I recently chanced upon a small costume jewelry shop with some
really cute items - all being sold very expensively.
At the price it was being sold, I bought a bunch of it, because it
will be great for christmas gifts.
I bought pieces from two designers - Felia P, and Farfalla Bonetti,
both European costume designers. Farfalla Bonetti is from Spain. I
have NO idea where Felia P is from - anyone here know?
The salesperson told me that the jewelry they sell, at these
ridiculously low prices, is also being sold in Saks, although I can’t
find record of this fact (I haven’t actually called Saks yet, but
I’m about to)…
Kenny Ma’s work (http://www.kennyma.com, from san francisco) was
also being offered there, although at much higher prices than the
other two designers - still, the prices were much lower than I’ve
seen his costume jewelry being offered at major department stores.
Each designer had their own showcase. I bought the stuff after I saw
that Kenny Ma had a case there, because it seemed to give it some
‘cred’.
Given that I am a jewelry vendor (I sell costume as well as
sterling/semi-precious jewelry), I usually take pitches like this
only half-seriously (we all know some street vendors will say just
about anything to make a sale, hehehe), so when she said it was being
sold at Saks, I decided to do a web search.
I also scout major department stores to see if they’re selling my
items, and for how much, and I almost always pass this on
to customers when they buy from me. Generally, I sell around thirty
percent cheaper than department stores. However, I am honest when
I make these claims - but since, yeah, not all street vendors are
honest, I am checking up on this, as I am considering buying a lot
more of this stuff. It really is quite pretty for costume jewelry -
they claim it’s rhodium and austrian crystal. And if it is
selling in major department stores, I want to know for how much.
Obviously, I also want to know whether or not the salesperson was
being honest with me. I thought perhaps by doing a search, I could
contact US representatives of these companies about their jewelry and
ask them myself.
Unfortunately, there isn’t much on the web about these
two costume jewelry designers - Farfalla Bonetti, and Filia P. I did
manage to locate a few european websites with photos from
Euro-bijoux, a European show, where Farfalla Bonetti had a booth, but
the company does not appear to have a website - all I could find is a
phone number for spain, and would prefer not to have to call it since
I don’t have a land line, only a cellular phone.
Does anyone here in this massive collection of know-it-alls and
resources happen to know anything about these two costume jewelry
designers?
I’m also new to the concept of ‘rhodium’ - I’ve been reading up on a
lot of the recent posts about plating, etc., so I am assuming that
this costume stuff is rhodium-plated over, say, pewter or brass or
whatever… Perhaps someone can clarify this, as well.
Thanks,
dori