From Cartier to Costume, The Unmistakable Beauty of Fruit Salad Jewelry
There are lots of nicknames costume jewelry collectors have given their favorite styles over the years. None are so fun, perhaps, as “Fruit Salad.” This term pertains to adornment made by one of the giants in the costume jewelry business to imitate a particular type of Art Deco era fine jewelry. And, as with many other terms associated with high-end costume jewelry, this one is often used incorrectly to draw attention in online listings.
By Pamela Wiggins Siegel
Fruit Salad Jewelry Origins
We like to think of costume jewelry companies and designers as great innovators, and some of them certainly have marketed their share of unique creations. Very often, though, fine jewelry styles have trickled down to yield some of the most popular and costly costume jewelry designs over the years. Pieces made with Fruit Salad stones fall into this category.
Before there was Fruit Salad made by top costume jewelry businesses in the 1930s and beyond, there was Tutti Frutti by Cartier. The term Tutti Frutti, which is still in use today, describes carved emeralds, sapphires, and rubies shaped like fruits, flowers, and leaves set into precious metals. Other accompanying stones are dome shaped or ribbed, and of course there are almost always diamond accents sprinkled within these magnificent pieces.
Cartier called these designs “foliage” or “Hindou jewels” when they were first made in the 1920s and ’30s. Much like the term Art Deco coming about in the late 1960s, Tutti Frutti wasn’t coined to describe these works of wearable art until the 1970s.
Jacques Cartier, who ran the London branch of his family’s famed French jewelry house, was responsible for bringing the carved stones back to Europe from India. He would quickly share them with his brother Louis, the heir of Cartier. Both men were greatly inspired by not only these carved jewels, but the culture of India. They channeled their scholarly pursuits on the topic into the creation of some truly outstanding jewels.
These vividly colored imported gemstones were not as fine as some of the others being used in Cartier jewelry during the period. This led the first Tutti Frutti pieces to be priced lower in comparison to designs crafted with more flawless stones. As noted in The Cartiers: The Untold Story of the Family Behind the Jewelry Empire by Francesca Cartier Brickell, these pieces were all about color, so quality wasn’t as much of a concern.
Socialite Daisy Fellowes embraced everything about the exotic look of Tutti Frutti designs and had Cartier create the famed Collier Hindou in 1935 using her own stash of carved gems. It was a convertible necklace that could be taken apart to wear the central element as a clip brooch. Tutti Frutti designs on par with that piece are still being produced for Cartier’s high jewelry collections today.
Marketing Fruit Salad Jewelry
Trifari is the undisputed winner of the inspired by Cartier prize when it comes to imitations of Tutti Frutti jewelry. This shouldn’t be too surprising since their lead designer, Alfred Philippe, worked for Cartier before joining the Rhode Island-based firm in 1930.
By that time, Tutti Frutti jewelry was already being marketed to Cartier’s elite customers. Demand had shifted due to the Great Depression, however, and Philippe was inspired to design similar styles with imitation stones for Trifari. Most of these pieces are marked with the initials TKF for Trifari, Krussman and Fishel, the early signature used by Trifari. Decades later, just like Tutti Frutti, the stones in these pieces were nicknamed Fruit Salad.
While Fruit Salad stones are often described as carved by sellers, they’re actually made of molded glass rather than hand carved like genuine gemstones. In addition to the jewel-toned colors of green, blue, and red popularized by Cartier, Trifari branched out to include imitations of moonstone, turquoise, coral, and other gems. The shapes include tiny lemons, pears, melons, and leaves.
Trifari, like Cartier, was also known for making convertible jewelry. Trifari’s versions featuring imitations of carved gemstones include a particularly rare and desirable bracelet with a pair of the brand’s Clip-mates dress clips fastened at the top. The clips can be removed and worn separately, and other Clip-mate styles can be swapped in their place. Clip-mates were also made into convertible “duette” brooches that can be worn together as a pin or separated into two clips.
Some other jewelry companies made their own versions of jewelry using colorful molded glass stones. Mazer is the most prolific in terms of what collectors describe as Fruit Salad. The stones in this brand’s pieces are usually molded glass leaves or flowers but sometimes include fruit shapes. While these stones were used sporadically later, and those designs are desirable as well, the most sought-after Fruit Salad designs date to the 1930s. Later styles by Trifari will be marked with the crown over the T signature rather than TKF.
