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Vintage allure puts old jewelry in play
May 23, 2010, Sunday
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Print Edition
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FOR Christopher DeNave and Cocotay, a deep family interest in estate jewelry helped land these two lines on the map. At a young age, DeNave partnered with his aunt in buying and selling pieces throughout New York's flea markets. But it wasn't until he made a solo trip to the Brimfield Antiques Show in Massachusetts that he realized there was a future in the vintage jewelry trade.
"My aunt had broken her leg and couldn't make it that year, so I said I'd try it," DeNave said. "I went up there with US$2,000 in my pocket and came back with all this jewelry. I sold every last piece and doubled the money. And I said, 'I like this business.'
"The idea of buying something in the morning and turning around and selling it on the same day appealed to me."
By 1995, DeNave had become a resource in estate jewelry, selling one-of-a-kind pieces by the old-school vintage guard, such as Eisenberg, Coppola e Toppo and David Mandel. He met with clients on an appointment basis throughout New York, Miami and Florida and eventually hit the wholesale market.
Today, the Christopher DeNave collection can be found at retailers around the world, from Hong Kong's Lane Crawford to Kentshire in New York. His hottest items have a high-fashion name attached and he can barely hold onto vintage Chanel, Givenchy and Dior pieces, and Hollywood's red carpet has become an increasingly important factor in his business.
"There used to be a formula to vintage jewelry, but it has gone from collectibility to wearability and fashion," said DeNave.
"People don't want this jewelry to be stuffy or serious. Today, it's what celebrities are wearing on the red carpet - Keira Knightly in a Lanvin pendant. It gets plastered on the Internet. It's not about your grandmother's jewelry. It needs to be updated, like something you bought in a store."
Meanwhile, Cocotay's twin founders, Coco and Taylor Blaisdell, also caught the jewelry fever at a young age.
Growing up, the sisters would wear estate pieces given by their mother and aunt, and recalled feeling overwhelmed by the amount of compliments they'd receive. They began buying their own vintage jewelry and by 2004 formed a business reworking the pieces into modern, everyday items.
"We loved the idea of collecting vintage pieces and making them our own by putting them together in a different way," said Coco, the firm's creative director and designer.
"A lot of things we look for when we go vintaging are eye-catching pieces and signature pieces that are absolutely wonderful on their own. But we found that we can make a bigger statement with them if we broke them apart and played around."
Within a year, the Blaisdells found they couldn't keep up with requests from customers shopping their capsule collections at Bergdorf Goodman and Linda Dresner. So they launched Cocotay Social, a collection of vintage-inspired jewelry geared to wholesale in a larger way.
The line features rhinestone and brass designs inspired by the 1960s and 1970s, mixed with classic items such as hoops and stackable bangles.
"There's something special about a vintage look," said Coco. "It's nice to know you're not going to see everyone on the street with your bracelet on."
"My aunt had broken her leg and couldn't make it that year, so I said I'd try it," DeNave said. "I went up there with US$2,000 in my pocket and came back with all this jewelry. I sold every last piece and doubled the money. And I said, 'I like this business.'
"The idea of buying something in the morning and turning around and selling it on the same day appealed to me."
By 1995, DeNave had become a resource in estate jewelry, selling one-of-a-kind pieces by the old-school vintage guard, such as Eisenberg, Coppola e Toppo and David Mandel. He met with clients on an appointment basis throughout New York, Miami and Florida and eventually hit the wholesale market.
Today, the Christopher DeNave collection can be found at retailers around the world, from Hong Kong's Lane Crawford to Kentshire in New York. His hottest items have a high-fashion name attached and he can barely hold onto vintage Chanel, Givenchy and Dior pieces, and Hollywood's red carpet has become an increasingly important factor in his business.
"There used to be a formula to vintage jewelry, but it has gone from collectibility to wearability and fashion," said DeNave.
"People don't want this jewelry to be stuffy or serious. Today, it's what celebrities are wearing on the red carpet - Keira Knightly in a Lanvin pendant. It gets plastered on the Internet. It's not about your grandmother's jewelry. It needs to be updated, like something you bought in a store."
Meanwhile, Cocotay's twin founders, Coco and Taylor Blaisdell, also caught the jewelry fever at a young age.
Growing up, the sisters would wear estate pieces given by their mother and aunt, and recalled feeling overwhelmed by the amount of compliments they'd receive. They began buying their own vintage jewelry and by 2004 formed a business reworking the pieces into modern, everyday items.
"We loved the idea of collecting vintage pieces and making them our own by putting them together in a different way," said Coco, the firm's creative director and designer.
"A lot of things we look for when we go vintaging are eye-catching pieces and signature pieces that are absolutely wonderful on their own. But we found that we can make a bigger statement with them if we broke them apart and played around."
Within a year, the Blaisdells found they couldn't keep up with requests from customers shopping their capsule collections at Bergdorf Goodman and Linda Dresner. So they launched Cocotay Social, a collection of vintage-inspired jewelry geared to wholesale in a larger way.
The line features rhinestone and brass designs inspired by the 1960s and 1970s, mixed with classic items such as hoops and stackable bangles.
"There's something special about a vintage look," said Coco. "It's nice to know you're not going to see everyone on the street with your bracelet on."
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