The Butcher, The Baker, The Ladies’ Clothes Maker. Which one of
these was The Jewelry Guy? And why? Back around 1880 a fellow by the
name of Jonas Eisenberg started an American designer clothing
company. After about 35 years the family decided to add costume
jewelry to their clothing line in order to enhance sales. The look
was so attractive that store owners began to have difficulties in
trying to prevent people from stealing the jewelry off of the
clothing. Thievery–quite clearly–is the highest form of flattery.
Who’s going to steal junk? It follows that if it’s worth stealing
it’s worth making. Or something like that.
And so the Eisenbergs began to mark their jewelry as Eisenberg
Originals and now they were on their way to fame and fortune. Their
pieces were aimed at an upscale clientele. In 1942 an Eisenberg fur
clip sold for $100.00… an astronomical price back then for a piece
of costume jewelry. Eisenberg’s creations were stunning and they
bought their rhinestones from Austria. the land of their origins to
which they felt a sense of loyalty.
The Eisenbergs advertised in the early 1970’s that their pieces were
baked 27 times and therefore the finishes have–for the most
part–held up exceedingly well under rough wear. It subsequently
turns out that Eisenberg costume jewelry pieces–ranging from
designs gleaned from contemporary surrealist artists to Christmas
doo-dads to special occasion pieces–now rank as highly rated
collectibles.
During WWII the best department stores laid out their Eisenberg
wares with pride and showmanship. There is one collector–I do not
know her name–who has a 300 piece Eisenberg collection which she
keeps in a glass-sided upright unit in her bedroom. Other collectors
have Eisenbergs randomly strewn about their houses with other small
antiques laid out on glass tables or on mannequins or on knick-knack
shelves with other precious souvenirs.
In the 1920’s costume jewelry first took the world by
storm.competing with the real stuff that was at that time only
available to the elite of the elite. Coco Chanel then introduced the
idea of wearing less expensive jewelry. but remember she was
preceded by Jonas Eisenberg who was just as famous in his own right.
and perhaps more everlasting as a jewelry collector aficionado’s
desirable aim for possession.
Which brings me to a bit of a problem. I found an Eisenberg piece I
loved. But the image quality when scanned is on a level of High
Crapola. So I brightened it and added contrast to it and then
sharpened it and it still looked like High Crapola. So I outlined
it. The result. High Crapola with an outline. Decision. Show it as
is. or try a new item. I am here to tell you one and all that mules
have nothing on me when it comes to outright stubbornness. I can out
stubborn anything that breathes. And so my Eisenberg fur clip that
looks like a mask and is made of gilded silver and faux gemstones
and is surely worth over $300 today. maybe more. is there for all of
you to see.
The rest of this tale is redundant. It’s over. Finito. Fertig.
Abgeschlossen. Terminado. Done. You know what’s next.
The trek to the source. The visit to the image… also known as the
viewing experience. You know how to get there. Home page.
http://www.tyler-adam.com. Scroll down. Left side. Tidbits. Click.
And there for your sensory optic pleasure you will see that
Eisenberg fur clip mentioned above that looks like a mask and is
made of gilded silver and faux gemstones and is surely worth over
$300 today.
And there ya have it. That’s it for this week folks. Catch you all
next week.
Benjamin Mark