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Sunday 5 May 2013

VINTAGE BROOCHES

Good Morning to you,


I love the unexpected. 

I had spent a lovely morning, sewing with my friends. Twelve o'clock arrived and it was time to say our goodbyes until the following week.  Before I went home, I decided to have a little wander around the Heart Foundation Charity Shop. There was nothing which took my fancy, until I turned to leave, and there, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a little sparkle.  I turned to look and this fabulous brooch was twinkling in the sunshine. It had been displayed on the counter of the shop, and the rays of the sun had caught it for just a moment.



I felt it was calling to me, as the sun disappeared the moment I walked over to the counter. This beautiful little brooch was just waiting for me to buy it. 

There were a lot of people in the queue, but everyone was ignoring the brooch. So I said "Excuse Me" to the lady in front of me and I plucked the brooch from the counter. You could see this really unsettled her, as she watched me pick up the brooch and you could see from the look on her face she was thinking "Drats, I've missed a bargain!"

If you look closer the brooch appears to be a multi coloured brooch, but in actual fact the large stones are coloured pink and the rest are glass stones which reflect the light.



This is a lovely Art Deco styled brooch, again I bought it for a few pennies, but I love the workmanship which has gone into creating this piece. Ordinarily, I love curls and swirls, but there was something about this brooch which really appealed to me. When the light catches it, the brooch comes alive and sparkles.




This brooch reminds me of one Ivy would have owned. Do you remember I mentioned that she never left home without her hat, well a brooch would have been an integral part of her  wardrobe.  Larger ones to be pinned on her coat and daintier brooches to be added to a dress.



..... and this dainty brooch would certainly have been worn to church. Ivy would have pinned this little pearl brooch on to  her dress or  cardigan.




......as would this one, I think this small brooch would have been reserved for best. The stones are so vibrant and the centre lavender stone is so beautiful. I love the colour combination of  lavender and citrine.




This is definitely a style Ivy would have worn. I remember there were certain styles which would have been pinned to her hat.  Being smart and stylish was very important to Ivy, especially when she went to church on a Sunday.



This is one of my personal favourites.  I bought this
at a Church Jumble Sale many years ago. I cannot remember how many years I have owned this, but I used to wear this on my beret when I was much younger.... and I still love it. It has a Delft quality about it. I still wear it on the lapel of my coat or attached to a scarf.




This brooch I bought in Atlanta when I was visiting Natasha.  It was actually attached to a blouse, which was not my cup of tea, but I loved the brooch  so for a couple of dollars, plus taxes, (which I always forgot I had to add on) this brooch became mine.  The blouse, was a sheer fabric, which I did not want to waste, so I cut the blouse into pieces, packed it in my suitcase to take home to Cyprus. When I arrived home, I added it to my material bank.....for the  "you never know when this piece of material will be useful" moment. I have to tell you it is still waiting for that "useful" moment, but as I always say to George, "It is there for when I need it". Can you see George rolling his eyes again.


 ...... and my final brooch, I bought because I thought it could be added to a pearl necklace.   I love it's simplicity.

I have many more brooches which I have collected over the years. None of the brooches I have shown you, have cost very much, at the most, I would say a couple of pounds, but I love the workmanship which goes into making this costume jewellery. These brooches, for the most part, are styles which people do not wear any more, but that does not concern me, because I feel that just because a thing is not fashionable anymore, does not make it less appealing.  For me, they remind me of Ivy and for that alone, they make me smile. 

It goes to show, you do not need to spend a lot of money to own beautiful pieces of jewellery.

Do you remember your grandmother wearing brooches? Are they something you enjoy wearing? I would be interested to hear as I know they are not fashionable these days....... but that does not mean they cannot be worn and enjoyed.  

Maybe we should start a fashion revolution, "Bring back Brooches", mmm,  we need to talk to all our friends and pass the word around.

What do you think?

Take care and I will see you later in the week.

