Miriam Haskell...

I've officially made it half way through the week so I decided to treat myself with perusing eBay. I didn't really have a whole lot of luck for the amount of time that I spent looking. However, I am pretty excited about a Juliana clamper that I found with the etched frame at a very, very good price. I will have to show you all when it comes in the mail and then maybe I will do a post dedicated to Juliana/D&E clampers. But for today, I've also been obsessing over Miriam Haskell jewelry...no, wait - I obsess over that everyday. Even though I've been collecting it for almost 7 years now and researching nearly every day, it never ceases to amaze and even make my breathe catch with the gorgeous intricacies of the pieces that are out there. And I don't know if I've shared what an Etsy freak I am (love, love it), but I've noticed that right now there are some super amazing pieces for sale there. I know there are seemingly a million more jaw dropping pieces out there (even when I just do a simple google search I about have a heart attack) but I wanted to concentrate on pieces for sale just on Etsy. So sit back, relax, and drool...

*Note: all of the links to these listings are in the captions.

There's a huge range of pieces that start from the early eras...

Shell and Wood Bracelet

This is from when she first started and was into nature themed pieces. This is an amazing bracelet that has really great other pieces from the same collection. In fact, not too long ago I purchased the matching necklace (sadly, it's at my parents' home right now where I keep most of my jewelry when I am at school so I can't show you a picture) and it's one of my favorite pieces because it's so unique. One thing I find really interesting about the coil bracelets (which I adore, but can hardly find...) is how thick the base actually is. I believe they are usually made with metal threading. I have one early coil bracelet and it's ridiculous to hold in your hands...After the nature pieces came the bright, pastel designs...

Turquoise Dress Clip

 This is back when Frank Hess first started designing as well as prior to the signed era (which started in 1947 and he also designed during.)

Coral Dress Clips

Frank Hess liked to design with bright colors, especially during the unsigned years prior to WWII when the design was centered around enhancing all of the fashions that were coming out of Europe. I especially love the rhinestone embedded pot metal motifs that were incorporated into many designs. Once WWII came around they incorporated a lot more thread and cord, rather than metal, into the designs like the set below.

You can see that they were still able to use some of their original findings and elements, but not nearly as many and the designs shifted away from metal when it could, especially the backings. They became cord, plastic, or very thin, cheap metals. 

WWII Set

But once the war was over, designers as a cohort became more likely to put signatures on their pieces, and this is when Haskell transitioned into signing and the designs also become more feminized and highly intricate to go with low necklaces and more simple, elegant dressing.

Gorgeous Shell and Flower Brooch

This is when you start to see the characteristic filigrees coming into play. In fact, once they started using filigrees, the signatures came along. There are very, VERY few pieces out there that have the filigree without signatures and are authentic. Something to keep in mind.

Filigree Based, Baroque Pearl and Rhinestone Brooch

If you look closely at Haskell backings, it's important to note how thick and luxurious the metal stampings are. Pay attention to the different styles of filigree you come across. The gilding is also really important because it has a very distinctive coloring to it because they used a specially formulated "Russian gilt" that incorporated 24 kt gold. 

Citrine and Filigree Set

Antoher thing that you always want to look for in many signed necklaces is the 8 (not 6) petal flower on the J hook. This is one my own pieces as an example...

And you can see the same thing in the original ads.

Miriam Haskell Advertisement

I find it funny how they even referred to their color options as "antiqued golden" or "antiqued silver" in their advertising because old gold is such a sought after trend today.

But back to Etsy...This is a particular favorite of mine:

Amazing Wrap Bracelet

I have a real weakness for bracelets.

All I can say is wowza...

And recently I've been getting into stick pins.

Milkglass Stickpin

I will forEVER love the multistranded necklaces.

Mutistranded Beauty

And the showstopping centerpieces.

Cascading Blue Necklace

There's dimensionality to the pieces like no others...

3D Beaded Flower Brooch

Even over-the-top designs are perfectly classic.

Huge Pendant Necklace

Especially the baroque pearls.

Dangling Brooch

And unbelievably feminine. Anything garden/flower themed is a hit for me. 

Pretty Pink Clamper

I really should stop there for now! Those are my favorites of the current Etsy listings for Miriam Haskell, but new pieces are being listed everyday so you never know what will show up next...

Hopefully the next time I go home I will be able to do a post on my personal Miriam Haskell pieces. They are so gorgeous to look at in person. I don't think I could ever stop collecting it. Does anyone else collect it? It's so hard to resist...

Hope you enjoyed the feast!

Till next time...

Xo