_Pins, Brooches and Clips_
To broach a cask of ale is to set the liquor flowing, to open the gates
of good will; but the broach (and it’s still pronounced that way even
when we spell it _brooch_) had as its purpose the closing and the holding
together of the dress. In its simplest form it was an awl or a bodkin,
used as a clasp or a fastener. Then came the pin with a hinge or spring
at one end and a catch or loop at the other. Such safety-pin brooches, or
_fibulae_, were common in ancient times; they were in use at least as far
back as 1000 B.C., and since the third century B.C. have been developed
as decorative jewels. The simple type—in the large size we call it a
“blanket pin”—is still used to hold together the wrap-around Scots kilt,
preserving the secret beneath.
_Elaborate Pins_
In medieval England the making of brooches developed as a fine art;
in Kent from the sixth to the tenth century, excellent examples were
made. They were mainly circulars of gold filigree adorned with garnets,
though other materials, from meerschaum to paste, were also set in fine
gold. However ornamental a brooch may be, it seldom quite forgets its
practical function of holding a garment together. Maria Theresa of
Austria, on state occasions, used an agraffe—a hook that caught in a
ring, as a clasp—in which was set the Florentine diamond, a great yellow
stone of over 137 carats. This was preserved in the Hofburg in Vienna
until the Second World War. Even more elaborate were the great brooches
the noblewomen of England wore in the decorative reign of Edward VII.
Sometimes called stomachers, these masses of metal overladen with stones
occupied the entire front of the dress.
_The Simpler Clip_
Fashion has returned us to a simpler style and released the dress
decoration from its functional requirement. In the 1920’s Cartier
replaced the hinged pin with a metal plate operated by a spring so that
counterpoints on its tip bite into the fabric. A jewel so fashioned we
call a clip. More recently, the metal plate has been replaced by two
parallel pins, making the clip still lighter and more versatile. Where
the weightier brooch would seem unbalanced or topheavy, the new clip may
be used as a pert or pertinent addition to a garment.
_Its Versatility_
And the clip is the most versatile of all jewels. Like the older brooch,
it may be used to close a dress, to hold a collar together or to gather
a scarf into attractive folds. It may be placed so as to accentuate any
desired part of a gown: at any point along a neckline, on a lapel, at
the side of a dress—usually the left side or at the waistline. It may be
combined with a necklace, as a fresh centerpiece or on the side—though
of course a large clip should not be set upon a thin chain. Some clips
are fashioned to slip onto a necklace and, by an easy adjustment, can
be made to slip onto a band of platinum or fitted on a diamond or pearl
necklace.
[Illustration: 29. MRS. FREDERIC GIMBEL. _Mrs. Gimbel wears an ensemble
of gold, turquoise and diamond earclips, bracelets and ring. The
turquoises are selected to compliment her coloring and the distinctive
quality of her beauty._]
[Illustration: 30. BELLFLOWER BROOCH AND EARCLIPS. _These pearl and
diamond jewels are designed so that the free-swinging pearls are in
constant movement. For different occasions and outfits, colored stones or
diamond drops may be substituted for the pearls._]
[Illustration: 31. BRACELET AND ENGAGEMENT RING. _The simplicity of
the ring, an emerald-cut diamond flanked by two straight baguettes,
complements the elaborateness of the bracelet. The main swirl motif of
baguette and round diamonds is an excellent design for slimming a heavy
wrist. The center of the bracelet is removable and can be worn as a clip
on a necklace._]
[Illustration: 32. DESIGN FOR A DIAMOND RING. _The lacy effect of the
ring at the left is achieved by a circle of marquise-cut diamonds which
appear to hold the round center diamond._]
[Illustration: 33. DESIGN FOR A GOLD RING. _This ring of gold wires is
set with emeralds and small diamonds._]
[Illustration: 34. DESIGN FOR A FORMAL DIAMOND AND PLATINUM BRACELET. _A
large marquise diamond links the two central crown motifs on each side of
which are two baguette ribbons._]
[Illustration: 35. DIAMOND AND PEARL BRACELET. _This four-strand pearl
bracelet has, as a handsome center design, three columns of round
diamonds interrupted by baguettes and four columns paved with round
diamonds. From the collection of Mrs. Alfred L. Rose._]
[Illustration: 36. DESIGN FOR A BRACELET. _A beautiful convertible jewel,
this continuous ribbon of baguette diamonds has three removable flower
motifs which can be worn as a set of pin and earclips or three clips. One
small flower motif forms the clasp._]
[Illustration: 37. TREE OF LIFE. _A sculptured relief in 18 karat gold.
