The jaw-dropping designs from Joseph Mazer stay as fashionable right now and wanted by collectors as when first launched.
Mazer and Jomaz are each well-known names on this planet of costume jewellery, and memorable examples are discovered bearing every of those marks. Their histories are intertwined by way of Joseph Mazer’s involvement in each companies, however there’s extra to the story. Study how Jomaz happened and a number of the fabulous jewellery marketed by the corporate for greater than three a long time.
Courtesy Jay B. Siegel
Jomaz Historical past
Joseph Mazer went into enterprise together with his brother, Louis, in 1923. Their firm produced shoe buckles at first, after which started making costume jewellery later within the decade. Some say that transfer was made because of the apt urging of Marcel Boucher, who worked as a designer there from 1930 through 1937 before starting his own costume jewelry manufacturing company.
Some sources state that the identify of the enterprise ultimately modified to Jomaz, however that’s not how issues actually panned out. The reality is that the brothers went their separate methods within the late Forties. Louis Mazer continued to run the prevailing firm. A brand new entity referred to as Joseph J. Mazer & Co. was additionally established shortly thereafter with a companion named Paul A. Inexperienced, in response to jewellery historian Barbara Schwartz on Trufauxjewels.com.
Girls’s Put on Each day reported the Jomaz showroom opening in New York Metropolis in 1949. The enterprise tackle was marketed as 15 West thirty sixth Avenue within the early ’50s however modified to 29 West thirty sixth St. later within the decade. Based on a number of volumes of “The Customary Promoting Register,” Joseph Mazer served as president of the brand new agency and his son Lincoln was vice chairman.
Jay B. Siegel
The brand new firm started utilizing the mark Jomaz on their designs instantly and, on choose items, Joseph Mazer was spelled out in full. A collaboration with the famed clothes designer Adolfo resulted in some items of jewellery branded Adolfo for Mazer late within the firm’s historical past round 1980. Different logos had been utilized in promoting campaigns and jewellery packaging that didn’t seem as marks on jewellery.
When Joseph Mazer died within the mid-Nineteen Seventies, Matthew Mazer took the helm. The corporate used the Jomaz trademark on jewellery by 1981, as famous by creator Julia C. Carroll in her book Costume Jewelry 303.
Jomaz Jewellery Designs
When the enterprise first started within the late Forties and into the early Fifties, jewellery types marked Jomaz had been in the identical vein as these made by Mazer. These designs usually have coloured rhinestones with clear accents set in rhodium plated steel imitating positive jewellery made with valuable gem stones through the interval.
Some items additionally integrated molded glass leaves or flowers akin to what costume jewelry enthusiasts call “fruit salad” stones, which had been first impressed by Cartier’s “Tutti Frutti” jewellery made through the Nineteen Thirties. The stones of this nature in Jomaz jewellery are formed otherwise than examples utilized by Mazer although.
Courtesy Jay B. Siegel
Utilizing the registered tagline “jewels of the elite,” the agency marketed a number of strains within the late Fifties. Amongst them are items that incorporate real cultured pearls and clear rhinestones described as “brilliants.” Jewellery utilizing molded glass stones had been additionally described as “carved,” in advertisements of the interval as properly. This is only one instance of how costume jewellery manufacturers took a little bit of license in elevating their merchandise once in a while again within the day.
By the early Nineteen Sixties, many Jomaz types had been a lot bolder and encompassed a broader colour spectrum taking cues from positive jewelers like David Webb and Jean Schlumberger who was working for Tiffany & Co. by then. Giant, colourful cabochons imitating coral and Persian turquoise together with faceted glass stones mimicking rubies, sapphires, and emeralds had been integrated into many designs crafted of gold-plated steel. One such India-inspired line was marketed because the “Maharanee” assortment in 1960. Enameling in shiny hues was additionally employed to brighten a number of types that collectors covet right now.
Among the hottest Jomaz items are the jaw-dropping necklaces the corporate produced through the ‘60s. These generally imitate daring positive jewellery appears of the day however can largely be categorized as fabulously pretend. Large cuff bracelets had been made to match a few of these necklaces. It’s an actual boon for costume jewellery fanatics to discover a full set, also called a parure when three or extra items are in included. These units are a number of the costliest within the realm of gathering Jomaz jewellery.
Courtesy Jay B. Siegel
These hoping so as to add extra reasonably priced Jomaz items to a budding costume jewellery assortment look to smaller figural items. The jewellery from the Nineteen Seventies marked Jomaz can be very properly made, wearable, and cheap. And even the enticing Adolfo for Mazer items made round 1980 might be discovered fairly priced though they don’t come available on the market steadily.
Amassing Caveats
One factor to pay attention to when gathering Jomaz jewellery is that the clear stones utilized in many items have yellowed or turn out to be uninteresting as they’ve aged. Yellowed stones are often the results of the unique glues holding them in place discoloring over time. Darkened stones are described as being “lifeless” by collectors. These are frequent situation points that do impression worth so spend accordingly.
Many patrons search for items needing minor repairs at cut price costs. That’s a great way so as to add some good items to a cache of treasures with out breaking the financial institution. Nonetheless, remember that these superb leaf and flower formed stones collectors love a lot are very exhausting to switch. Discovering a damaged piece past restore that may be scavenged to make one other one complete is your greatest wager, and that hardly ever involves fruition.
You’ll additionally discover when shopping on-line that sellers usually use the names Jomaz and Mazer in the identical description. That’s a bit deceptive since they had been two separate corporations. It might be a case of a vendor being misinformed since a number of on-line sources erroneously state that Mazer was renamed Jomaz. It can be a case of intentional key phrase spamming. Nonetheless, asking how the piece is marked will let you already know which firm made it and make it easier to date it a bit extra precisely since Mazer jewellery was not produced after 1952.
Courtesy Jay B. Siegel
You Might Additionally Like
How To Identify Unmarked Jewelry
