26 Vintage Brooches and Costume Jewelry Pieces That Buyers Actively Hunt Down Online

The box of old jewelry at an estate sale is one of the most consistently underpriced things in the entire secondhand market. Generalist liquidators rarely have the time or expertise to flip every brooch over and read the stamp on the clasp, so signed pieces by significant makers regularly sit in $5–$15 bowls alongside unsigned mass-market items worth nothing at all.

The buyer who knows how to read those stamps picks through quickly, and the buyer who doesn’t moves on. Costume jewelry as a collecting category operates by different rules than fine jewelry.

The metal is not precious, the stones are glass or paste, and the value comes entirely from the maker, the design, the era, and the condition. Rare Trifari pieces have sold at auction for over $4,000. A single Miriam Haskell brooch from 1945 in excellent condition can reach $500.

These are not the exception — they’re the predictable outcome when specific makers meet specific buyers who have been looking for specific pieces. Here are the pieces most actively hunted right now.

Miriam Haskell Floral and Beadwork Brooches (1940s–1960s)

Miriam Haskell opened her New York boutique in 1924 and produced handmade jewelry through the mid-twentieth century that is now among the most collected costume jewelry in existence. Her signature technique involved hand-sewn glass seed beads and baroque faux pearls wired by hand onto Russian gilt filigree backings — a labor-intensive process that gives the pieces a dimensional quality impossible to achieve with cast components.

Signed pieces on 1stDibs sell from $150 to $2.450, with an average around $675 for individual brooches. A glass beads and enamel leaf brooch from the 1940s has listed for $350 on eBay.

Eisenberg Ice Rhinestone Brooches

Eisenberg Original produced rhinestone jewelry from the 1930s onward, and the pieces marked “Eisenberg Ice” — the line launched in the 1940s using exceptionally clear Austrian crystals — are the most desirable. The stones are noticeably brighter and more brilliant than those used by most competitors, which is the immediate visual clue for buyers who know what to look for.

Signed Eisenberg Ice in good condition sells for $60–$300 depending on the size and complexity of the piece. The “Eisenberg Ice” signature on the clasp is the key marker.

Trifari Crown Brooches

Trifari produced jewelry from the 1920s onward, but the Crown Trifari pieces — brooches and clips in the form of crowns or featuring crown motifs — are the most sought-after by serious collectors. Complete with the original “Crown Trifari” marked clasp, good condition examples sell for $50–$300.

The “jelly belly” Trifari pieces — brooches in the form of animals with clear Lucite cabochon bodies — are a separate and more valuable category, with exceptional examples selling for over $1,000 at specialist auction.

Schiaparelli Aurora Borealis Brooches

Elsa Schiaparelli’s costume jewelry line, produced from the late 1930s through the 1970s, borrowed the surrealist visual language of her fashion design and applied it to jewelry in ways that still look contemporary. Her aurora borealis pieces — featuring the iridescent multi-color rhinestones developed by Swarovski — are among the most collected.

Signed Schiaparelli in good condition sells for $100–$500, with unusual pieces or complete parure sets (matching brooch, earrings, and necklace) at the higher end.

Weiss Aurora Borealis Brooches

Albert Weiss founded his New York costume jewelry company in 1942 and sourced Austrian crystals directly, giving his pieces a quality that exceeded most American manufacturers of the period. The aurora borealis pieces — those iridescent stones that shift color as the angle of light changes — are the most collected Weiss items.

A signed Weiss AB brooch from the late 1950s that might have sat unidentified in an estate sale bowl a decade ago now correctly sells for $60–$150. The “Weiss” signature is on the clasp.

Bakelite Fruit Pins (1930s–1940s)

Bakelite, the early synthetic plastic used in jewelry production from the 1920s through the 1940s, has a devoted collector following driven by its unique material properties: it can be carved in three dimensions, painted, and polished to a surface quality that no modern plastic replicates. Fruit pins — carved cherries, bananas, strawberries, and tropical fruit clusters in warm amber, red, and yellow Bakelite — are among the most collected forms.

A single good condition piece regularly sells for $75–$200, and matched sets climb considerably higher. The thumbnail test — pressing a thumbnail into the piece to feel the specific resistance of genuine Bakelite — is a quick field check.

