Posts Tagged ‘hobe’
Hobe Sterling Jewelry
Hobe sterling jewelry is pretty rare, as is most jewelry from the 1940s time frame. With the war, the normal jewelry metals were conscripted by the goverment. Therefore, the jewelry manufacturers had to "make do" with sterling silver.
Once the war was over, the pot and base metals were once again used by the costume jewelry manufactuers, and sterling went largely by the wayside. So in general, the use of sterling in costume jewelry indicates it was made in the 1940s time frame -- roughly 1943 through 1948.
One other way to identify if a terling piece is from the 1940s is that usually it does not have a lot of rhinestones. Instead of a plethora of smaller stones, a few larger ones were used. While this isn't cast in stone, rhinestones ceased to be imported from Europe so once again, jewelry manufactuers had to make do with what they had in stoock.
Hobe sterling costume jewelry isn't what you'd call inexpensive, but it is highly collectible. If you find a piece in good condition and a reasonable price, grab it! Meanwhile, here are a few pieces of Hobe sterling jewelry, for your browsing and buying pleasure.
 |
 1940s HOBE STERLING heavy and elaborate vintage Floral BOW pin brooch  US $85.00
|
 HOBE Sterling Silver Floral Bouquet Vintage PIn US $25.79
|
 Very Large Hobe Sterling Silver Floral Pin Brooch US $124.50
|
Hobe Costume Jewelry
Hobe costume jewelry is beautiful and very collectible. It was made well, in classic styles. No wonder it's still so popular!
Hobe Rhinestone Earrings (Click for a larger image)
Let's learn a little about Hobe, the marks used and (of course) the gorgeous jewelry for sale.
Hobe Background
Hobe (pronounced ho-bay) was begun by William Hobe, who immigrated to the USA from France, early in the 20th century. His father was a designer of fine jewelry in France, which almost certainly influenced William in his designs.
Here's the most famous story about Hobe jewelry. I don't know 100% for sure that it's accurate, but it sounds like it should be. The story goes something like this: Florenz Zeigfield (of Zeigfield Follies fame) wanted some gorgeous jewelry to accent the costumes for the showgirls.
Mr. Zeigfield turned to William Hobe to create these designs. Delighted with the results, Mr. Zeigfield dubbed them "costume jewelry". How neat is that!
Hobe jewelry was first designed in 1927, and continued to be made into somewhere along the lines of the late 1990s or perhaps 2000. It was originally a family-run company, but it was later sold (date unsure).
Hobe Marks
These are some of the marks used by Hobe. Please keep in mind that the dates are approximate.
- "Hobé" with a capital H and "obé" in script. First used in 1926.
- "Hobé" all in print, first used 1926.
- "Hobé" in a 6-sided outline used 1926 to around 1932.
- "Hobé" in a triangle, from 1933 to about 1957.
- "Hobé" in an oval, copyright symbol over the "é", in use from 1958 through 1983.
- "Hobé" in an oval, copyright symbol over the "o", not sure of the exact dates.
In addition, some Hobe costume jewelry between the years of 1957 through 1966 were both signed and dated -- a real find!
Other Hobe Information
Hobe jewelry is well-designed and well-made. The jewelry was lovely when it was manufactured, and is still very wearable today.
Hobe costume jewelry is quite collectible but usually affordable by most people. As with other costume jewelry, pieces with colored rhinestones bring in the highest prices (and the prices can get way up there sometimes). You pretty much can't go wrong adding vintage Hobe jewelry to your collection.
Buy Hobe Costume Jewelry
Below are some auctions for your buying pleasure. Click the photos for are larger photo and more information about the offerings.
And if you're intrigued, here's a .
Have fun shopping!
|
 Vintage Hobe Bead Clip On Earrings US $4.99
|
 Vintage Signed HOBE Sterling Silver 14K Flower Brooch US $22.01
|
 Stunning vintage Hobe aurora borealis rhinestone necklace 1950s US $69.99
|
