Not all jewelry is made of precious metals and stones. In the jewelry business, there is a term called “look of real.” This term is used to define jewelry that looks as though it is made of precious metals and stones, but is actually made of much more common and less expensive materials. This type of jewelry is referred to as costume jewelry. Although costume jewelry is much less expensive than fine jewelry, it is certainly not without value. Furthermore, costume jewelry often goes up in value when it is a few decades old.

Vintage costume jewelry can be valuable for a few reasons. First of all, if a piece of vintage costume jewelry was created by a noted or collectable designer, it has inherent value. The value of the piece will then increase depending on how rare it is. In order to find out how rare a piece of vintage costume jewelry is, research the designer who manufactured it. Try to find out if the piece was in stores for just one season, or if it was produced and sold for numerous seasons. You may also find out how valuable your vintage costume jewelry is by searching for similar items on eBay and sites dedicated to vintage clothing and accessories.

Even if a piece of vintage costume jewelry was not produced by a famous designer, it may have value. If, for example, a piece comes back into fashion, then it will be in high demand. Many fashion-oriented people who pay close attention to trends prefer to wear vintage clothing and accessories that have come back into style rather than new productions of an old style. For example, bell-bottoms were incredibly popular in the 1960’s and 1970’s. This denim style made a major reappearance in the 1990’s. At the time, fashionistas arrived at vintage stores in droves hunting for vintage bell-bottoms.

The same has happened with vintage costume jewelry made from Bakelite. Bakelite, the first official synthetic plastic, was a popular material in costume jewelry made in the first half of the 20th Century. Because of its unique look and its historical appeal, vintage costume jewelry made from Bakelite has become collectable. Therefore, it has also become valuable.

This is not to say that all vintage costume jewelry is valuable. If a piece of costume jewelry is out of style, common, and produced by a designer without name recognition, it might be worth only very little. If you have a piece of costume vintage jewelry that falls into this category, however, you may want to hold on to it. Trends can change very quickly; and before you know it, your vintage costume jewelry might be in demand.