The fruits of the tree are here reproduced in round, facetted rubies, and
would be as effective in emeralds, sapphires or diamonds. As lapel pins,
they are handsome in pairs, the fruits in contrasting colors._]
[Illustration: 38. DESIGN FOR A MULTI-PURPOSE JEWEL. _The detachable
center motif of this diamond bracelet can be worn as a clip either
separately or on the necklace formed by the side loops of the bracelet._]
[Illustration: 39. AURORA BOREALIS. _The image of three overlapping
sunbursts, left, is created from platinum and diamonds, with rubies
accentuating the contour. Original owned by Mrs. Mischa Elman._]
[Illustration: 40. FLOWER FANTASY. _An exquisite flower on a graceful
stem is wrought in platinum set with pearls and diamonds. A companion
piece for small diamond earclips._]
[Illustration: 41. DIAMOND HAIR ORNAMENT. _Designed both as a dress clip
and a hair clip, the shape of this jewel suggests a wave in the hair. A
special device attaches it firmly to the hair._]
[Illustration: 42. THREE-STRAND PEARL BRACELET. _A superb example of
a perfectly balanced relationship between clasp and bracelet. The
functional purpose of the clasp, which is slightly wider than the
bracelet, is hidden under the diamond ornament. A matching necklace could
have two of the same motifs on each side._]
[Illustration: 43. MISS BLANCHE THEBOM. _Diamond jewelry provides
shimmering contrasts to Blanche Thebom’s dark brown hair. Van Cleef &
Arpels created the diamond serpent hair clips, dome ring and graceful bow
pin, as well as the bracelet and earclips worn by Miss Thebom._]
[Illustration: 44. CANTERBURY BELL. _Two flowers of different sizes are
held together by ribbons of diamonds. A three-dimensional effect is
achieved by the built-up flower motifs. This clip can be separated into
two individual clips._]
[Illustration: 45. GOLD SHELL FOR INFORMAL WEAR. _This three-dimensional
jewel of 18 karat gold is hand engraved in Florentine finish. The turned
over edge is paved with diamonds._]
[Illustration: 46. FLOWER LAPEL BROOCH. _Long stemmed flowers of
emeralds, sapphires, rubies and diamonds in a bowl of 18 karat gold. A
delightful ornament for a bag, a hat or a scarf._]
[Illustration: 47. MRS. TEX MC CRARY. _A poinsettia of diamonds without
visible support is worn by Jinx Falkenburg. As a whimsical touch, she
adds a diamond and emerald bell on her forehead. The design of her
flower-like earclips emphasizes the perfect oval of her face._]
When a corsage of flowers takes attention at the heart of the dress, the
versatile clip may be transferred to the evening bag or worn at the cuff
of a sleeve. It may be used in ways beyond number, limited only by the
wearer’s chosen garments and tasteful imagination.
_Its Personality_
Since there is such freedom of choice in placing the clip, its position
is largely determined by the wearer’s personality. In the choice of the
clip itself, as I shall indicate shortly, there are only a few guiding
principles, and these are of a general nature. As a consequence, a clip
is a sort of identification badge. It says, not This is my name, but This
is my style. It should be chosen carefully with full regard to the fact
that the clip is the wearer’s personality on parade.
_The Change in the Brooch_
Until about 1920, while the brooch was mainly a clasp for the collar or
a fastener for the dress, the favorite form was a bar pin. This might be
of gold in various simple motifs, such as the bowknot; or it might be of
precious stones or pearls. Other popular designs were the crescent-moon
brooch, the circle brooch, the heart pin, and the four-leaf clover.
At that time, there was likely to be but one dark party dress in the
wardrobe, and the laces and frills of the colorful gowns were beautiful
and sufficient adornments in themselves. Times have changed, and in most
closets cocktail and party dresses have multiplied. They have also grown
streamlined and simpler so that clips, with earclips and necklace, may be
added to give softness as well as variety to the outfit.
Whatever the dress—unless it passes the limits into eccentricity—the part
of a woman’s outfit that attracts the most attention is her jewelry.
However stunning the dress, however striking the bag, however happy the
hat, eyes will return to and be held by the jewels—especially the jewel
displayed upon the dress. And the “little black dress” created by Mme.
Chanel is still the best background for a beautiful jewel. The simpler
the dress, the more will the beauty of the clip be artfully displayed.
