by John Maltakiso
Imitation jewelry, sometimes called costume jewelry, offers a low-cost alternative to real jewelry, which can be extremely expensive. Every woman would like a extensive choice of bracelets, necklaces, pendants and ear-rings, and many own some beautiful pieces of genuine jewelry, however a wide collection of real gold and precious stones is not attainable for most.
This is where imitation, or costume, jewelry comes into play. While it is true that, at the bottom end of the market, a lot of imitation jewelry is of low quality and is rightly called ‘junk jewelry’, it is also possible to get some very high-quality imitation jewelry that is nearly impossible to tell apart from the genuine article. These imitation pieces might not be solid gold, but will be gold plated, and will be far less expensive than real jewelry.
Imitation jewelry first became popular in the 1930s when it was used as an affordable fashion accessory for certain outfits. The idea was that the imitation jewelry would quickly go out of fashion and would be replaced to match the next style that came along. Imitation jewelry was an immediate hit and has been hugely popular ever since.
Often, imitation jewelry is made from cheaper materials like plastic, glass, base metals, and synthetic or non-precious stones. That said, some high-end imitation jewelry will use gold plating, semi-precious metals or American diamonds, and the result can be very close or even identical to the real thing.
The design and manufacture of imitation jewelry has become a massive industry. There are thousands of manufacturers globally producing high-quality necklaces, anklets, tiaras, ear-rings and all kinds of jewelry to an extremely high standard. Some of the top-quality imitation jewelry comes from countries like India and China where there is a long tradition of making top-quality products. That said, some of the best jewelry is mass produced and sold by western companies such as Dior, Chanel and Coventry.
These days, the US has by far the biggest demand for jewelry worldwide, with more than 30% of the market share. With such a high demand for both real and costume jewelry here, it is no surprise that there is an excellent range available in stores and on the web. Competition between retailers can be fierce, so there are some real bargains to be had.
While costume jewelry will never really match the quality, beauty and value of the real thing, it remains popular even in the most elite circles. Film stars such as Audrey Hepburn wore unique items of imitation jewelry, while Barbara Bush wore an imitation pearl necklace to her husband’s inaugural ball.
Many unique items of imitation jewelry such as this one are very expensive collectibles, as are a lot of of the more distinctive, high-quality pieces. Therefore, it can be seen that imitation jewelry needn’t be low quality, but a genuinely valuable addition to a woman’s jewelry collection at a fraction of the price of the ‘genuine article’.
John Maltakiso is a freelance writer with over a dozen years editorial experience. John is currently consulting as a columnist with our b2b site and has become the company guru on imitation jewelry. Be sure to visit our great website for more information on Imitation Jewelry and Costume Jewelry.
