VCA ~ Van Cleef Arpels Discussion thread!

[DeryaHm]

It seems like you’re now having second thoughts about items in your collection that don’t spark as much joy as before, and if you don’t like the feeling of clutter I would definitely consider parting with pieces that you don’t love anymore.

Personally I wear jewelry for myself and I even love wearing them around at home so I can enjoy looking at them, and so that counts as cost per wear for me. I love how jewelry makes me feel when I wear them. Of course dressing up to go out is also way more fun when you have coordinated outfits but what I love about jewelry is that you can wear them anytime and especially in the comfort and safety of your own home.

I don’t know if you foresee going to more events in the future but I think it’s always great to have the classics in case you do, and think about which pieces you love most and which pieces are the most versatile. If a piece is difficult to coordinate with the rest of your collection or outfits and it doesn’t spark immense joy I would let it go, because it probably means you won’t ever wear it. But if a piece is very unique and more difficult to match but you love that piece because it makes you feel amazing when you wear it, I would keep it!

I think the Marie Kondo method is amazing for decluttering; you put out all the pieces in your collection in front of you and you can see which ones you still truly love and which ones you feel just meh about. When they’re all laid out in front of you you can also do a mental coordination to see which pieces go well together with the outfits you wear. At the end of the day material things like jewelry should bring you joy, not burden and stress so I think that’s a good starting point when considering which pieces you should keep. You should feel happy about having/wearing them and not “off/out of sorts” like you mentioned. Good luck!!

I’m very bad at Kondo-ing! I get overwhelmed by the big pile of clothes but I think I can do it with jewelry! I've done it with shoes! This is very good advice. Thank you!

 

[DeryaHm]

When I was clearing out my bags a few years back I tried tracking how much I wore each. But it did not tell me anything I did not already know about which bag I use more. So I tried instead to not use my most used bags and just force using the others. I found that worked to force why I no longer liked bag x or why bag y did not work even though I was trying to use for when I thought I would use it. I then knew exactly which bags to sell and I did. I have bags I only use once or twice a year (my clutches), that I may use more later but either way I love them and have no interesting in selling even if cost per wear is not ideal.
I did similar exercise with clothes too where I moved my clothes out of mine and only brought back in once I wore items. I only picked items from the clothes not in my closet. I had to do it by season but it quickly became obvious which pieces had to go into donation bin. I will likely do this again once I go back to working in office.
Long post way of saying that I would suggest trying this with your jewellery. Try only wearing the pieces you don’t wear a lot now and see how you feel about them.You might not wear cause your clothes don’t work with the pieces. I recently bought some dresses to go with my lucky butterfly earrings so I could wear lots this summer. Or you might not love the piece and it is time to sell. Hope this helps.

Hm! This is a very good approach. And one I should have taken with bags. I did a purge of those in the fall and messed up majorly by selling all but two clutches. Which would be fine, but little did I know that with the vax mandate lifted in most NYC restaurants I would find opera my only social outlet, which is fine, except the clutches I kept were one navy and one yellow, so not enough range for the frequent use they are getting now. We used to go once a month, I went twice in one week the week before last. The clutches I kept looked nice on their own, but are not the most versatile. I let go of some for valid reasons (too many, needed to be pared down, one that didn't fit my larger phone, one I used at my father's funeral that was super versatile but made me sad), but also should maybe have thought more about which ones I was keeping. Anyway, now I am choosing a few replacements

I did recently wear one piece I had doubts about (BA magic) and it didn't feel awful, but I didn't feel great the way I do in pieces I love. I've noticed it's not just clutches -- the bags I kept are all too much in one color spectrum and so I find myself without good options for some clothes I really like. I do feel I still have way too many, so some may need to go, but I'll follow this advice to give them all a use or two first. Same with any jewelry I'm on the fence about. Thank you!

