Featured Famous Antique Centre Sold Me This Brooch...Turns Out...

What she said, but them I'm a sucker for Damascene and this is a non-kissing cousin.

 

My parents had a second hand store and my ex and I had a store until we split up. I can't tell you how many times we got items that had lost 50% or more of their value due to scratches and hot needle tests on vintage plastic because some idiot thought it might be ivory! Never, never, never damage an item to see if it's 'real'. There are so many tests to be done that do not ruin it. I've had vintage jewelry that were fortunately untouched that sold for hundreds of dollars. Sometimes gold isn't the most expensive material with certain collectibles.

 

amen. Hot pins make real jewelry collectors want to take them to the wielders. Under their fingernails. Acid tests on the FRONT of a piece will damage anything and everything. (I only acid test on the front if it's scrap or trash, to determine which is which.)