_The Old Double Clip_
With the expansion of the brooch into the clip came a greater variety
of patterns. However, the bowknot continued popular, along with the
fleur-de-lis and other flower designs. Many of these are still being
used, with newly designed settings incorporating baguette diamonds and
variously shaped stones. In the 1920’s there was a wide vogue of a flat,
geometrical double clip. The two parts were symmetrical, so that their
balance today seems obvious and without art.
It is interesting to reflect at this point that many older patterns,
motifs, designs, still seem beautiful in our eyes. There is a charm in
many of the Victorian jewels, a lasting beauty in the baroque. In the
generation just before us, however, sculpture, architecture, interior
decorating, jewelry, all seem to have suffered from a lapse of artistry
and taste. Is this another sign of the eternal rebellion of the children
against the parents? Must every past style seem antic before it becomes
antique? In any event, the old two-part double clip should either be
left in the treasure chest for another fifty years or taken to the
jeweler to be remodelled.
_The New Double Clip_
The possibilities of the double clip, however, are too great to be
abandoned. The flat symmetrical two-part clip has been supplanted by a
more dynamic, three-dimensional variety which when used as a unit gives
no indication that it is a double clip. The two separate clips are so
made that they intricately but intimately conjoin into one unit, a
striking jewel.
Separated, the two clips become two different jewels, of different sizes
and possibly even different designs, though of course harmonious. Each
remains a sculptured piece; that is, it has a three-dimensional quality.
The two may be worn on different occasions. The smaller might well become
a suit, the larger adorn a dress. Or the two, used at the same time
but not fused, might make attractive parts of a parure on more formal
occasions. On a square neckline, the two different clips may be so used
as to create a different yet balanced charm. Or one may give a fresh
touch to the hat, or grace the bag, while the other is worn on the dress.
By repeating a design in two sizes, or presenting two harmonious motifs,
the double clip increases the potentialities of the jewel for variety in
beauty, while as a unit it creates a striking effect of individuality and
power.
_The Abstract Design_
Today, in brooches and clips, two basic patterns are in favor: the
ornamental, abstract design, and the flower motif. The woman who likes
tailored jewelry will inevitably be drawn to the more geometrical
designs. While these may at times be shapes of deep yellow or varicolored
gold, they will usually be achieved with the aid of shimmering bands of
baguette diamonds, contrasted with round diamonds and colored stones.
Without regard to the loss of weight from uncut stone, jewelers are now
shaping diamonds in many fancy cuts—which only the most flawless gems can
sustain—for the sake of the pattern of the entire jewel.
The potentialities of the abstract design are far from being exhausted,
and a jeweler who is a genuine artist has here a fertile field. If a
woman has selected a jeweler as carefully as she has chosen her coiffeur,
and finding him good has continued to seek his counsel, he should be able
to suggest or to create a clip that will both express and illuminate her
personality.
Several general designs lend themselves to personal variations. Among
these, I recommend a clip with baguette tassels from which pear-shaped
diamonds are suspended. There are also attractive tailored-looking pins
of a feather design, which, in gold or platinum, are effective on many
occasions. Various loops and bows can be ingeniously intertwined. Among
completely abstract clip designs are some like lacy seaweeds. Others will
suggest themselves and may be fashioned to suit every occasion and taste.
_The Flower Design_
Less novel than the abstract designs but perhaps more lasting in its
effect of peaceful beauty is the flower clip. Since the development of
photography, few artists have tried to make exact copies of nature.
Those who wish to see exact reproductions of flowers in glass may go to
the Harvard Museum in Cambridge. The artist in jewelry seeks to suggest
the essence of the flower, its shape, its color, the softness of its
petals. (An astute woman may select her perfume to suggest the flower’s
fragrance.) Today even such hard metals as platinum or palladium may be
so handled as to convey the delicacy of the bloom.
_Earlier Flowers_
The flower motif, in ring or brooch or other adornment, has been a
favorite in many periods. Some of the designs have persisted; others have
grown simpler or more elaborate according to the vogue. But in the past
few centuries, there have been few jewelers who have not had in work or
on display some flower brooches or clips of precious stones.
Among the frequently displayed flowers is the open-petaled pansy, which
our grandmothers wore in various colors of enamel, but which is now
patterned in stones. Also to be seen is the tiny forget-me-not. The lily
of the valley rises on its delicate stem. The water lily seems almost
still afloat. Carnations and asters more boldly flaunt their patterns.
The daisy, that earlier was often fashioned with white enamel petals and
a central stone, may now be suggested wholly by baguette diamonds.
