Vintage FrenchGold Tone Faux Pearl Grey and Ivory Dangling Earrings Circa 1980s

Maison Gripoix Vintage Faux Pearl and Red Dangling Earrings. Wrapped in woven gold around the Pearl in the typical 1980s style of Chanel. Clip on. So classic and you always look good no matter what you are wearing when you have these on. Clip on. Very much the colors of Chanel. Guy de Maupassant wrote a famous story about a necklace. The story is about a young, pretty, intelligent, well educated but poorly endowed bride who has to marry a petty official; and thus suffering from the limitations of living a life with a husband that lacked any exquisite qualities. In order to entertain his dejected spouse, one day her husband gets an invitation to a ball and gives his wife 400 francs he had saved for a hunting rifle so that she would be able to order an appropriate dress. However, when the dress is ready it becomes clear that it is lacking jewelry; and it would be impossible to attend the ball while looking so poor. The protagonist approaches her rich childhood friend with whom she was raised together at the monastery and borrows a diamond necklace from her. The ball is a great success and she is the centre of attention. However when the woman returns home, she discovers that she has lost the necklace. In order to conceal her faux pas from her friend, she buys a new necklace identical to the one she lost, and to pay it off the woman gets into a huge debt which over the years gradually drags her down the social ladder from bourgeoisie to poverty. Ten years later, having lost her good looks, the woman encounters her friend on the Champs Elysees, who still looks young, beautiful and rich. The protagonist reveals to her friend the whole story about the necklace, but her friend replies in amazement that the diamonds were fake and would “cost 500 francs at most”. Maison Gripoix starts out with a dramatic story. In 1869 (or a year earlier, according to other sources), Paris master glass-maker Augustina Gripoix began making replicas of pearls and crystals; casting glass into different shapes and colours and inserting them into most sophisticated settings. She used the pâte de verre (glass paste) technique, whereby a traditional ceramic or qypsum form was filled with a multi-colour pieces of glass and special gluing substances and then baked in a furnace, resulting in objects featuring fantastical hues. Only Augustina made her crystals by pouring the melted glass paste into the press moulds skipping the furnace step, allowing her to achieve the purity of colour, transparency and shine. She found a simple method to make beautiful jewelry and thus Marquises, Duchesses and Princesses qued up ... so Madame Gripoix would make them replicas of their own jewelry in case of robbery or loss, or some unusual jewelry pieces for their new wraps, neckpieces, or boas. The so-called ‘costume jewelry’ emerged to a large extent thanks to the work of Maison Gripoix. Augustina Gripoix earned her fame in the 1890’s when she started making necklaces for Sarah Bernhardt to wear on stage; and later the costume jewelry for the first high fashion house of Charles Frederick Worth. Later on, Paul Poiret, the leading couturier of the 1910’s contacted her and she created sophisticated oriental style jewelry for him to match his famous oriental costumes based on the aesthetic of Diaghilev’s initial Russian seasons. The value of costume jewelry was now being recognized in its own right; and not just for imitation purposes. The taste of emancipated young girls, who were gaining more and more freedom and opportunities, was best met with bijouterie. So in the 1920, when Augustina’s daughter Susan became the head of the House; Gripoix prospects became even more exciting. Girls with short-cropped hair in short dresses zoomed by in open-top cars wearing bijou rather than diamonds. Everyone ordered bijouterie from Madam Gripoix during this period, from Jeanne Lanvin to Jean Piguet...

Vintage Gold Tone Square Dangling Earrings Circa 1980s. These are always classic earrings that look great and elevate an outfit to the next le...

Vintage Art Deco Dangling Resin and Diamante Faux Emerald Earrings. Reminiscent of a Cartier design from the 1920's. So Chic. There is a Neckla...

Vintage Carolee Gold and Faux Pearl Dangling Birdcage Earrings Circa 1980s. The earrings have a gold bird with a pink cabochon and diamante face in t...

Vintage Atalante Heavy Gold Tone Hoops. Made in France. Atalante Made Jewelry for YSL. Well Made and Heavy. Clip On. These are so well made and so chic. These are the epitome of what walked down the runways of Chanel and YSL in the 1980s. So chic and will always be in style. Gold hoops with an edge! If you remind me I will send velcro dots which will allow you to do cartwheels and wear them for hours. Trick of the trade from the models in Paris. Velcro dots from amazon that allow all clip...

Vintage Christian Dior Gold Tone Faux Pearl Earrings Circa 1980s. These are always great to have in your arsenal. They can be dressed up or down. They are classic Faux pearls surro...

- Vintage item - Collectible costume jewelry piece from the '80s - Each earring measures 4.5" x 1.5" - Gold plated with silver tone accents - Sparkly enamel details - Clip on ea...

These 1980s blue rhinestone and faux pearl dangle earrings are begging to be added to your collection! Beautiful clip on earrings feature a plethora of faux pearls and light blue rhi...

CHRISTIAN DIOR vintage oxidized gun patina dangling earrings (clip-on) embellished with faux pearls. Marked CHR. DIOR Germany. Indicative measurements : height approx. 6.1 cm (2.40...

YVES SAINT LAURENT vintage silver tone dangling earrings (clip on) embellished with a blue marbled resin center and a faux pearl drop. Embossed YSL Made in France on each earring. P...

fabulous pair of Vintage Escada Grey Pearl Earrings embellished with crystals and heart motifs. Think eighties runway and a time when the very best statement earrings were born. A p...

Pair of clip on Dominique Aurientris earrings, still on the original earring card from neiman marcus Measuring 3 in long x 1 in wide This French jewelry designer has a vast internat...