what a waste

[No Cute]

Sell. Get them out of your hair and let it go. Maybe take pics of the lovelier pieces and turn them into wall art for your new apartment? A collage of pics of them would be cool...even in your powder room.

I'm listing a Tiffany piece. Only (only 175...duh) and will take a loss, but I need to just declutter if I don't wear it enough (is it our age that we want less?). I know it will be viewed as a fake or the price will be depressed by fakes.

 

[bags and bijoux]

Doreen, I purchased a lot of jewellery both costume and dressier pieces during my frivolous days. I am now sorting through them and will sell them eventually. I think the hardest things we do is dwell on the purchase and pain ourselves even more at the mistakes.

I look at my past purchasing problems with new light now to never make the same mistakes again. Sometimes these forums make us get carried away which is why I now stay in the money and playground threads and carefully read threads elsewhere but never look at the reveals anymore.

 

[sourapril]

sell them to ebay or antique shops? I found the the price on ebay various a lot even for the same piece.

 

[sourapril]

post pictures of the pieces you have

 

[doreenjoy]

I understand your pain, DJ. Every piece of jewelry my ex gave me is currently in a box in my friend's attic.

What's sad is that there are a few pieces I absolutely loved wearing, but they make me feel kind of gross now. I wonder if that feeling will go away?

I don't know if the sadness attached to the piece will go away. I have a lovely bracelet from my 23rd wedding anniversary with 23 diamonds in it. I can't imagine wanting to wear it again.

DJ: Why wouldn't you get a tax writeoff if you donate them?

Complicated rules for writing off jewelry:
http://www.irs.gov/publications/p526/ar02.html
especially if the organization you donate to doesn't use the item in part of their business (e.g. if you donate a painting to a university that uses it for education, it can be written off more easily than if the painting is on display or sold).

Non-cash donations are a big red flag and I don't want to deal with an audit (even if it's one I'd win).

I'd sell them, try not to think about the loss, that money's gone and worrying about it won't bring it back, and plan something fabulous for yourself. You'll feel lighter once it's gone.

You are right about that. I just needed to process my feelings about the wasted money and this thread has been so helpful.

Sell. Get them out of your hair and let it go. Maybe take pics of the lovelier pieces and turn them into wall art for your new apartment? A collage of pics of them would be cool...even in your powder room.

I'm listing a Tiffany piece. Only (only 175...duh) and will take a loss, but I need to just declutter if I don't wear it enough (is it our age that we want less?). I know it will be viewed as a fake or the price will be depressed by fakes.

NC, I love the idea of a collage of pics. Maybe I will take pics and blow them up into abstract art.

Definitely sell your Tiffany piece. I've sold one already and the resale price is pretty good.

Doreen, I purchased a lot of jewellery both costume and dressier pieces during my frivolous days. I am now sorting through them and will sell them eventually. I think the hardest things we do is dwell on the purchase and pain ourselves even more at the mistakes.

I look at my past purchasing problems with new light now to never make the same mistakes again. Sometimes these forums make us get carried away which is why I now stay in the money and playground threads and carefully read threads elsewhere but never look at the reveals anymore.

Thank you. That is very helpful.

post pictures of the pieces you have

LOL. I would love to, but it might be considered against the rules of tPF because we don't allow selling to members here outside of the Marketplaza.

 

[LeeMiller]

I have a lot of fine jewelry that I don't wear, some 22k from an ex, some from my DH, some from when I was in high school. I've slowly started to sell some of it on Ebay but am considering Yoggis or another online place so I don't have to worry about a scam buyer. I felt a little tinge of guilt for some of it which was a gift, but I never wore any of it and with the price of gold I sold it for more than it cost (which was admittedly lucky).

This thread sort of makes me feel that I need to get back to selling the pieces I don't use. Who knows maybe I can get something good from the cash I raise? Sometimes I feel guilty about purchases I don't use (whether it is jewelry or whatever) or even about purchases I do use when the purchase is expensive. It seems to me though that such guilt is more useless than the money we spend and it is better to cut any financial losses short while not letting such things drag use down emotionally as well & just learn to enjoy the now.

