The term “vintage” jewelry can mean different things depending upon who you ask. If you ask a millennial, they might tell you it means jewelry from the 1980s. If you ask someone who is a little bit older, their response might be pieces from the 1950s or 1960s. Vintage is essentially a term used to describe a certain jewelry style or ring and could also include antique rings, estate rings, and even replica rings!
To help make it easier to understand, let’s first look at what most jewelers consider to be antique rings. Antique rings might bring to mind pieces from the late 1800s or early 1900s, which would be true. However, the general definition of “antique” is any type of jewelry or rings which are more than 50 years old. So, any rings and jewelry prior to 1967 would be considered antique. It is hard to believe most of the 1960s now includes antique pieces!
Next, let’s discuss what estate jewelry pieces and rings are, as they are different from antique pieces. Some people get the term “estate” confused with “antique” because they assume since the piece of jewelry came from an estate, then it must be an antique. But this is not an accurate assessment. Rather, “estate” means any pieces of jewelry that were preowned and came from an estate. They could include pieces that are just a few years’ old, as well as older pieces, which might be antique, if they are more than 50 years old.
Now that you understand the differences between “antique” and “estate,” let’s turn our attentions to “vintage.” The term is normally applied to jewelry and rings that are less than 50 years old, but are not considered modern pieces. It is worth noting, some people use a slightly different definition following what they refer to as the “50/100 rule.”
This rule is any jewelry piece that is more than 50 years old, but less than 100 is considered vintage, while any piece that is a 100 years old or older is considered antique. So, again it depends upon how one defines the term.
In addition, vintage can be used to describe a custom designed replica engagement ring fashioned after a specific style from a previous period of time, including antique designs. Furthermore, vintage is sometimes used to describe older pieces that have been transformed into a new design, which uses the existing materials from the old ring to construct the new ring.
Here at Serli & Siroan, we are happy to share details about our selections of vintage engagement rings, as well as provide information about antique and estate pieces. We can even custom design a vintage replica engagement ring! To learn more about our custom pieces or for assistance in finding the perfect engagement ring for you beloved, please feel free to stop by hour Toronto engagement ring store today or call us at 416-944-3863!