More elaborate flowers and flower clusters were once frequent, building
into nosegays of gems. Perhaps the most spectacular of these is the
famous Flower Jewel bestowed by the Herzog von Lothringen upon his wife,
Empress Maria Theresa of Austria. Now to be seen in the Museum of Natural
History in Vienna, this historic piece is both a fine example of the
jeweler’s art and a demonstration for the science of gemology: among
its thousands of carats of gems—diamonds, rubies, emeralds, sapphires,
pearls—may be counted every existing variety of precious and semiprecious
stones.
_Current Varieties_
A flower is to jewelers as a landscape is to painters; each may look
upon the same prospect and produce a different work. Some may fashion
a comparatively naturalistic blossom, or a clip of several flowers of
different sizes. For these, colored stones will reproduce the color of
the flower. Others may work in a more stylized fashion, merely suggesting
the flower shape or framing it into a formal pattern, as in the
decorations of ancient columns and walls. Some of these, indeed, approach
the manner of the abstract design.
Where the flower is suggested rather than caught in its own colors,
diamonds in fancy cut may be used for the petals with the leaves
fashioned of baguettes. The center may be a blue-white diamond, a colored
stone, or—most strikingly—a black pearl. Some such flowers have been made
with a central stone that is removable, so that various gems of different
color may produce startlingly different effects with the same basic
floral jewel. From the surrounding petals and leaves of diamonds, it is
surprising how varyingly new center stones can shine.
_The Rose_
The most outstanding of all flower motifs, both in number and in variety
of presentation, is the queen of flowers, the rose. As it ranges far
beyond all other flowers in colors and species, so it lends itself to
a multiplicity of treatments in jewels. Roses have been made all of
diamonds, white or colored; they have been shaped of rubies, of coral,
of ivory and of all the precious metals. Notable is a rose clip in which
the diamond blossom rises from leaves of baguettes. For simpler costumes,
the leaves can be removed and the flower used alone to adorn a neckline
or accentuate the lapel of a suit. Together, the leaves and the flower
present a corsage that challenges and outlasts any beauty the florist can
supply.
_The Skinpin_
Gathering favor, but still sufficiently unfamiliar to be as distinctive
as it is attractive, is the skinpin. This ornament is a jewel that, by a
secret method of my own devising, may be safely and securely worn on the
bare skin. A piquant jewel, it belongs most harmoniously with the low-cut
evening gown. Then, on the bare skin above the dress, the colored gems or
the diamonds are a truly striking display, their brilliance heightened
by the background of the fine texture of the flesh. For more challenging
effects, a butterfly or other appropriate motif on the back or the
shoulderblades will enhance and accentuate the beauty of the lines. Those
who know and enjoy the values of fine jewelry tastefully disposed will do
well to investigate the range of uses of the skinpin.
_The Scatterpin_
For the lapel, or in general for casual wear, many pins have been
especially designed. These are frequently shaped in the form of birds,
ladybugs, or other insects, as butterflies or as leaves. They may be made
of enamel, or coral, or semiprecious stones. Their main purpose is to add
a touch of color and for traveling or for informal occasions they may
indeed enliven a costume.
_The Jewelled Hairpin_
A most charming effect can be produced by attaching to the clip a simple
device that enables it to be worn in the hair. This use is gaining in
popularity, and deserves even greater spread, for it is hard to imagine
a more beautiful background for a jewel than the well groomed coiffure
which is the pride and the prime natural adornment of the American woman.
Several single flowers, daisies, forget-me-nots and the like, may in the
hair create a youthful and feminine decoration. The jewels should of
course be concordant with the hair. Diamonds are most becoming in dark
hair. Red hair will be even more striking with sapphires; dark blondes
will gleam with emeralds; light blondes will shimmer in fine contrast
with rubies.
Empress Elisabeth of Austria knew the attractiveness gained by the
adorning of beautiful hair. Her favorite design was the star, and in her
hair she set many brilliant stars, each with a quivering center that
constantly shot forth intriguing, mysterious light.
_The Mobile Clip_
The technical creation of the mobile center was long a well-guarded
secret. It has now been variously recaptured, and clips may have their
beauty enhanced, when it is appropriate, with a vibratory motion. The
natural movements of the body, even the soft rise and fall of the bosom
as one takes breath, suffice to make the tiny stems quiver and the gems
at their tips give ever fresh play of light.
Thus a delicate wire may lift a deep red ruby as the stamen of a flower,
alive in its motion and varying gleam. Or a diamond on a quivering
stem may seem to dance with airiness and light. A spread of platinum
angel-fern may move its delicate fronds; a sprig of heather in fine
metal and stone vibrate with the lilt of the Highlands. The many ways
in which the mobile clip can add life to one’s wardrobe are beyond
enumeration; all are at once eye-catching and continuously alluring.
