Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
The father of so-called “fabulous fakes,” Kenneth Jay Lane was a spirited innovator within the jewelry industry, designing elegant and luxurious pieces without the use of real jewels. And while Lane aspired to create classic designs for earrings, bracelets and necklaces intended for everyday wear, his pieces caught the attention of celebrities, royalty and socialites.
From a young age, the Detroit, Michigan-born Lane was a lover of fashion. He studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and the University of Michigan. He pursued a design career in New York City, and a failed start in the art department of Vogue magazine led to a decade of designing shoes for the likes of Delman and Christian Dior.
Lane would occasionally develop shoe designs for friends he had in the fashion world such as Bill Blass and Arnold Scaasi. A show for the latter afforded him the opportunity to beautify shoes with rhinestones and create bangles and earrings to pair with the footwear — he found plastic bracelets at discount variety store and had them embellished by craftspeople at a shoe factory.
A love for costume jewelry design emerged thereafter. Lane created his own collection and admirers such as Jackie Kennedy and Elizabeth Taylor showered him with praise. A pearl necklace he designed was worn by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. In the early 1960s, ready-to-wear pioneer Hattie Carnegie purchased Lane’s jewelry line. Lane was given the position of design director for Carnegie but he soon changed course, moving instead into a small studio and pursuing his own path.
Lane worked with milk glass, gilded silver hardware, faux coral and other materials, and sold pendant necklaces, dangle earrings and modern bracelets to private customers. He was fond of renowned fine jewelry houses Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels and designers such as Jean Schlumberger, and cited having found inspiration in Egyptian and Indian jewelry over the years as well as Art Deco jewelry. Lane’s designs, which he called “faque” and “junque,” became well-known for their distinctive color combinations and clever characteristics such as embroidery. By the time he purchased a small jewelry factory in Providence, Rhode Island, where his accessories would be made during the 1960s, Lane had secured relationships with top Manhattan boutiques and his work had caught the attention of fashion magazines.
Directed by the filmmaker Gisèle Roman, a 2018 documentary about Lane’s life and work called Fabulously Fake: The Real Life of Kenneth Jay Lane features interviews with legendary fashion designers Carolina Herrera, Tory Burch and Diane von Furstenberg.
On 1stDibs, find a collection of vintage Kenneth Jay Lane brooches, rings and other accessories.
1960s American Modernist Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
1980s American Modern Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1960s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Late 20th Century Art Deco Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Pearl, Gold Plate
1980s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
1980s American Modernist Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate
1990s Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Late 20th Century American Modernist Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate, Enamel
2010s Modernist Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate
2010s American Modern Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate, Yellow Gold
1960s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gilt Metal
2010s American Art Deco Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
1980s American Modernist Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate, Enamel
1980s American Retro Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
1980s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gilt Metal
Late 20th Century American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
1990s American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Late 20th Century American Modernist Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Pearl
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary American Art Deco Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate, Enamel
2010s American Art Deco Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
2010s American Modern Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s American Modernist Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Coral, Turquoise, Gold Plate, Gilt Metal
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate
Late 20th Century American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
21st Century and Contemporary American Contemporary Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gold Plate
2010s American Modern Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
1990s Modernist Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1990s American Retro Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, 22k Gold, Gold Plate
1980s American Baroque Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Gold Plate
1990s American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1990s American Artisan Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s American Artisan Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s American Baroque Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, Zircon
1980s American Artisan Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
21st Century and Contemporary American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal, 22k Gold, Gold Plate
2010s American Modern Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Crystal
Late 20th Century American Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Zircon, 22k Gold, Gold Plate
1980s American Baroque Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1960s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Gilt Metal
1980s American Artisan Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1960s American Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
1980s Vintage Kenneth Jay Lane Brooches
Kenneth Jay Lane brooches for sale on 1stDibs.
Creators Similar to Kenneth Jay Lane
- 1stDibs ExpertAugust 15, 2024What happened to Kenneth Jay Lane was that the jewelry maker underwent a change in leadership. In 2017, founder and jeweler Kenneth Jay Lane died. However, his brand continues to produce pieces inspired by Lane's elegant and luxurious fashion jewelry. On 1stDibs, find a collection of Kenneth Jay Lane jewelry.
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022The impeccable costume jewelry by designer Kenneth Jay Lane, known as the “Master of Faking It,” has been made in the USA and abroad. During Lane’s early years, much of his domestic-made jewelry was produced in New York and Rhode Island, while other designs were made in factories in Asia. Some of Lane’s imported jewelry pieces are stamped with Thailand or China as the country of origin. Shop a selection of Kenneth Jay Lane jewelry from some of the world’s top sellers on 1stDibs.