Juliana D&E Brooches (DeLizza & Elster)

DeLizza & Elster produced jewelry under the Juliana brand name and sold primarily to other labels for rebranding, which means many pieces were sold unsigned. The signed Juliana pieces, and the recognized unsigned pieces that match known Juliana construction, both have collector followings.

Good condition Juliana rhinestone brooches sell for $60–$250, with the more elaborate floral and figural designs at the higher end. The distinctive riveted construction — stones set on thin metal rods — is the construction identifier for unsigned examples.

Boucher Bird and Figural Brooches

Marcel Boucher worked at Cartier before starting his own New York jewelry company in 1937, and his pieces reflect that fine jewelry background in their construction quality and design sophistication. Figural brooches — particularly birds and insects — are the most sought-after Boucher designs.

Good condition signed Boucher sells for $100–$400 at specialist dealers and auction. The early production marked “Marboux” predates the Boucher signature and is separately collectible.

Hobe Rhinestone Parures

Hobe, the New York jewelry firm established in 1927 by a French silversmith family, produced rhinestone sets that were sold to film studios as well as through retail. Complete Hobe parures — matching brooch, necklace, and earring sets in their original presentation — are among the most collectible complete costume jewelry sets.

Individual signed Hobe pieces sell for $40–$200; complete parures in good condition reach $200–$600 depending on the design complexity.

Hattie Carnegie Brooches

Hattie Carnegie — the fashion designer and retailer who became one of the most influential figures in mid-century American style — produced costume jewelry under her name from the 1930s onward. Her signed pieces are collected as both jewelry and fashion history.

Good condition signed Hattie Carnegie sells for $60–$250, with unusual figural pieces or large-scale statement brooches at the higher end.

Joseff of Hollywood Sunburst and Celestial Brooches

Eugene Joseff produced jewelry specifically for film productions from the 1930s onward, and his pieces were designed to read dramatically under studio lighting rather than in intimate settings. The “Joseff Hollywood” signed pieces — sunbursts, moons, and celestial forms in Russian gold finish — are among the most dramatic objects in the costume jewelry market and have a specific collector following among both jewelry buyers and film memorabilia collectors.

Good condition signed Joseff sells for $100–$500.

Coro Duette Brooches (Double Clip Mechanism)

The Coro Duette — a hinged brooch that separates into two dress clips — is one of the most ingenious designs in costume jewelry history and one of the most collectible Coro forms. The mechanism allows a single piece to be worn in two configurations, and complete working Duettes in good condition sell for $100–$300.

The mechanism needs to be functional — a stuck or broken hinge significantly reduces value.

Stanley Hagler Floral Brooches

Stanley Hagler’s hand-sewn beaded brooches, produced from the 1950s onward in his Florida workshop, use the same labor-intensive technique as Miriam Haskell but with a more elaborate, almost theatrical floral construction. Signed Hagler in good condition sells for $80–$400, and the complex three-dimensional floral pieces at the high end.

The signature is usually on a small oval cartouche attached to the brooch back.

Kenneth Jay Lane Enamel and Rhinestone Brooches

Kenneth Jay Lane produced jewelry from the 1960s that was deliberately positioned as affordable high style — worn by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis and Diana Vreeland, sold at prices that made fashion jewelry accessible. KJL signed pieces in good condition sell for $50–$200, with figural pieces and large statement brooches at the higher end.

The current collector interest in the brand has been sustained by the continuing relevance of the designers who wore it.

Schreiner New York Rhinestone Brooches

Henry Schreiner’s New York company produced rhinestone jewelry characterized by oversized, inverted-set stones — stones placed upside down so their pointed tips faced outward rather than inward, creating a distinctive reflective quality. Many Schreiner pieces were sold unsigned to other labels, but signed examples carry a premium.

Good condition signed Schreiner sells for $80–$300, and large-scale dramatic pieces with inverted stones reach the top of that range.

Lea Stein Paris Brooches

Lea Stein began producing her characteristic laminated celluloid brooches in Paris from the 1960s onward, and the pieces — figural cats, foxes, beetles, and geometric forms in layered colored celluloid — have a devoted international collector following. Signed Lea Stein in good condition sells for $40–$200 depending on the subject matter and rarity.

