Cheap Thrills: Bargain Basement Jewelry and My First Piece of Bakelite
I went from zero to sixty in terms of my interest in jewelry, it seems. It wasn't that I didn't like it before, but now I see it more as a part of my wardrobe, rather than just an afterthought. The nice thing about it is that it's much easier to find cute, inexpensive vintage jewelry than it is to find cute, inexpensive vintage clothing. If I have to have an addiction, cheap jewelry is one of the more harmless ones I can imagine.
My dealer of choice for vintage jewelry has turned out to be an antique store on the north side, near Brian's place of work. It's called Ya Ya's Antiques, and I was surprised to find out that they've only been open for a couple of years. They have that cozy, cluttered feeling that I thought took a couple of decades to create, and I love pawing through their "2 for $5" bins of jewelry.
When I went in this weekend, he had an even better deal going on - virtually everything in the store was half off. So now the bins were 4 for $5, and even the more expensive jewelry in the cases was in my reach. It's probably a good thing I only had $20 on me...
I was so in love with silver confetti lucite that I didn't look too closely at the construction. I was under the impression that they were earrings, but...
The backs weren't like any clip on earrings I'd ever seen. I can actually still wear them (I have stretched ears), but I was curious about whether they're actually earrings, or something else entirely.
I asked on Instagram this morning, and one person told me they're actually scarf pins. Kind of cool, right?
These are actual earrings.
I was so happy to stumble across this brooch. If it's not a set with the pretty hairpin I picked up there last time, it's a weirdly close match.
I don't think I'm actually going to keep this one. It struck me as cute when I picked it up, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt like it might be culturally insensitive. I might be overthinking things a little bit, but that's exactly the kind of cultural appropriation that I try to avoid in my own life. Any thoughts?
This one was not from the bargain bin. This pretty dress clip is actually my first piece of bakelite! Probably my last one too, since I don't have a particular interest in collecting it, but I really like dress clips, and he was willing to drop the price all the way down to $15 for me. I just couldn't pass it up.
Do you guys have any not so guilty pleasures, or inexpensive ways to get your vintage fix?
My dealer of choice for vintage jewelry has turned out to be an antique store on the north side, near Brian's place of work. It's called Ya Ya's Antiques, and I was surprised to find out that they've only been open for a couple of years. They have that cozy, cluttered feeling that I thought took a couple of decades to create, and I love pawing through their "2 for $5" bins of jewelry.
When I went in this weekend, he had an even better deal going on - virtually everything in the store was half off. So now the bins were 4 for $5, and even the more expensive jewelry in the cases was in my reach. It's probably a good thing I only had $20 on me...
The backs weren't like any clip on earrings I'd ever seen. I can actually still wear them (I have stretched ears), but I was curious about whether they're actually earrings, or something else entirely.
I asked on Instagram this morning, and one person told me they're actually scarf pins. Kind of cool, right?
These are actual earrings.
I was so happy to stumble across this brooch. If it's not a set with the pretty hairpin I picked up there last time, it's a weirdly close match.
I don't think I'm actually going to keep this one. It struck me as cute when I picked it up, but the more I thought about it, the more I felt like it might be culturally insensitive. I might be overthinking things a little bit, but that's exactly the kind of cultural appropriation that I try to avoid in my own life. Any thoughts?
This one was not from the bargain bin. This pretty dress clip is actually my first piece of bakelite! Probably my last one too, since I don't have a particular interest in collecting it, but I really like dress clips, and he was willing to drop the price all the way down to $15 for me. I just couldn't pass it up.
Do you guys have any not so guilty pleasures, or inexpensive ways to get your vintage fix?
Jessica