This week I will be joining,



















32 comments:

  1. My mom used to wear brooches, over the years, and I remember having a pewter one a couple of decades back.

    You might just start a fashion revolution, Daphne! It's rather a shame they've gone out of style, but who's to stay the style can't be revived.

    Have a wonderful new week.

    -Karen

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  2. My grandmother often wore brooches, in particular a Cameo. I have a smaller version and forget to wear it but when I do it is always remarked on.

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  3. I have several brooches that were my grandmother's, and others that I bought from my elderly neighbor when I was a teenager. I confess I don't wear them often because they are too heavy for my clothing, but I do love to look at them in my jewelry box.

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  4. I do remember my Granny wearing brooches (several of yours remind me of her especially the bow shaped one and the blue one). Whenever she went shopping downtown -- on went the gloves, the hat and a brooch. I'm very happy to have her bow brooch. I should wear it more often.

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  5. What a lovely brooch you found!....all of them are beautiful. My favorite is the little delft one since I am Dutch. It reminds me of something my Oma would have had. Such memories. Now that you have brought the beauty of them to my attention, I will have to start watching for brooches at yard sales and thrift stores. Have a Blessed Sunday Daphne!

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  6. Dearest Daphne,
    Certainly brooches are a very nice personal statement! I do have several, not that much but some special ones.
    By the way, when you next time do come to Atlanta, we can meet! We got home by midnight on Wednesday morning to Atlanta airport; coming back from Curaçao where we enjoyed 10 lovely days with daughter Liz and her husband Hans whom we gifted with a ticket from Amsterdam.
    Hugs to you,
    Mariette

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  7. I just love, love, love your brooch collection. I have a few in my collection and I use them to attach to bags, but every now and then I actually wear them to work using them to anchor scarves.

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  8. I adore the brooches they are all so beautiful, my mom wore them all the time and they were so sparkly...I will have to start watching them like debbie said such memories, fun to start a new collection...

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  9. Hi Daphne,
    Thank you for stoping by my site. Yes spray paint is a very good thing.
    Lovely pieces of jewelry you have there. I have a big tray of old pieces, they were Richard's Aunts. The older pieces are made so much better then they are now, and lots of sparkle. I should post a picture one of these days.
    Great weather here in western NY, all green and the flowers are out, and its in the 70's Perfect.So excited that its warm again, been a long winter.
    Nancy Jo

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  10. You have a beautiful collection of brooches! I think the light-weight ones would make good shawl pins if you wear shawls.

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  11. Your brooches are so beautiful and sparkling.
    Thank you for sharing your treasures !
    Rose

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  12. I love brooches, too and have a few from my Grandmother and my Aunt. I sure love the one with the little windmill. I've never seen one like that. I like to pin a brooch on a handmade handbag. It's a nice touch! Hugs!

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  13. How lovely they all are. Love your new one. I do wear my brooches and I pin them onto cushions too. I love to display them around my home. x

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  14. Daphne,

    Esses broches são deslumbrantes. Lembrei de minha avó. Ela amava usar broches. Tinha uns lindos. Inclusive, ela me deu um, e guardei como lembrança. Está lá na minha casa brasileira.
    Eu achei lindos demais! Encantadores!
    Uma linda semana! Beijos

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  15. Lindos os broches, minha tia os usava muito ... e até hoje tem um guardado na casa da mamãe!
    sou facinada pelo brilho das pedras!
    bj

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  16. Oh Daphne! I love all of these broaches/pins. I have a couple of these styles that were my Mom's! Thanks for the fun post.

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  17. those are all very pretty. You have quite a few.

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  18. Lovely collection of brooches! :)

    Thank you for sharing!
    Hugs
    Ina

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  19. What a beautiful collection, Daphne!!! I love brooches and I wear them a lot! But I also have my granny's and my mother's and I was planning on doing a post myself! I will let you know when it is ready!

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  20. Those are all very pretty. I have a few broaches tucked away from my grandma. I should check them out and see how to use them again. I've noticed that a lot of people are wearing bold rhinestone bracelets like my grandmother used to wear (I have a few of them too). Maybe the return of the broach is next!

