Original Miami Beach Antique Show Archives

The 2017 Original Miami Antique Show: part 2!

April 11, 2017

As I promised you in Part 1…I am here today with even MORE pictures from the glorious 2017 Original Miami Antique Show.

If you like any of the things in these pictures even a little bit, you really need to come next year and see it all in person for yourself.

Trust me. Go look at my photos from 2016, if you need more proof. Plus, who doesn’t want to go to Miami in February? Sunshine, palm trees, antique jewelry! It’s a great combination.

I think I officially have a crush on portrait lockets as a category. If I could afford to buy all the ones I love, I’d have quite the collection of them by now.

This one was particularly fabulous: the portrait lady’s jewelry, the blue enamel accents, the engraved back! It opens into three frames on the inside, and contained a tiny photo of a mystery gentleman.

You remember the massive rose cut diamond ring from Jogani that we admired in Part 1 of this recap? It had two more cousins in that display case.

These two are just as wonderful. The blue enamel is particularly irresistible.

When people ask me how I can wear 100+ year old jewelry in my daily life, I like to show them a piece like these pearl and turquoise earrings from The Spare Room.

How can you not want to wear them?? Sure, they’re from 1880 – but they’d go with almost any contemporary wardrobe.

This magical unicorn of a moonstone ring was snapped up shortly after I posted it on Instagram, but it was too pretty not to show you anyway.

This Swiss enamel bracelet from Sam Sadien belongs in a museum. Each panel is beyond perfect; the level of detail becomes more incredible the closer you get.

Want to see?

Treasure hunting at the 2017 Original Miami Antique Show.

March 15, 2017

All right, my darlings. I promised you dazzling treasures from the Original Miami Antique Show, and I am READY TO DELIVER.

I wandered through row after row and hall after hall of dealers’ booths, falling in love with everything from Renaissance era rings to tiaras to $2 million ruby rings that belonged to royalty (it was by JAR and I wasn’t allowed to take a picture).

Are you ready to admire? Because you know that the Original Miami Antique Show is one of the biggest and best antique shows in existence, especially for jewelry.

I thought we’d start strong with one of the most wonderful rose cut diamond rings I’ve ever seen – and a pretty cool photo I snapped, if I do say so myself. Thank you, convenient sunbeam.

This beautiful thing was at Jogani, whose dependably stunning array of jewels at the Original Miami Antique Show took my breath away, as it always does.

This necklace stopped me in my tracks – and led me to an introduction to a fantastic new dealer, Faerber NY. I’ll be showing you a few things of theirs and you’ll love all of them.

This antique necklace is special because it’s colorful!! It’s from 1890 and features pink quartz and aquamarine.

You know how much I love camphor glass. I already have several pendants in this style, and a bracelet – but I want a ring.

I seriously considered bringing this one home with me…and looking at the pictures, I’m totally having non-buyer’s remorse over leaving it behind when I left the Original Miami Antique Show. Such good finger coverage and side details!

This little hourglass is a Georgian era French love charm. It has naughty phrases on the sides in French!

It also really works as an hourglass – I spent a while turning it over and over and watching the tiny grains of sand shift from one side of the bulb to the other. See it in action here. Spotted in the collection of the one and only Lenore Dailey.

I have a weakness for spectacular agate specimens in beautiful settings, and this antique ring from Craig Evan Small is one of the best I’ve ever seen.

If the front weren’t magnificent enough – take a look at the design on the back! My antique jewelry Instagram buddies and I would call this a mighty fine ringbutt.

Can you decode the imagery on this antique locket?

March 7, 2017

I saw some truly spectacular pieces of jewelry at the Original Miami Antique Show. I’m still deep into editing the many, many photos I took….and I look forward to sharing those treasures with you soon.

One of those pieces was a locket – a locket so fantastic and utterly, utterly, odd – that I just couldn’t wait any longer to show it to you.

My favorite part of this locket is the mystery that it represents. This portrait is so very strange that nobody – not the jewelry store who owns it, not me, not any of the other collectors who have looked at it – can figure out what the heck it means. This kind of design from this era was certainly intended to reference or represent something specific, but it remains a enigma for now.

Unless, of course, you can help me solve the mystery?

Follow along with me on Instagram