 

[DeryaHm]

When it comes to clothes, kitchen items and things around the house, I do a thorough ‘spring’ cleaning every 3-4 months (every drawer, every cupboard, every nook and cranny gets a sweep) and I use the rule of thumb that ‘if I haven’t worn or used the item even once in a year or more, that item or piece of clothing needs to be donated’. Period, no second thoughts, no regrets. By consistently doing this, I am at a point where I honestly have very little stuff in my house and closets. I won’t lie I could pair down my clothes even more but I honestly use everything I own at this moment because I just did the re-haul a couple of weeks. So I am enjoying my zen moment shedding all the extra weight.. when I get into one of those decluttering moods, there’s no stopping me to the point hubby often jokes ‘I am useful, don’t donate me!’

With bags and blings it’s a little different and more tricky for me in deciding what goes and what stays but here’s what’s worked for me:
1. I make a conscious choice to rotate all my jewelry. Yes, there will be some pieces that I automatically reach for more and that’s okay so long as I am giving fair attention to the rest of the pieces in my collection.
2.When I was working from home, I started wearing my bling more often on zoom meetings. So yes, wearing the jewelry at home absolutely counts towards getting that CPW down. Now that I am back at face-to-face work, I still find myself reaching out for my jewelry pieces everyday. The only caveat is that once I am back home, I have to, absolutely have to, take off all my jewelry except my e-ring. I am in my zen mood at home in my old sweats and t-shirt, sans jewelry
3. I don’t manually count or keep a spreadsheet tracking how often I am wearing each of my pieces, but I do keep a mental approximate count where I am like ‘okay the malachite pendant has been used too much this month. Need to see which other pendant needs to be shown more love’
4. If each of the pieces in my collection sparks that joy in me as @tenshix mentioned, it stays in my collection. I am not getting rid of things just to reduce numbers for the sake of it. Instead, if it sparks joy in me, I am going to consciously ensure I wear that piece more often.
5. I don’t like clutter so I always wanted a ‘manageable’ collection of bags and blings. Manageable to me is if I can do justice to the piece, rotate them easily and wear them out. Then, I am content with what I have. If I start feeling that I am not doing justice to what I own, that’s when I am ready to ruthlessly trim my collection. I have done it with bags and I won’t hesitate to do it with jewelry. Let’s hope it never comes to that

OMG! I aspire to this! I'm much better than I was after a couple of pass-throughs, but I really want to pare down even more. Clothes and shoes could use another pass and the less said about my kitchen equipment the better.

 

[lynne_ross]

Hm! This is a very good approach. And one I should have taken with bags. I did a purge of those in the fall and messed up majorly by selling all but two clutches. Which would be fine, but little did I know that with the vax mandate lifted in most NYC restaurants I would find opera my only social outlet, which is fine, except the clutches I kept were one navy and one yellow, so not enough range for the frequent use they are getting now. We used to go once a month, I went twice in one week the week before last. The clutches I kept looked nice on their own, but are not the most versatile. I let go of some for valid reasons (too many, needed to be pared down, one that didn't fit my larger phone, one I used at my father's funeral that was super versatile but made me sad), but also should maybe have thought more about which ones I was keeping. Anyway, now I am choosing a few replacements

I did recently wear one piece I had doubts about (BA magic) and it didn't feel awful, but I didn't feel great the way I do in pieces I love. I've noticed it's not just clutches -- the bags I kept are all too much in one color spectrum and so I find myself without good options for some clothes I really like. I do feel I still have way too many, so some may need to go, but I'll follow this advice to give them all a use or two first. Same with any jewelry I'm on the fence about. Thank you!

I can’t do kondo style either. I like the idea of it but I am not a very emotional person and things to me are either just stuff I use or things I love and will never let go of no matter how little I use. Luckily there are not many categories of things that are in the latter so my house is very lean and I purge regularly like eternal.
If you are finding you are purging stuff too fast and you are regretting it, it is likely best to just move everything you want to get rid of into another closet in your house then after say 6 months or a year you can purge. I do that with my kids’ stuff. If they ask for something I have moved they can keep otherwise the stuff gets donated after awhile.
What jewellery pieces are you considering let go of and why? I did a mass pair down of my Hermes jewellery 3 years ago and now I regret not selling what I kept! So I need to sell the rest this year. Sometimes doing the obvious pieces first helps making decisions on the remaining. There are no VCA pieces I want to sell yet.

