Enamel jewellery

Today like so many of my days I am confined by this broken leg...while trawling through emails I came across an interesting one from a client I met years ago in Japan. She has returned to the states and was recently given the task of cleaning out her grand mothers home.

Her grand mother she explained was a hoarder and had a ton of junk jewellery - she was hoping to find diamonds and gold and was sorely disappointed to be told it was costume jewellery . I guess by the time she got around to writing to me she was so convinced that there was nothing that I would be interested but boy...am I excited to be able to present a few of these pieces to you. 

My clients grand mother clearly had a very eclectic taste....the items here are amazing pieces , rare and very collectible above all they are pieces that will always come back into fashion..

Plique-a Jour

While going through the thousands of photographs I get every week I came accross a pair of extremely beautiful ear rings. They are exquisit. and extremely delicate and I found they were made using the centuries old Plique -a Jour technique.

Plique - a Jour is an enamel technique first developed in the 6th centuary AD in the Byzantine Empire. It is described as a vitreous enamel technique and is smilar to cloisonne, but with no metal backing. The final product is in effect a miniture stained glass. It is an extremely difficult technique with a high failure rate. Some items may take the artisan up to four months to produce. The process requires cells to be created using sheets of pecious metal and the overall design to be cut out or it may be created by using gold or silver wires, that are soldered together to create the cells. Each cell is then filled with powdered glass and fired to create the glass (enamel)  film this process is repeated until all cells have been filled.

Kievian Russia made extensive use of the technique and despite the difficulty in producing Plique-a Jour the Russian aristocracy used Plique-a Jour tableware. As a result of the Mongul invasion most of the workshops producing this work were lost and only a few examples of Russian Plique a Jour survive to this day. The technique disappeared in Russia after this.

In Western Europe however the technique survived. In 1295, an inventry of Pope  Boniface the VIII items include mention of several items of 'smalta clara' or clear enamel .. the French term first appears in the 14th centuary.

Benvenuto Cellini wrote a full description of the process treatise on goldsmithing.

Pre 19th centuary examples of Plique a Jour are extremely rare due to their fragile nature. the larger the item the more fragile. I think you will agree these earrings are exquisit, extremely rare and very beautiful!   

My sources are:
Campbell P.38 - 40 ; Ostoia 78 Plique -a Jour- Yesterdays Technique today , Bill Helwig, June 1992 Glass on Metal Magazine

The Art of fine Enameling by Karen L Cohen P. 10

Labarte, Histoire des Arts Industriels iii, Paris 1865.

Recherches sur la peinture en email dans l'antique et au moyen age, Jules Labarte 1865

Marit Guinness Aschan & Rika Smith McNally Enamel Grove Art online. Oxford Art Online 28 July 2010.   

FED UP with everything being the same?

I as a consumer like to assert my individuality. This is one of the main reasons I opened AVOIR.  I Mcould not stand going down to the shopping centers only to find that Myer, David Jones had exactly the same clothing and shoe lines as K mart. The Australian retail landscape has lost its individuality.

I have always favoured classic Jeans that I often found at the local second hand stores and a great T shirt sold by one of the boutique retailers. Not very original I here you say...but I like to spice an outfit with unusual leather goods a vintage watch or vintage belts!!

My favorite vintage finds have come from the most unexpected places. I have an awesome D&G watch that I found in a small second hand store in Kita Urawa in Japan! I have always loved the unexpected find! It's exciting and you never see the same item again. I have learned to follow my instinct and purchase those items because missing out on the item means you missed the oppertunity.

Another of my favorite items is a belt I purchased from a small independant retailer in Cairns called Victor Mellick. It's made of strips of red, tan, and blue leather and has a brass buckle. It looks great with my white jeans.

I also love vintage leather bags. Adding these unique items to your outfit adds interest to the outfit and is the best way I know to inject your personality into what would otherwise be a very bland mass produced outfit.

Designer vintage is such a unique area that allows you to really stand out! AVOIR takes the hard work out of shopping for vintage designer all items are inspected for Authenticity and are guarenteed Authentic.  

Each season I check out what the major fashion houses will be offering and then I go and find the vintage piece that inspired the current collection. It is for this reason AVOIR has earned a reputation for being on point and having items that are right on trend. We edit out all the irrelevant items and have made a point of having the "it" item for the season. In addition to our seasonal purchases. We top up the range with smaller drops of new items coming in almost every week.

  My ranges are inspired by what is big in Europe. This means that the items I purchase arrive before those items arrive in the department stores. I encorage my customers to browse often..they begin to see the change in the store on a weekly basis.

There are items that form the basis of my classic ranges these include the stock standard CHANEL 2.55 diamond quilt bags...but because of their popularity they are often not available. But as a rule I look for the one of items that were produced in very limited numbers. The AVOIR range is unique ever changing and the quality is second to none.

