Saturday, August 3, 2013

My Mother's Jewelry Treasure Chest

One of my last posts was about my mother's recent passing away.  One of the inevitable tasks after such an event is going through the loved one's possessions.  Initially I dreaded doing this, but once started I found it therapeutic and helpful in dealing with her death.

My Dad asked me to come and help go through her clothing and personal belongings.  She had a lot of clothing, some not even worn - still with tags.  She was a bit of a shopaholic - like me.  We donated most of the clothing to a local charity where it will be put to good use.  But as I dug through her closets and dressers I found some real treasures to keep for myself.

One of the treasures was an entire chest of drawers filled with her costume jewelry from over the years.  In her younger days, my Mom loved to deck herself out with costume jewelry, although in recent years I only remember her wearing her wedding ring and her topaz birthstone ring.   Finding these beautiful baubles brought back many memories - I remember her sometimes letting me play "dress up" with some of her jewelry.  Mom loved jewelry and passed this love on to me, and over the years I developed a love for making my own jewelry.

Even more amazing than the amount of jewelry I found was the incredible way she had organized it.  Everything was stored in an orderly color coded fashion inside egg crates and candy boxes.  There were boxes with black jewelry, white jewelry, rose colored jewelry, blue jewelry and so on and so on.  For this post I thought I would share her collection of black jewelry.

My Mom's Collection of Black Jewelry

Black and Gold Deco Beaded Necklace

Black and Gold Deco Beaded Clip-on Earrings

Bold Black Glass and Silver Deco Necklace w/Matching Earrings

Bold Black Glass and Silver Earrings

Black Beaded Stretch Bracelet

Black and Rhinestone Bangle Bracelets

Floral and Black Clip-on Earrings

Black and Silver Clip-on Earrings

Black Rose Clip-on Earrings

Large Black and Gold Oval Clip-on Earrings

Black Glass Flower Earrings

Round Black Glass and Gold Earrings

Faceted Round Glass and Silver Earrings

Round Glass Screw-back Earrings

Textured Round Black Glass Earrings
What will I do with these vintage treasures?  Do what Mom would want me to do ... upcycle some of them to make more jewelry of course!  She loved the fact that I made jewelry and I even found some of the pieces I made for her in the past - I will not be parting with those treasures but will post some pictures of them in the future.  Will also post pictures as I design some new pieces from the vintage treasures above!

12 comments:

  1. Through such a difficult time and task how thankful that you were able to find and reminisce upon your mother's jewelry. Your talents on re-creating some new pieces will be all the more special with these beautiful pieces. Blessings...

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    1. Indeed they are that much more special. Thanks so much for stopping by!
      Irene

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  2. Losing your mother is difficult. She will be in your heart and mind daily. My sweet mom passed away over 10 years ago and I think of her continually. She was such an inspiration to me. I have some of her jewelry also. You will love and treasure these. I know you will use them to create wonders!
    hugs,
    Jann

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    1. Yes, having her jewelry is a way to keep her close to me. Thanks so much Jann!
      Irene

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  3. I am so sorry to hear of your mothers passing... big hugs~

    It is wonderful that your able to upcycle some of your mothers things into new things. She probably would get a kick out seeing what you've made with some of her ol' things..... I imagine a lot of it your going to treasure just because you remember your mother wearing it... again, big hugs to you :-)

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    1. Yes, some of the things I will simply keep the way they are. But she would indeed love to see some of the transformations from old into new designs. Will post pics soon of some up-cycles. Thanks so much for visiting and commenting!
      Irene

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  4. I'm so sorry to hear about your Mother's passing. It's so sad and difficult to go through their things, I know. My Mom passed away in 2009. Your mother certainly had excellent taste in jewelry. Whether you keep them the way they are, or repurpose them, they'll be a beautiful tribute to her!

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    1. The jewelry is very special. Some pieces will be kept just the way they are, some will be repurposed. Thanks so much for visiting and commenting!
      Irene

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  5. Oh what a tough time. I am so proud of you and Dad for getting on with this process, it's not easy, but allows you to move on. I know your Mom would love that you are going to re-purpose her jewelry and it give it new life to move on and be appreciated. Maybe you could name the collection after her?

    Carol

    PS: I know it is confusing to have the "Reply", but people will not see the sweet replies you have written unless they actually come back to this comment section.

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    1. Thanks so much Carol ... so good to know about the Reply feature. I have added a comment below!

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  6. I am so sorry to hear about your mother's passing.
    It is wonderful that you treasure her collections. Maybe you can pass them on as treasured family heirlooms.
    My parents are aging, too and I sometimes think about that "day". Tears.
    My mother is much like me. A beautiful home full of antiques and family heirlooms. If I should inherit my parents home...... I think I will keep it and turn it into my "studio" and second home. That is.... if I can afford the taxes, etc. Living among her wonderful things and beautiful gardens...... she will continue to be with me (dad, too).
    Thank you for visiting me. I always look forward to your comments.
    Have a wonderful week(end)!
    Blessings,
    Elizabeth

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  7. Thanks everyone for all the sweet comments on this post. And thank you Carol for pointing out the disadvantage of using the "Reply" feature ... very good to know. I love the idea of naming the collection after her too!
    And Elizabeth, I hope you can one day turn your parents' home into your studio ... what a wonderful way to keep your parents close to your heart.

    As for my Mom's jewelry, I have already started some re-purposing. And I think for next Christmas, I am going to re-purpose some pieces and give as gifts to her siblings and her mother (who is 101 years old!)

    Thanks again all!
    Irene

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