COLLECTIONS: Vintage Revival  

Many, many jewelry styles, over hundreds of years, have been revived over and over again. Old styles bring a sense of connection to history. They evoke special emotions. They remind us of the importance of the "hand" in craft -- something often lost in our mechanical and technological age. These vintage designs demonstrate proven styles which have transcended fashion.

What does it mean to "revive" vintage jewelry styles? Here, in very much a romantic sense, we want to emulate these styles, borrowing features and sensibilities, but adding some newer touch, such as new materials or new construction techniques. Our goal is not to re-invent per se, but to tweak, restructure, learn from, and see if we can preserve and re-create that same sense of history, awe, and emotion evoked by these vintage examples. We want to restore some life to forgotten styles. We want to show some uniqueness in our cookie cutter era.

We take recognizable pieces of vintage jewelry. We deconstruct them in order to re-create them. We want to preserve what's positive about these pieces, yet infuse something new into them, as well.

Vintage revival differs from "Contemporizing Traditional" jewelry. In the former, we mimic the original. In the latter, we impose a new order on it.

Wearing vintage and vintage-revival jewelry always makes the wearer feel very special because these are always conversation pieces.

In my pieces, I like to reconstruct vintage pieces using new materials and techniques. I prefer to come close to older color palettes. I prefer to "age" my metals. I like my pieces to look very "hand-crafted."

 

 

--- Warren Feld