 

[champagnelynny]

I think the solid wg works pretty well as the back side of 2 joined 5-motifs. The clasps might bother me, though. You really don't see the back three motifs.

View attachment 5344529

Hello! I'm new to this forum and have been scrolling, and saw what looks to be a WG Hammered Alhambra Bracelet :O Can I ask if this was a MTO or an SO? It's so lovely!

 

[BigAkoya]

Thank you. This was very interesting and there’s a lot to think over. One thing I should mention is that I don’t buy or pick most of my jewelry myself. I love jewelry, but it has never been exactly my thing. My DH has always bought it as gifts and surprises, even back in the Stone Age when we were just dating, so I don’t think I got caught up in hype, and doubt he did. He’s even less into social media than I am! I do love jewelry, but despite the time I’ve been spending on tpf, I don’t obsess or study it the way I do art and some antiques. It is DH’s thing and it is beautiful. So it is something we share and that he finds more engaging than my other interests. Maybe I should find a way to get him more engaged with those, or I can keep enjoying his habit

Oddly, the pieces I’m thinking of selling are some of the few I picked myself that I thought were beautiful but just don’t work on me. Some were bought during the pandemic didn’t really have a chance to wear out and about often. When I did wear them I felt off and like they were unflattering. The one incident that sticks in my mind was one of my first outings after omicron and all of my style choices felt off, probably because I also felt a little old in the downtown hip place we went to and I dressed like a matronly uptown type, which I basically am, although still adjusting to the age. I think DH would feel sad if I sold them, but I was also interested to learn that is something people do and that they have a metric for it. It seemed interesting.

I do see what you mean about the double edged sword of TPF. I joined a looong time ago and was mostly active in the Balenciaga forum, which is what I was into then. I did step away from that because I was just buying way too much and worse as a way of coping with or actually avoiding a hard personal situation and TPF was definitely enabling that, very kindly and in a fun way! I’m not sure if it is on jewelry or not since I’m not the main customer.

It’s interesting that my not rotating pieces reads as lack of interest. I’m going to think about this. I had interpreted it as because I am a middle aged old style European and also sometimes wear the same clothes a few days in a row, especially when I only wear for a short time. This is much more the case now, but was also before the pandemic. So no need to change the jewelry either. Sorry if this is TMI!

Thank you for the thoughtful and thought provoking post and apologies for my long response. Lots to think about

Thanks for sharing your thoughts... this is easy then!
Sell the pieces that make you frown. I get rid of all jewelry that annoys me for any reason (e.g. stone is too dark, don't like it anymore, not a great vibe when wearing it, any reason...). Next... no more self-buying jewelry for you; hubby can stock your jewelry box! You can then focus on your passion, art & antiques, which is what really gives you that ear-to-ear smile.

You have such a thoughtful hubby! You can train him a little bit and redirect his thoughtfulness.
Get him engaged in your interests. Tell him what you see in the art/antiques... just simple 101 snip-its of a little facts/history. He will see your passion for your art/antiques. Slowly, he will learn to appreciate what your eyes see, and he will embrace it, if only because he sees the passion through your eyes.

My hubby was never into jewelry when we first met. I started to tell him snip-its about the origin of a gemstone or show him the perfection of the prong-work on a ring; the beauty & art of each piece. He now appreciates jewelry, enjoys talking about it, and he loves to see jewelry on me.

As kind and thoughtful as your hubby seems, I am certain he will learn to appreciate your hobbies. Next thing you know... he will want to surprise you with that favorite over-the-top painting that gives you an ear-to-ear smile!

Hobbies are so much fun. It brings life to our lives! Art and antiques; your hobbies are never ending... always something new.

