Stewart Hooker and believed to be “part of a belt owned by one of the last sultans of the Ottoman Empire,” according to Embassy Emeralds) and the Roumeloites — “otherwise known as the jewelry collection of Imelda Marcos.”

“Filipinos are estate jewelry enthusiasts,” she says. “We love our tambourine jewelry from the Spanish era.”

Estate jewelry is currently experiencing a renaissance, thanks to the bold-faced names making their mark with the new “it” accessories.

YStyle found a treasure trove of accessories at Our Treasure Trove at Vintage Restore, located at 2/F Dona Consolacion Bldg., Jupiter St., Bel-Air Makati (tel. 890-4326). Art Deco bracelets with cognac diamonds from the ’20s, Art Nouveau Pegasus rings in rose gold from Italy, and ’50s diamond necklaces are some of the fine pieces we found — and can be seen photographed here. Most of these pieces are snapped up instantly by accessories enthusiasts with a hankering for striking, noteworthy pieces with a back story.

In the immortal words of Rachel Zoe, “That’s bananas.”