Shirley Jane

I found a ring ring last month that puzzled me. It was a.) certainly from the 1930s b.) marked Made in Czechoslovakia and c.) featured a photo of a young Shirley Temple behind the glass. Side note: Ms. Temple served as the U.S. Ambassador to Czechoslovakia in her later years (1989-1992).

I learned that there was actually a series of Shirley Temple portrait rings produced in the mid 1930s when she reached childhood stardom, featuring her in a variety of expressions. I found a photo of six of them that went for auction earlier this year and was excited to find my ring in the line up!

I assume that these rings were intended for children, as mine is barely as size 3 and the auction lot were all size 5. I think it would be really cool if someone made rings like this today! Has anyone seen any modern portrait rings? Movie stars or otherwise? Can someone make these for Mad Men characters please? If you wore a portrait ring of a movie star, who would it be?

Gettin' Ready

I spent my day off taking advantage of the sunshine and snapping about 300 photos of the vintage jewelry I've been collecting for the past few months. I did most of my earrings, rings and bracelets today - Saturday I'll get going on the brooches and necklaces! I should have a few new things by then, too (tomorrow promises to be an exciting mail day).

I'm hoping to open a little vintage jewelry shop on Etsy in a few weeks . . . stay tuned!