_The Sentimental Brooch_
More than all other jewels, the pin and the brooch have attached to
themselves sentimental associations and values beyond their intrinsic or
artistic worth. A ring may often preserve the memory of a dear person
or a cherished occasion, but it is seldom large enough for an actual
memento. Anne Boleyn, wife of Henry VIII of England, had a portrait of
herself hidden in a ring of diamonds and mother-of-pearl; when she was
taken to be executed she gave the ring to her little daughter, who in
turn kept it hidden until she ascended the throne as Queen Elizabeth I.
But more often such miniatures, set in what was called a picture-box,
were worn on a chain or as a brooch. The clip is still too new to have
developed these sentimental associations but, being merely a brooch with
a modernized fastener, it will no doubt gather to itself a goodly store
of memories.
In addition to a miniature portrait or a painting of a familiar scene,
such as the country home of one held to a life in the city, the brooch
may contain other ties to things beloved. Under a transparent stone
or coat of colorless enamel may be pressed a lock of hair. The jewel
itself may be shaped so as to symbolize a family—as a coat of arms; or
a people—as the maple leaf worn by Queen Elizabeth II, a gift from and
a symbol of the Commonwealth of Canada. The lady who launches a ship
receives, from the builders or the owners, a diamond pin that is indeed,
to her and those that come after her, a precious memento of a signal
occasion.
_Replicas of Pets_
Popular among the special brooches with personal ties are those that
represent or memorialize a beloved pet. I have made several portraits of
dogs in gold and precious stones, worked so as not merely to resemble the
features but in some degree to capture the individual characteristics of
the animal. One of these I especially prize, as it evokes, to me and to
my family and friends, my own and favorite dog.
In Vienna, our firm was once commissioned by the Emperor Franz Josef
I to create a brooch bearing the likeness of one of his great beloved
Lippizaner stallions, the one that is immortalized in the novel
_Florian_. This pin contains hundreds of diamonds; those that make up
the mane and the tail had to be specially cut and are so small that it
takes more than a thousand to make a carat. The Emperor prized the jewel
and gave it to his favorite actress, the Baroness von Schratt. After the
Baroness’s death, her treasures were sold, and we are happy to state that
the jewel horse is now back with the firm that made it.
_Pins Hold Memories_
Perhaps because of these various associations, it seems that a more
personal aura glows about a brooch than any other jewel. It may be
merely because a loved one has worn it earlier. A sort of intimate,
binding emotion draws one to the jewel, such as no article of clothing,
no accessory—scarf, gloves, hair band—can ever work into a spell. Other
jewels, especially the ring, may gather associations around them, but
preeminently heart-entangling is the brooch.
My grandmother, for instance, on many gay occasions when I was a child,
wore high on her collar a beautiful emerald brooch. Long passed from
sight and never spoken of, it finally came to me as a family heirloom.
And at once my heart quickened with a fresh surge of memory. I had, and
still have, a vivid recollection of how she looked when she was wearing
it, and many a pleasant time I summon back. I cherish this brooch more
and more along the passing years. Thus in many families a treasured and
memoried pin holds as a binder between the generations. In these days of
widely scattered families, such a brooch can indeed be an endearing tie.
_Practical Principles_
As I have said, there are just a few general thoughts to be kept in mind
when selecting a brooch or clip.
The gold clip is admirable for daytime use. Until a few years ago, this
might be quite a solid, heavy-looking jewel. Today it is light, even
lacy; often it is made of fine wires, perhaps twisted or stranded, and
intricately worked, like similar jewels of the Renaissance. The jewel
itself may be large, but the light and lacy effect will maintain its
charm.
When a clip, in the hair or on the dress, is worn with earclips, it need
not be the same as these, but it should be of the same material and of
course should harmonize. Usually the earclips set the pattern, because
they must be carefully chosen to fit the features; the greater freedom
of choice with the clip permits one to select many attractive designs
that will conform. If the earclips are of rubies or of emeralds, the clip
should be the same. Only the diamond will consort with any other stone.
So far as balancing the brooch to the build is concerned, the principles
are very simple. A woman with a heavy figure should avoid small and
delicate clips and select large ornamental designs. A woman of slighter
frame should wear small clips. A brooch pinned high on the bodice will
seem to give the wearer added height.
More than other jewels, the clip presents the personality. It challenges
the attention and invites the judgment. If it is well chosen, so that
it truly establishes the wearer’s nature and taste, it may be worn with
confidence and pride.