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  21. SO lovely brooches, I really love jewellery,
    my fathers family, my grandmother, my fathers
    aunts, all worn something. I have been growing
    up with it! :)

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  22. Dear Daphne,very beautiful broochs you have!!I realy like your new one!Thank you for sharing!Have a lovely week!
    Dimi..

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  23. Que lindos seus broches. Eles me trouxeram lembranças maravilhosas de minha mãe. Ela era como você adorava broches e tinha muitos. Hoje tenho todos os broches de minha mãe comigo como um pouquinho dela que ficou aqui.
    Amei a ideia, vamos usar muitos broches, Amanhã já começarei minha peregrinação em busca de lindos broches para usar neste inverno.
    Bjos e tenha uma ótima semana.

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  24. Yes I love brooches, they bring back memories of my grandmother and great aunt. In fact, I have some of theirs that were passed down to me. The photos of yours are so pretty!

    I

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  25. This post helps me remember my dear friend of over 40 years who died last January. Lydia was a real collector of brooches and pins. When we were organizing her estate sale discovered that over the years she had collected over 500 butterfly pins and brooches, plus other designs. She wore them with such style. We gave her close friends one of her collection to remember her by. I wear a simple Celtic heart of hers.

    Thank you so much for visiting Summit Musings and signing on to be my 100th follower. I'll return the favor. Love the interesting people you meet through blogging.

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  26. I love seeing your beautiful brooches. My favorite--and it was hard to have a favorite with so many beauties shown--was the little Delft looking brooch. I collect Delft, so it really grabbed me. I also am crazy about Cameo brooches, rings, anything. I have a few cameos. Another interesting brooch style are the ones made in Italy of teeny tiny pieces of mosaic tiled and arranged to make a scene or picture of a flower arrangement. A few years ago brooches were real big around here. Just for a long enough time so that we were able to buy quite a few of them and now I am not seeing people wearing them much. Anytime I wear a blouse that goes with a brooch I still wear mine. Usually either a cameo or mosaic, but sometimes in winter I will go for a real sparkler.

    Keep on "rockin" your brooches. I am sure people enjoy seeing them.

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  27. Each piece is so beautiful, Daphne. I do remember my grandmother wearing a brooch - she wouldn't have considered 'dressing up' without one. I have one that was made by my great-aunt - it's a little straw hat. I'll have to highlight one of these weeks.

    The fourth brooch pictured reminds me of what we called 'Circle Pins' when I was a teenager. They were very popular and there were many variations - but Circle Pins were THE thing!

    Thanks so much for joining in this week.

    xo
    Claudia

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  28. A really amazing collection, and all so beautiful in a special way. Impossible really to choose a favorite. I have some too, a cameo that was my mother's and which I'll wear in memory of her tomorrow. I love silver jewelry and have several brooches made by silversmith friends over the years. I really enjoy a delicate, lightweight brooch at the neckline instead of a necklace sometimes - and love a chunky heavy one on a coat or jacket lapel.

    Happy weekend - Mary

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  29. My grandmother was not a jewelry sort of person but I remember her sister, my great-aunt, having lots of sparkly jewelry such as these brooches, and earrings to match, and a huge button jar for me to rummage through and play with as well.

    You have some lovely treasures here! :)

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  30. Such pretty brooches you have! My Mother In Law wears them all the time, especially to church and I love to see which one she chooses each week.

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  31. All so pretty but the art deco one is my favorite!

    Big Hugs,
    Susan and Bentley

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  32. Oh, a girl after my own heart! I adore beads! Thanks so much for sharing the photos. I'm joined your merry little band, and am looking forward to checking out your other blog posts more closely too. Hugs,
    Kathy at shawkl.com

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Dear Friends,

It is so wonderful to know you enjoy reading Ivy, Phyllis and Me! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave me a comment. I really do appreciate it.

Best wishes to you.

Daphne

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