 

[LeeMiller]

I guess I must be young at heart because my problem lately has been buying items that, while lovely, just don't suit me because they should be worn by younger people.......Sydney Evans had a trunk show on at Holt Renfrew in Toronto and I bought a tiny white gold dog bone pendant. I love my dogs SO much that, when I saw the dog bone, I was swept away. It looks silly on me --- bought the Anita Ko RG pyramid bracelet on impulse as well and regretted it. I sold the AK and will probably give the SE to one of my cousin's little girls.
I think it is wise to sell (if possible) and give away if not.....I have a few valuable pieces that I think I will give to one of local animal charities. They would be a good fundraiser in a silent auction.
I thought I would have learned to "look before I leap" by this point in my life....lol

This sort of concerns me since I'm considering the same Anita Ko bracelet!

My current dilemma is that I only wear white gold/platinum jewelry and I just think this particular piece (and alternatively the Cartier just un clou - nail bracelet) would be better in classic gold. I just don't know if I can mix things up and be ok with that. Also, considering some Ko diamond studded earrings. Sigh.

 

[kath2]

I've noticed that as time goes on, too, I have my staples: same ring, same bangle everyday; different earrings & necklaces. I used to be ring obsessed but realized it was foolish b/c I just wouldn't wear them.

I've never regretted getting rid of anything. It's very liberating to own less.

 

[Zarina]

This sort of concerns me since I'm considering the same Anita Ko bracelet!

My current dilemma is that I only wear white gold/platinum jewelry and I just think this particular piece (and alternatively the Cartier just un clou - nail bracelet) would be better in classic gold. I just don't know if I can mix things up and be ok with that. Also, considering some Ko diamond studded earrings. Sigh.

If you go to the thread that show celebrities with their Love bracelets, there are pictures of Nicky Hilton --- she wears a WG Love with 2 white gold Anita Ko pyramid bracelets. It looks BEAUTIFUL!!!!!
The only reason I bought the RG AK was that my husband had just bought me the RG Love --- he thought I had too much in the WG/Plat and the RG would be a nice change.
If the AK earrings you are looking at are the pyramid ones, you should check Etsy --- I saw some lovely ones there -
I agree with you about the just au clou ---- YG or RG for sure!

 

[Threshold]

I've sold a lot in the last few years, too, keeping either a) what I wear or b) gifts. I have maybe a third as much jewelry as I did two years ago! A lot of gifted stuff from both grandmothers I've had made into new pieces; both grandmas have passed on, and the pieces weren't my taste, but I wanted reminders of them that I'd actually wear.

I'm sure they'd be so proud! I did the same thing with my mother's fine jewelry. She passed a few years ago. Luckily, our family jeweler helped create my designs. I would have done them myself, but for my arthritis; something about which nearly every Gramma and even many young people can identify. Despite the affliction, my hands look very good for wearing all my rings and bracelets. I am not about to downsize, and hope to leave a happy legacy for the next generation... albeit 40-50 years away.

 

[labrillant]

It's funny how our tastes change over time. I wouldn't have considered it a fad item back when I bought it (30 years ago), but the gold coin pendant with a decorative gold frame seemed really dated and out of place after awhile.

I had gobs of gold jewelry that I no longer wore, about half my collection. Some things no longer fit me (especially eternity type rings), and some I had moved on from in terms of taste. This was 40 years of jewelry collecting. I had no qualms with taking it to a gold buyer and getting rid of it as it felt like a burdern in my jewelry drawer. I turned it in to a couple of beautiful pieces using the diamonds from the jewelry I'd scrapped.

Within a year the other half of my jewelry that remained was stolen. Of course when that happened I'd wished I had taken the whole lot to the gold buyer.

Now I am VERY careful to buy pieces that will appeal to me for years to come. This is done more easily as I've matured. I won't buy any fad jewelry, or jewelry that just tickles my fancy at that moment. For instance, I've seen a few LeVian pieces that I love, but know that 3,4,5 years from now I won't be loving them any longer. So I don't buy.

When I buy jewelry, I never think of it as an investment. Rather it's just something for me to enjoy for as long as I enjoy it. From there it'll either be passed on to my daughter when she's old enough to enjoy the styles I enjoy now, or she'll be selling them.

I think the real waste happens when people buy expensive fad pieces, as they will be difficult to get rid of once the fad passes and will probably be sold for scrapt.

 

[papertiger]

I've sold a few OK pieces though 'proper' auction houses that were given to me as presents and had no attachment to. The financial sum of their parts was most definitely prettier than the look of them as jewellery. I was pleased to get rid of them even though I probably blew the cash on something 'mindless'.

