There’s something precious about a well-worn vintage piece, don’t you think? Vintage offers both fun and fashion, but also class and style with a dash of intrigue. So it’s important you know how to style vintage costume jewelry and accessories in today’s fashion world.
Vintage costume jewelry and other type of accessories, like belts and bags, have a cozy-glam feeling about them. They spark more than joy and they make any comfortable look a glamorous one. You can wear vintage during the day with a t-shirt and jeans, or at night with a sexy dress to shine like a retro star. More about this below.
Why should you invest in vintage costume jewelry?
Collecting eclectic vintage is a fabulous hobby. Besides the entertaining part, it’s also a savvy investment because most pieces hold their value in the market. Designers made vintage costume jewelry and accessories to last. Compared to the new costume items, which break faster, you buy more and more because you want to.
To spruce up your vintage fashion history, you have to know that during times of war and economic downturns, costume jewelry manufacturers hired top designers from notable companies as Van Cleef & Arpels and from luxury houses like Cartier or Chanel. They created interesting pieces that would be approachable even during times when manufacturers used precious metals for war and were in short supply.
Designers created a lot of pieces with Austrian crystals and other finely cut stones. They refined and detailed the design, while keeping the price points low. These vintage costume jewelry design studios produced timeless accessories. The design and quality of manufacture was much better than what mass market brands offered now, and the proof is that they look good even half a century later.
What’s more, investing in vintage pieces helps the planet. We throw out tons of new clothes and accessories each year. It’s important to make wise buys. To invest little by little and not cave each season to what the trendy market is trying to push you to buy. It’s also imperative that we try to mend broken things and not replace them. Of course, it’s easier to replace retail items that don’t carry history or sentimental value than vintage ones.
Top 10 tips and tricks to accessorize vintage costume jewelry
- When you’re feeling down, and you crave the comfort of a cozy sweater, add a vintage costume necklace to your outfit. It will immediately uplift your mood.
- These pieces are so versatile that you can wear the same clothes every day and if you change your accessories, like a simple oversized vintage leather belt, nobody will pay attention to anything else.
- Don’t push your luck and opt to wear only one retro jewelry item at a time to keep the look modern. Layering multiple items into your look is always a good option and creates more interest.
- If you don’t know what to buy, invest more in 70s or 80s collectible vintage. The pieces are rarer, but they’re timeless. Designers are reinventing these items almost every season. And they’re easier to style with trendy looks.
- Think chunky golden jewelry and bold colorful stones.
- Vintage items are a great feminine resource. A blank canvas, like an all black look, needs something that shows your bubbly personality. It can be a colorful silk scarf with a wild vintage brooch.
- Another styling tip is to wear a retro mini bag with a vintage pearl bracelet on its handle.
- Wear items different than how you’re “supposed” to. Continue exploring vintage with the help of a bracelet on your ankle, a necklace as a headband, a belt or a chunky necklace as a bag handle and earrings as brooches. Then wear pearls with turtleneck sweaters or dresses and add a chic metallic necklace or brooch to your hat.
- Wear that bedazzled clutch during the day with jeans and a white shirt.
- Go to work in a silky suit, but add a glamorous necklace – on your neck or waist.
- Pair those sparkling cat eye sunglasses with a bad ass leather jacket.
Dare to be unique, that’s what these pieces show you. The world is your oyster and each one of your discoveries a precious pearl. Vintage likes to attract attention, so there’s no place for shyness here. Take good care of each piece and it will be your best friend a long time from now on, lifting your mood.
If you have a shopping bug, do it in a sustainable way. It’s fun and relaxing to add new pieces to your wardrobe! Check what designers are launching on the runways, a lot of outfits are vintage inspired, and turn first to vintage shops, before the mall.