The signature appears on a small rectangular tag on the reverse clasp.

Czech/Bohemian Glass Brooches (Pre-WWII)

Before World War II, the Bohemian glass industry centered in what is now the Czech Republic produced extraordinary paste and glass jewelry components that were used in both fine and costume jewelry. Antique Bohemian glass brooches in elaborate floral or figural designs, with multiple faceted glass stones in original settings, sell for $60–$300 depending on complexity and condition.

The quality of the glass cutting is the distinguishing factor.

Renoir Copper Modernist Brooches

Jerry Fels founded Renoir of California in the 1940s to produce modernist copper jewelry — bold abstract forms in hammered and shaped copper that reflected the influence of mid-century design. Signed Renoir in good condition sells for $30–$100. The companion line, Matisse, used enameled copper and carries slightly higher values. Both are identified by the signature on the clasp.

Hollycraft Christmas Brooches

Hollycraft produced jewelry from the 1940s onward with an emphasis on colored rhinestones and pastel settings unusual for the period. The Christmas and seasonal brooches — trees, wreaths, and snowflakes in colored stones — are the most collected Hollycraft forms.

Good condition signed Hollycraft seasonal pieces sell for $60–$200. The “Hollycraft Corp” signature and a copyright date on the clasp date the piece.

Kramer New York Rhinestone Parures

Kramer of New York produced rhinestone jewelry from the 1940s onward, often supplying pieces to Christian Dior for rebranding. The double-labeled pieces marked “Kramer/Christian Dior” are the most valuable, selling for $100–$400.

Standard signed Kramer in good condition sells for $40–$150, and parures at the higher end of that range.

Florenza Filigree Brooches

Daniel Kasoff founded Florenza in New York in the early 1950s to produce jewelry in antique filigree settings with colored stones and pearls. The Florenza aesthetic — deliberately old-fashioned and romantic — has found renewed interest among collectors who appreciate the contrast with mid-century modernism.

Signed Florenza in good condition sells for $40–$150.

Sweetheart Military Jewelry (WWII Era)

During World War II, soldiers and their families exchanged jewelry as tokens of patriotism and devotion. Sweetheart brooches — eagle motifs, service branch insignia, state or country names in rhinestones or enamel, often with “Army Air Forces” or specific regiment markings — are collected both as jewelry and as military history.

Good condition examples with strong enamel and clear markings sell for $30–$150 depending on the branch and specificity of the marking.

Egyptian Revival Brooches (1920s–1930s)

The 1922 discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb triggered a wave of Egyptian revival design in jewelry, fashion, and architecture. Brooches from this period featuring scarabs, pharaonic profiles, lotus blossoms, and hieroglyphic-inspired decoration in enamel and faience sell for $80–$400 depending on quality and provenance.

The Egyptian revival aesthetic has never fully gone out of fashion, which keeps demand consistent.

Jelly Belly Pins (Lucite Body Animals)

Jelly belly pins — figural brooches in which the body of a bird, fish, or insect is formed from a clear Lucite or glass cabochon that resembles a filled form — were produced by Trifari, Coro, and other American manufacturers from the 1940s. The Trifari examples are the most collected. Good condition Trifari jelly belly pieces sell for $200–$1,000 depending on the creature depicted and the complexity of the metal framing.

The clear Lucite belly distinguishes originals from later copies.

Art Deco Dress Clips (Matched Pairs)

Matched pairs of Art Deco dress clips — symmetrical rhinestone or enamel pieces designed to clip onto a lapel or neckline edge — are collected both for their design quality and their wearability. Good condition matched pairs from the 1920s and 1930s in signed or high-quality unsigned form sell for $50–$300.

The clip mechanism needs to be functional, and the pair needs to match precisely — a mismatched pair loses most of its value.

What You’re Actually Looking For

The entire economics of vintage costume jewelry collecting hinges on one action: flipping the piece over and reading what’s on the clasp. Most buyers at estate sales and thrift stores never do this. They see a brooch, assess it visually, and either reach for it or don’t.

The buyer who consistently flips every piece and reads the mark is doing something most people find tedious but that pays reliably. What looks like a rhinestone baubLe to most people is, to the right buyer searching for it specifically online, the exact piece they’ve wanted for three years.