 

[DS2006]

Hello! I'm new to this forum and have been scrolling, and saw what looks to be a WG Hammered Alhambra Bracelet :O Can I ask if this was a MTO or an SO? It's so lovely!

Thank you! Unfortunately, it’s a special order meaning it has the extra cost added!

 

[kelsenia]

Thanks so much @BigAkoya, @lynne_ross, @Safa and @Happyish for your insights and opinions…sorry it took me a while to reply.
I was able to go into the store and try on the pave butterfly earrings, lapis butterfly ring, frivole pink sapphire pendant and earrings, frivole pave ring, frivole 5 motif bracelet, frivole mini bracelet, 5 motif pave wg Alhambra bracelet…we had a lot of fun, haha! I ended up getting the pink sapphire frivole set, 5 motif frivole bracelet, rose gold mini frivole bracelet, and am going to wait on the butterflies.

She isn’t even sure if they can make the butterfly BTF rings in my size, she is going to check with Paris and get back to me. If they can do it i may consider getting both the lapis and pink sapphire (if lapis is avail).

The butterfly earrings were very pretty but I liked the ring more, and I would probably wear the ring more. Considering they’re the same price I think I would rather get just the ring of both the lapis and pink sapphire. I saw the turquoise ring too which was pretty, but I prefer the deep color of the lapis (and I think it would go nicely with my sevres porcelain collection!).

@Safa I totally see what you’re saying when it comes to the pink sapphire in frivole form being so much brighter than the pink butterfly. I actually really liked it because I think it dressed down the frivole look and gave it a pop of color (and pink and purple are my favorite colors, so). But I can see how it isn’t as classic. I dress super casually (aka lululemon 24/7) and for me I also don’t want to be too flashy.

And omg I did not realize how beautiful, shiny and sparkly the frivole pave ring is in person! For some reason that ring above all others I saw was so sparkly. Beautiful, but not high up on my wishlist for now.

Excuse my horrendous nail polish situation! Also had to take a pic of the beautiful butterfly pin on display.

Can you go in and try the frivole? I have the yg pave and love. I think you might NEED a pair of butterflies and the frivole. Haha!
I have large fingers too despite being petite. I would still try to see if you try the ring, even in on your pinky or half way down finger to see the size of the butterflies. Then if you love you can order. I did this with the noeud. You might the butterfly ring small, suggest you try frivole ring too.

You need to try these. It's the only way to make a decision. I've had my heart set on certain pieces, only to find when I tried them that they weren't flattering. In each instance, even my SA agreed.
Perhaps there's another ring you can try? Or put two earrings on top of your fingers, to get the look of the two-butterfly, and have your SA take a photo. I always find that when I look at photos once I'm home -- away from the wonderful lighting, and the excitement of a new piece, that it gives me a better idea of whether it's the right choice.
That should give you a better idea of which direction to pursue.
Finally, forget us. You're the one who will be wearing these--and not temporarily. This is a long-term purchase.

I think it depends how much you like pink. To me the combo of the metal, pink sapphire right by diamonds and I’m not sure what else makes the Frivole a really vibrant and, with apologies to those who have and love it, garish look that doesn’t, for me, go with the simple elegance of frivole. I passed on a set a while back.

OTOH, the butterflies are pretty subtle and don’t look like a bright pink except in certain lights, which I know is weird as same stone.

I think the butterfly set is more everyday usable (for me) but that depends on your preference and style. They also dress up nicely I think, though I haven’t dressed up in ages.

I can’t remember if you’re able to try both but if you are of course that’s the way to go. I always vote to get plain frivole then use the savings to do pave w the butterflies!

I would ask yourself why all of a sudden you want a butterfly piece. Have you always loved butterfly, or are you now caught in the hype of all this talk of butterflies? If you have always loved Frivole and the pink sapphire set, I would get your first love.

Both the Frivole pink sapphire and butterfly pink sapphire have been out for a while, so I would ask yourself why didn't you want the butterfly a few months ago before VCA started doing all this marketing on the butterfly collection?

