Top vintage accessories to own!

Following on from my vintage accessories investment piece, I thought I'd go into a bit more detail and outline exaclty what type of pieces you can invest in, to help build a lovely collection that stand the test of time!
 
1. Carved bakelite bangles
Fashionable in the 1920s and 1930s, Bakelite is still perfect for Autumn, Winter and Spring.
Bakelite is made from a translucent Lucite and was exploited by the costume jewellery industry for it's attractive colouring and carved into attractive shapes.

2. A Miriam Haskell necklace
A Costume Jewellery classic. Haskell introduced new standards of glamour to world of fashion, from the late 1920s to the late 1940s.  A quality investment. Prices range from £200 - £3,000!

3. A Lea Stein brooch, Paris.
From the late 1960s to the early 1980s, when she first produced her unique rhodoid jewellery, Lea Stein was barely recognised outside France.  Recently, however, her work has become international hot property!

 



4. A pair of Art deco style earrings
A pair of earrings is often the best way to start off a costume jewellery collection.  Most costume jewellery earring are clips so make sure they don't pinch!

5.Wilbur and Gussie evening purses - although not strickly vintage, these purses are devine and the designers take their inspiration from from their grandmothers collection.

Check them out here: http://www.wilburandgussie.com/

Pieces like this (except for Wilbur and Gussie), will be available to purchase from September onwards at www.hesterinc.co.uk.
Make sure you keep an eye on my online shop!

Information for this blog is referenced from Judith Miller's Costume Jewellery book.
Images are examples found from google images

Vintage investment never dips in value

Starting a vintage accessories collection is not like buying from the high street, where the cut and colour can sometimes leave you feeling like you can't quite make friends with the current season trend.  Shopping vintage means you have many decades and seasons to choose from.

You also don't have to be completely devoted to vintage, styling yourself like a 1920s flapper girl or spend loads, to start investing and enjoying key vintage pieces. Good quality vintage pieces will not only add a defining statement to your wardrobe, but also increase in value over time.

European and American signed costume jewellery designers such as Napier and Trafari, produced beautiful pieces of lovely quality, which given our current fascination of the past, does complete justice for our modern day wardrobe.

To help start your vintage accessories collection, HESTER Inc is giving away £30 worth of vintage accessories of your choice.  To enter now, visit www.hesterinc.co.uk. Enjoy browsing the beautiful vintage collection too!

Twitter? Is it that powerful?

I'm well aware people have been highly recommending social media as a very powerful marketing/communications tool for quite some time now.  So I admit I hesitated, but on Saturday I followed through with the set up of facebook, blogger and twitter accounts for HESTER Inc.  Don't get me wrong, I believe in human interaction on a daily basis. My fiance' would agree I go a bit spare if I haven't talked to anyone all day.  However, this social media interface looked a bit simple, but also complicated at the same time. How do I make friends with people on twitter? Why do people start following my tweets which feel like they're going into thin air? I'm no Paris Hilton, LondonLibertyGirl or FashionNinaG - who i think are all fantastic.  I felt because I didn't jump on the twitter bandwagon from the very beginning, I would be at a complete loss as to what was going on around me. Almost like those times when you arrive too late to a conversation at a party... sometimes fashionably late isn't all that great.  So, I googled, how to attract more followers on twitter - I know a lot of people wonder this and I believe it's probably stopped them in the past, like me.  This link was really good: http://www.ehow.com/how_5042136_people-follow-twitter.html
As Twitter looks, it's a really simple concept and  i liked point number 5 the best, if someone clicks to follow you and trust me, you're recommended people all the time to follow, then you just send them a quick direct message to say thank you. Very polite and courteous. At the moment, I'm very taken with this courteous twittersphere. I have 17 people following me now on Twitter. That's taken less than a week. I'm impressed!  Some people might be able to gain a lot more momentum but I'll shout myself a champagne cocktail over this.  Yesterday I downloaded a twitter app on my iphone so i'm able to tweet on the move. It's just a bit addictive. LondonLibertyGirl has definitely been one of my favourites, her london restaurant tips are fab and i am going to take her up on her Polpo in Soho recommendation soon!

Champagne and Cupcakes

Despite the drilling going on next door, I have the all important task of organising a brithday tea party for the lovely Louisa! I obviously cant give too much away, but I am happy to report that champagne and lots of little cupcakes are definitely the order of the afternoon.  The next question is, what would the lovely Louisa like for her birthday? She is definitely a vintage fashionista with a love for beautiful dresses and sparkly things. I have a feeling Liberty might be the spot where the present buying takes place, however, i cant help but wonder whether she would prefer something from the vintage accessories autumn collection? Perhaps, Louisa could let me know? xo

Open for trading

Phew! My e-shop is all up and running. I'm so excited.  Not quite sure how to celebrate on a monday morning..
but loving all of the support coming my way.  Pity the London overcast feature of the city has come back from holiday.   My lovely man is home in 5 days. It's been three months! Although, I did manage a cheeky visit out to Australia in July. Interesting culture, very grungy or as a lovely friend of mine said to me on Thursday night over a champagne cocktail of course.. very bohemian, which i think is more appropriate!  Don't forget to check out my e-shop www.hesterinc.co.uk!

Saturday is my favourite day of the week. Fresh coffee, weekend newspapers and brunch on the balcony is a treat! It's been a busy week. I've almost finished my lovely new website - www.hesterinc.co.uk! Check it out. My e-shop is open for business on Monday.
Plently of vintage necklaces, brooches, bangles and bracelets will be available to purchase online. For a quick preview, why not check out my new facebook page - Hester inc.
There's no mass quantity of each item, so be quick, there's only one of each!  Enjoy :)