VC&A as Costume Jewelery? NOT!!!

Is REAL Van Cleef & Arpels Fine or Costume Jewelry

  • Fine Jewelery, no doubt

  • Costume jewelry

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#16
Well, my love for VCA is not a secret. However, I get that because there are no diamonds on (most) Alhambra of the line, some people may not recognize just how expensive the pieces are. In my opinion, that's the best part about VCA. I can wear it during the day and not have anyone notice and get a couple of "that's a beautiful bracelet/necklace/pair of earrings" or "that's so cute!" but then still go out at night and can be appropriately dressed and get nice comments from others about how much they love Van Cleef.

I will say, though, someone once asked me if my bracelet was enamel or plastic clovers and I just smiled and said "I'm not sure" because she clearly wasn't familiar with the line, though she loved my bracelet and wanted to get one, and I wasn't ready to discuss with a cashier the details of VCA.
 
#18
No, they are not costume jewelry! I actually gasped while reading this thread's title. I don't own any VCA yet but I definitely admire them. The iconic Alhambra pieces are bling-free so the average person wouldn't know they are $$$$ pieces but that is what makes them great. True jewelry aficionados would definitely know and can appreciate the stealthy elegance of VCA.

I love stealthy luxury pieces, it's like being in a little secret club. :graucho:
 
#19
explorer27 said:
No, they are not costume jewelry! I actually gasped while reading this thread's title. I don't own any VCA yet but I definitely admire them. The iconic Alhambra pieces are bling-free so the average person wouldn't know they are $$$$ pieces but that is what makes them great. True jewelry aficionados would definitely know and can appreciate the stealthy elegance of VCA.

I love stealthy luxury pieces, it's like being in a little secret club. :graucho:
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Well said -- I agree!
 
#21
I love the design of VCA, it's totally my style, dainty and feminine but pieces can be layered for a bolder look as well! my first experience with VCA wasn't great. I bought a white gold turquoise sweet bracelet and there was a decent sized airline between the whit gold casing and the turquoise butterfly.

I ended up returning it because I could see my skin through the motif when I had it on:shucks: It took 6 weeks to order it, so I decided not to re-order and re think what I wanted to treat myself to. BUT I do like the designs, and if I buy something else VCA in the future it will be all gold, no alhambra line for me....unless its the lucky bracelet with grey MOP and Lapis:hbeat:
 
#23
doreenjoy said:
I think this is one of those threads where no one will speak up if they disagree.

Kind of like how everyone who posted in the "How much do you weigh?" thread weighed less than 200 pounds, and eveyone who posted in "How much debt do you have?" had no debt.

:cool:
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Yes, I am always amazed at how very thin and very rich everyone is around here! :laugh:
 
#24
I find this question hard to answer because IMO VCA toes the line, in that it uses high-end quality materials like other fine jewelers but the lack of "bling" and motifs are similar to elements of costume jewelry. I like VCA's designs, but haven't brought myself to purchase one yet.
 
#25
explorer27 said:
No, they are not costume jewelry! I actually gasped while reading this thread's title. I don't own any VCA yet but I definitely admire them. The iconic Alhambra pieces are bling-free so the average person wouldn't know they are $$$$ pieces but that is what makes them great. True jewelry aficionados would definitely know and can appreciate the stealthy elegance of VCA.

I love stealthy luxury pieces, it's like being in a little secret club. :graucho:
Click to expand...

Me too! ADORE the stealthy! I'm not much into things that scream LUXURY - no offence but like big expensive watches wouldn't be me... I love that almost no one I know knows VCA or even the love bracelet! Makes me feel secretly luxurious without looking spoiled! :)
 
#26
The value of pieces is sometimes labor and not just materials. think of pietra dura for example. I think VCA is vastly vastly overpriced but it is also because of its brand--like Hermes. There are jewelers who make far more complicated and labor intensive pieces and you would be hard pressed to give them away after purchase..............there are many factors which influence desirability and value
 
#27
Costume jewelry is, to me, not made from precious metals. Therefore, VC&A is not costume jewelry. It doesn't matter how it looks or how expensive it is, it's about the quality of the materials.

I see the LV Inclusion line as costume jewelry - it's Swarovski and brass, the Chanel jewelry (this: http://www.chanel.com/fashion/8-fas...lished-with-plexi-and-enamel-stones--4,3,4,31) as costume jewelry as it's metal with plexi and enamel stones.
Had it been gold, silver, precious stones had it not been costume jewelry IMO.

There's nothing wrong with costume jewelry :)
 
#28
Its not costume jewelry at all, but I can see how someone might see a resemblance between the VCA Alahambra line and some 1960's enamel costume pieces. THE Alahambra has a playful vibe, and some people associate "fine" jewelry with "serious" jewelry.
 
#29
While I do love and own VCA, I wouldn't necessarily classify the entire VCA line as either "costume" or "fine".

The non-jeweled Alhambra line - I would not call it "fine", but as the materials are precious, it's not necessarily "costume". It's fun, playful, and teeters along the edge of sophistication as they do manage to have us grown women wear butterflies, hearts and flowers (something I imagine many of us wouldn't touch if it weren't VCA). But I would never wear them to a formal event.

The rest of the VCA line - yes, it's about as fine as you can get. The one-of-a-kind pieces are legendary.
 
#30
In my country (many many independent goldsmiths) the Alhambra has been so copied and there are "inspired" or right out copies everywhere. Most of the time you can't tell them apart.
Everyone, their mom, their hairdresser and their maid now has clover, heart, butterfly motif necklaces and bracelets. Too common over here, so most of the time when one sees a VCA they immediately assume it is a copy. The copies are so well made, some of the designs are even better than VCA.

Perhaps this is one reason to see them as costume? because they are so copied?
They are not costume though. Costume is out of cheap metal like brass.
I got a pair of the VCA Alhambra MOP clip earrings last year, I found them very annoying on my ears, and I didn't get any compliments from ppl (mostly I got "Oh , no , not you too?") so I ended up returning them after a week.
 
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