A couple of mistakes too though. I sold a pair of earrings and a medal that I now regret.

I have never been married but I can understand the need for a 'clean sweep' for a new life. I sold a guitar a BF bought me after the sky fell in on out relationship, the very next day, I couldn't get it out of my flat quick enough. Although, when I see things my father bought me (now passed) or things that remind me of happier times, I'm glad I have them, I have a stubbornly sentimental side.

 

[AndieAbroad]

"Cartier Rolling Ring" (a piece I thought I'd want forever, but ended up hating for various reasons).

Would you mind listing a few of these reasons? Was one of them that it scratched itself a lot?

I'm considering buying one, but my jeweller told me these scratch very badly. I'm currently waiting for a design/quote on a custom 'fixed' band with three metals and diamonds paved in the WG.

There's something about the Cartier RG that I can't totally put out of my mind, though...

 

[doreenjoy]

Would you mind listing a few of these reasons? Was one of them that it scratched itself a lot?

I'm considering buying one, but my jeweller told me these scratch very badly. I'm currently waiting for a design/quote on a custom 'fixed' band with three metals and diamonds paved in the WG.

There's something about the Cartier RG that I can't totally put out of my mind, though...

I love the look of the ring, so I KWYM. My Ex bought me one about 20 years ago when I was obsessing over it. It was very uncomfortable -- it takes up much more width between your fingers than a normal ring -- and I never got used to it. I didn't have a problem with scratching, but I hear the new ones are more prone to scratching.

 

[doreenjoy]

I have a lot of fine jewelry that I don't wear, some 22k from an ex, some from my DH, some from when I was in high school. I've slowly started to sell some of it on Ebay but am considering Yoggis or another online place so I don't have to worry about a scam buyer. I felt a little tinge of guilt for some of it which was a gift, but I never wore any of it and with the price of gold I sold it for more than it cost (which was admittedly lucky).

This thread sort of makes me feel that I need to get back to selling the pieces I don't use. Who knows maybe I can get something good from the cash I raise? Sometimes I feel guilty about purchases I don't use (whether it is jewelry or whatever) or even about purchases I do use when the purchase is expensive. It seems to me though that such guilt is more useless than the money we spend and it is better to cut any financial losses short while not letting such things drag use down emotionally as well & just learn to enjoy the now.

Thanks, Lee.

Yoogi's only accepts certain brands of jewelry, so I've been looking for an online jewelry reseller. Some of my pieces are Art Nouveau and can be easily sold; modern pieces are harder to sell. But I will give it a try because as you said, it's best to cut our losses and not keep pieces that drag us down emotionally.

I've noticed that as time goes on, too, I have my staples: same ring, same bangle everyday; different earrings & necklaces. I used to be ring obsessed but realized it was foolish b/c I just wouldn't wear them.

I've never regretted getting rid of anything. It's very liberating to own less.

Too many possessions cause a great deal of stress for me. I'm actually looking forward to getting a smaller jewelry box.

It's funny how our tastes change over time. I wouldn't have considered it a fad item back when I bought it (30 years ago), but the gold coin pendant with a decorative gold frame seemed really dated and out of place after awhile.

I had gobs of gold jewelry that I no longer wore, about half my collection. Some things no longer fit me (especially eternity type rings), and some I had moved on from in terms of taste. This was 40 years of jewelry collecting. I had no qualms with taking it to a gold buyer and getting rid of it as it felt like a burdern in my jewelry drawer. I turned it in to a couple of beautiful pieces using the diamonds from the jewelry I'd scrapped.

Within a year the other half of my jewelry that remained was stolen. Of course when that happened I'd wished I had taken the whole lot to the gold buyer.

Now I am VERY careful to buy pieces that will appeal to me for years to come. This is done more easily as I've matured.

My tastes have changed a lot over the years. Who knew I would ever get sick of yellow gold? Now I like silver and WG. I also like a few statement pieces, but have a variety of 'basics' too.

At this point in my life, I will only be wearing jewelry for another 20 years, so I have to be very careful not to buy expensive pieces that I won't get enough cost-per-use out of. I would rather have money in the bank than jewelry in my box.

Although, when I see things my father bought me (now passed) or things that remind me of happier times, I'm glad I have them, I have a stubbornly sentimental side.

I am the same way, but there are very few pieces I feel sentimental about. A pair of earrings and a ring...that's about it. The rest is just stuff.