To me, the two collections are very different. The Frivole is a flower collection and timeless. The BTF is a nice bold look.
The butterfly is sweet and dainty compared to the Frivole ring. Each collection projects a different look, and everyone has a fashion look. I would select the one that reflects you, your look. I would not purchase the butterfly if you are now interested due to all the hype.

Hope that helps!

 

[lynne_ross]

Thanks so much @BigAkoya, @lynne_ross, @Safa and @Happyish for your insights and opinions…sorry it took me a while to reply.
I was able to go into the store and try on the pave butterfly earrings, lapis butterfly ring, frivole pink sapphire pendant and earrings, frivole pave ring, frivole 5 motif bracelet, frivole mini bracelet, 5 motif pave wg Alhambra bracelet…we had a lot of fun, haha! I ended up getting the pink sapphire frivole set, 5 motif frivole bracelet, rose gold mini frivole bracelet, and am going to wait on the butterflies.

She isn’t even sure if they can make the butterfly BTF rings in my size, she is going to check with Paris and get back to me. If they can do it i may consider getting both the lapis and pink sapphire (if lapis is avail).

The butterfly earrings were very pretty but I liked the ring more, and I would probably wear the ring more. Considering they’re the same price I think I would rather get just the ring of both the lapis and pink sapphire. I saw the turquoise ring too which was pretty, but I prefer the deep color of the lapis (and I think it would go nicely with my sevres porcelain collection!).

@Safa I totally see what you’re saying when it comes to the pink sapphire in frivole form being so much brighter than the pink butterfly. I actually really liked it because I think it dressed down the frivole look and gave it a pop of color (and pink and purple are my favorite colors, so). But I can see how it isn’t as classic. I dress super casually (aka lululemon 24/7) and for me I also don’t want to be too flashy.

And omg I did not realize how beautiful, shiny and sparkly the frivole pave ring is in person! For some reason that ring above all others I saw was so sparkly. Beautiful, but not high up on my wishlist for now.

Excuse my horrendous nail polish situation! Also had to take a pic of the beautiful butterfly pin on display.

I love the butterfly earrings in your pic!
Congrats on the new pieces.

 

[kelsenia]

I love the butterfly earrings in your pic!
Congrats on the new pieces.

Thank you! Haha maybe I am kidding myself that I will only get the ring versions of butterflies… I need to try on the pink sapphire one (didn’t have in stock—probably a good thing for my wallet).

 

[EpiFanatic]

Thanks so much @BigAkoya, @lynne_ross, @Safa and @Happyish for your insights and opinions…sorry it took me a while to reply.
I was able to go into the store and try on the pave butterfly earrings, lapis butterfly ring, frivole pink sapphire pendant and earrings, frivole pave ring, frivole 5 motif bracelet, frivole mini bracelet, 5 motif pave wg Alhambra bracelet…we had a lot of fun, haha! I ended up getting the pink sapphire frivole set, 5 motif frivole bracelet, rose gold mini frivole bracelet, and am going to wait on the butterflies.

She isn’t even sure if they can make the butterfly BTF rings in my size, she is going to check with Paris and get back to me. If they can do it i may consider getting both the lapis and pink sapphire (if lapis is avail).

The butterfly earrings were very pretty but I liked the ring more, and I would probably wear the ring more. Considering they’re the same price I think I would rather get just the ring of both the lapis and pink sapphire. I saw the turquoise ring too which was pretty, but I prefer the deep color of the lapis (and I think it would go nicely with my sevres porcelain collection!).

@Safa I totally see what you’re saying when it comes to the pink sapphire in frivole form being so much brighter than the pink butterfly. I actually really liked it because I think it dressed down the frivole look and gave it a pop of color (and pink and purple are my favorite colors, so). But I can see how it isn’t as classic. I dress super casually (aka lululemon 24/7) and for me I also don’t want to be too flashy.

And omg I did not realize how beautiful, shiny and sparkly the frivole pave ring is in person! For some reason that ring above all others I saw was so sparkly. Beautiful, but not high up on my wishlist for now.

