Costume Jewelry Online

Vintage Art Costume Jewelry

Vintage Art costume jewelry is most widely known for its wonderful Christmas pins. Lesser known is the Art non-holiday jewerly, which can be very lovely. Here's a little about Art jewelry.

Art Christmas Tree Pin (Click for Larger Image)

Art Company History

The company name was MODEART ("MODE-ART"), and it manufactured jewelry from the 1950s through the 1970s. However, the jewelry was signed "ART". Here are the marks used for Art jewelry:

"ART" all in capital letters.
"ART" plus the copyright symbol, first used in 1955.

Style and Collectibility

Art made some gorgeous bracelets, in Hollycraft and Florenza styles. You won't find these all that often, but if you do and it is in good condition, buy it. I've also seen brooches in the Florenza style -- very pretty.

Art made quite a few figural pins that are worth collecting, as well as some very nice "bug" pins (butterflies and other insects).

However, Art is best-known for its variety of Christmas pins, and Christmas tree pins in particular. While they don't sell for top dollar (compared to Weiss or Warner), they are wonderful and very wearable. (Not to mention very much worth collecting.) Invest in at least one Art Christmas tree pin.

Art costume jewelry is generally quite affordable for the beginning collector. While I have seen some demi-parures go for over $50 on ebay (and that's even with some correctable flaws), most sets are lower. You can usually pick up a nice brooch for a small amount.

All that being said, here are some Art jewelry auctions for you to peruse. Just click the link for more information and a larger image.