CHANEL AUTHENTICITY

Chanel Authentic Chanel handbags from the mid 1980s on come with authenticity cards embossed with a serial number (pictured on right). The serial number matches the serial number appearing on a sticker placed somewhere within the handbag’s interior lining. The serial number sticker has Chanel logos and was protected by a clear tape with hologram security feature from approximately 2000-on. The sticker, Chanel logo, and hologram design varied with the manufacturing date:

Serial Number Year Manufactured Style of Numbers Style of Serial Number Sticker Picture of Serial Number Sticker 14XXXXXX 2011 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Eight digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 13XXXXXX 2009 to 2010 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Eight digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 12XXXXXX 2008 to 2009 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Eight digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 11XXXXXX 2006 to 2008 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Eight digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 10XXXXXX 2005 to 2006 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Eight digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 9XXXXXX 2004 to 2005 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 8XXXXXX 2003 to 2004 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 7XXXXXX 2002 to 2003 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 6XXXXXX 2000 to 2002 0's have strikethroughs. 1's have small serifs (feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 5XXXXXX 1997 to 1999 0's have strikethroughs up to 51XXXXX. 0's have no strikethroughs from 52XXXXX to 56XXXXX. 0's have strikethroughs from 57XXXXX on. 1's have small serifs (feet) from 57XXXXX on. Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker covered with clear tape with two Chanel logos from 57XXXXX on."X" cut-lines prevent sticker from being removed without damage. "CHANEL" appears on rightright side of the sticker. Dark line appears on left side of sticker. Gold speckles appear throughout sticker. 4XXXXXX 1996 to 1997 0's have strikethroughs. 1's are sans-serifs (no feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker with Chanel logos. Opaque film covers sticker. 3XXXXXX 1994 to 1996 0's have strikethroughs. 1's are sans-serifs (no feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker with Chanel logos. Opaque film covers sticker.  2XXXXXX 1991 to 1994 0's have no strikethroughs up to 27XXXXXX. 1's have serifs (feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker with Chanel logos. Opaque film covers sticker.  1XXXXXX 1989 to 1991 0's have no strikethroughs. 1's have serifs (feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker with Chanel logos and left-sided cutout. Opaque film covers sticker.  0XXXXXX 1986 to 1988 0's have no strikethroughs. 1's have serifs (feet). Seven digit serial number printed on white sticker with Chanel logos and left-sided cutout. Opaque film covers sticker.

Note that over time, serial number stickers often become detached from handbags. Authentication cards also often become lost. Therefore, Chanel handbags missing these items may still be authentic.

LOUIS VUITTON DATE CODES

As a supplier of Authentic vintage items I am often asked "How ?" I know the bag is real. The next most common thing I hear after I tell someone "I am sorry but your bag is not real ." is: "But it's got all the numbers."

I hope that this information clears up some of the confusion surrounding LOUIS VUITTON Date codes.

Most people believe that LOUIS VUITTON handbags have serial numbers, with the exception of luggage and very rare limited edition bags, this is generally not true.
Rather Louis Vuitton has date codes which serve to identify the date and location of manufacture. Most codes are a combination of letters and numbers.

The letters indicate the country in which the item was made and the numbers indicate the year and the month of production. Date codes are formatted as follows:

Prior to the Early1980's , three or four numbers, the first two numbers represented the year and the last numbers would represent the month of production. Eg. 827
means the bag was made in July 1982.

Early to late 1980's, three or four numbers were used , these were followed by two letters. The two letters represented a factory, and therefore the country of production.
Eg. 895DR would mean the bag was made in May 1989 in France.

1990 to 2006 , two letters followed by four numbers. As above the letters represent the factory where the bag was made. The first and third numbers represent the month and the second and forth numbers represented the year of production.

2007 and newer , two letters are followed by four numbers. As with the above the letters represented the factory and the numbers represent the week and year that the item was produced. The first and third numbers letters represent the week of production. The second and forth letters represent the year.  Eg. FC2068 would mean the bag was produced in the 26th week of (Early June ) 2008.

* Some counterfiet items have codes and verifying date codes is just one of the many criteria used by AVOIR to determine Authenticity of LOUIS VUITTON bags.

    

 

Louis Vuitton Factory Location Codes
France	A0, A1, A2, AA, AAS (Special Order), AH, AN, AR, AS, BA, BJ, BU, DR, DU, CO, CT, ET, FL, LW, MB, MI, NO, RA, RI, SD, SL, SN, SP, SR, TH, TR, VI, VX
Germany	LP
Italy	BC, BO, CE, FO, MA, RC, RE, SA, TD
Spain	CA, LO, LB, LM, LW, GI
Switzerland	DI, FA
USA	FC, FH, LA, OS, SD, FL