Excuse my horrendous nail polish situation! Also had to take a pic of the beautiful butterfly pin on display.

Congratulations! That’s a serious haul! Can’t wait to see more pics of your new lovelies.

 

[kelsenia]

Congratulations! That’s a serious haul! Can’t wait to see more pics of your new lovelies.

Ive sent everything out for lengthening/ earring post changing so I can add more photos once I get everything back

 

[BigAkoya]

Thanks so much @BigAkoya, @lynne_ross, @Safa and @Happyish for your insights and opinions…sorry it took me a while to reply.
I was able to go into the store and try on the pave butterfly earrings, lapis butterfly ring, frivole pink sapphire pendant and earrings, frivole pave ring, frivole 5 motif bracelet, frivole mini bracelet, 5 motif pave wg Alhambra bracelet…we had a lot of fun, haha! I ended up getting the pink sapphire frivole set, 5 motif frivole bracelet, rose gold mini frivole bracelet, and am going to wait on the butterflies.

She isn’t even sure if they can make the butterfly BTF rings in my size, she is going to check with Paris and get back to me. If they can do it i may consider getting both the lapis and pink sapphire (if lapis is avail).

The butterfly earrings were very pretty but I liked the ring more, and I would probably wear the ring more. Considering they’re the same price I think I would rather get just the ring of both the lapis and pink sapphire. I saw the turquoise ring too which was pretty, but I prefer the deep color of the lapis (and I think it would go nicely with my sevres porcelain collection!).

@Safa I totally see what you’re saying when it comes to the pink sapphire in frivole form being so much brighter than the pink butterfly. I actually really liked it because I think it dressed down the frivole look and gave it a pop of color (and pink and purple are my favorite colors, so). But I can see how it isn’t as classic. I dress super casually (aka lululemon 24/7) and for me I also don’t want to be too flashy.

And omg I did not realize how beautiful, shiny and sparkly the frivole pave ring is in person! For some reason that ring above all others I saw was so sparkly. Beautiful, but not high up on my wishlist for now.

Excuse my horrendous nail polish situation! Also had to take a pic of the beautiful butterfly pin on display.

Congratulations on your new pieces! I love the Frivole collection.
The lapis butterfly ring looks stunning on you! I vote to get that piece next.
Maybe next time, also ask to try on the yellow sapphire butterfly BTF ring. I think the yellow sapphire will go great with your YG Frivole pieces. Plus, looking at your photos, I think the yellow sapphire will pop on you. The pale pink sapphire BTF ring will be more of a mellow look, so it's all preference. But try on the yellow sapphire to be sure.

Congratulations again! Gorgeous pieces!

 

[BigAkoya]

@kelsenia
Have you seen @TankerToad 's lapis collection? It is to die for, and she also has the sevres porcelain as you do for a match.
She has the lapis butterfly ring, and it is so gorgeous on her. She also just purchased the Rose de Noel...
Here is her post: https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/van-cleef-in-action.900366/post-35077908

@TankerToad I forgot to mention... on your butterfly ring, I see butterfly rings mainly worn on the middle finger and not on the ring finger. I love how you wear it on your ring finger, and I think it makes the butterflies pop more, especially the butterfly between the ring finger and pinkie. It's gorgeous on you!

 

[TankerToad]

@kelsenia
Have you seen @TankerToad 's lapis collection? It is to die for, and she also has the sevres porcelain as you do for a match.
She has the lapis butterfly ring, and it is so gorgeous on her. She also just purchased the Rose de Noel...
Here is her post: https://forum.purseblog.com/threads/van-cleef-in-action.900366/post-35077908

@TankerToad I forgot to mention... on your butterfly ring, I see butterfly rings mainly worn on the middle finger and not on the ring finger. I love how you wear it on your ring finger, and I think it makes the butterflies pop more, especially the butterfly between the ring finger and pinkie. It's gorgeous on you!

Aww thank you
Still deliberating the mini or small lapis RdN earrings to order