Jewelry Blog

>Fashion jewelry is almost as old as the human civilization itself. Adornment with various accessories dates back to 3500 BC when women wore jewelry during religious rites. It was a common conviction that jewelry warded off evil, and brought good luck to the wearer. The women of those times made simple jewelry with claws, teeth, and bones of animals.

Later, they began making jewelry from wood, metal, and ivory. They also made jewelry by stringing pebbles onto reeds or jute. Shells were strung together to make necklaces and bracelets
. Wire was used to make costume jewelry with simplistic, yet natural designs like animals, flowers, and leaves. Other materials used to make jewelry were bird feathers, delicate fish bones, berries, human hair, beetle’s wings etc.

Interesting as it may seem, the term ‘costume jewelry’ has its roots in theater, and dates back as far as the 16th century. Back then, costume jewelry was referred to as ‘paste’. The reason behind this? Fake, yet colorful jewels that complemented the actor’s costumes were chosen. These jewels were then pasted onto the actor’s costumes to give them a flashy look. This laid the foundation for jewelry in a disposable form. Costume jewelery was neither considered traditional, nor meant to be handed down to the younger generations of the time.

Fashion jewelery came to the forefront with the rise of the middle class during the 19th century. Imitations of fine jewelery of the rich gained popularity during this time. Gemstones were replaced with synthetic stones. Foils were used under the synthetic stones to provide a rich glow to pieces of jewelry. Base metals like copper and brass were used instead of gold and silver. Such jewelry was a favorite among the masses because it was not only visually appealing, but also economical.

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