What Fruit Salad Jewelry Isn’t
Online sellers sometimes take license in describing their wares, especially in listing titles. Fruit Salad is a term used incorrectly quite often, and sometimes it’s a case of mistaken identity when a piece contains oodles of colorful stones. Some describe Italian glass or plastic fruit jewelry as Fruit Salad simply because they include fruit shaped beads. Other sellers, however, use the term intentionally to draw attention.
Why does this even matter? At the end of the day, most collectors just look at the jewelry and scroll on if it’s not described correctly. They do take notice, however, and tend to avoid sellers who habitually describe things inaccurately feeling they may be overlooking flaws or other pertinent details. Bottom line, if you want to be seen as a trustworthy, do your research and save the term Fruit Salad for stones that mimic the look of carved gemstones shaped like fruits, leaves and flowers.
Values for Fruit Salad Jewelry
While you might not be able to afford a piece of Cartier Tutti Frutti jewelry for your collection, you just might be able to snag a Fruit Salad piece that’s more in your price range with some shopping diligence. Smaller brooches and pairs of earrings start in the $125 to $300 range with prices going up from there. Many of the Trifari designs from the 1930s, though, easily sell in the thousands now.
Demand is strong in this area of costume jewelry collecting, especially from Asian buyers, so values are on the way up. Keep that in mind as you contemplate a purchase since the nicest pieces don’t stay on the market for long now when priced to sell.
PAMELA WIGGINS SIEGEL has been buying, selling and collecting costume jewelry for more than 30 years. She is the author of Warman’s Costume Jewelry and the co-founder of Costume Jewelry Collectors Int’l, an organization dedicated to hosting events and providing educational resources for collectors. Visit her online at www.chicantiques.com and www.cjci.co.
Cartier Tutti Frutti multi-gem bangle featuring carved rubies, emeralds and sapphires, pear-shaped diamonds, round diamonds and emeralds, platinum and gold, signed Cartier, $550,000.
Courtesy Christie’s
Mazer Fruit Salad brooch, c. 1940, $150-$250.
Trifari Fruit Salad Clip-mate “duette” brooch, 1930s, $450-$550.
Trifari Fruit Salad dress clips pair, 1930s, $350-$450.
Trifari Fruit Salad “Floraleaf” set, 1947, $450-$550.
Trifari Fruit Salad and mother-of-pearl earrings, early 1960s, $125-$225.
Images courtesy Jay B. Siegel
Trifari Jewelry Popular Again
Trifari (Alfred Philippe Trifari) jewelry is in demand again. A 1964 4 1/2-inch-high Trifari Firebird pin with a red gemstone eyes and green and blue stone plumes sold recently at Tarnova Auctions Inc. of Toronto, Canada, for $1,320. It was part of the “Firebirds Collection” and was featured in a Vogue magazine display in 1964. Trifari jewelry started as Trifari, Krussman & Fishel in the 1920s. Since about 1994 they have been part of the Monet jewelry group. Early jewelry was marked “Jewels by Trifari” or “TKF” until the 1940s, when the mark was changed to “Trifari.” Pieces made in the 1940s are desirable, and the demi-lunes, or crescent or half-moon shaped pieces, are among the most popular.
Photo: Taranova Auctions Inc.
Vintage Gifts Perfect This Year!
Dear Lee,
It is the time of year to consider what we want to get for friends and families as gifts for the holidays. But this year, it might be more challenging to buy items big and small. I have a friend who decided in the spring to update her living room furniture. She got two recliners right away. The couch and chairs didn’t arrive until mid-October. What do I see as the solution? Antiques stores, flea markets and auctions are filled with wonderful, stylish items that are available instantly or with a few weeks shipping time. This is making people discover something collectors knew already: Vintage and antique furniture, décor, jewelry and even clothes are often high-quality and unique, making them perfect gifts!
These gifts are more thoughtful because they can be bought with the loved one’s personality in mind. Does a dear aunt love costume jewelry? Look for vintage pins, necklaces and rings. Some popular vintage brands are Trifari, Hattie Carnegie, Coco Chanel, Eisenberg, Hobé, Miriam Haskell and Schiaparelli. Look at condition, materials, brand, design and rarity when shopping. Go to Kovels.com to see how to identify real pieces from fakes.
Do any of the children in your life love like cartoons? How about looking for toys from the 1960s and 1970s related to the popular cartoons of that era. Some popular cartoons that would stir nostalgia for adults are Scooby Doo Where Are You?, Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle, Donald Duck, and, of course, Mickey Mouse or Superman. These toys and games are durable and usually don’t need batteries or assembly—a gift itself during a holiday exchange.
One hot collectible this year makes a perfect gift—vinyl records. Select them for the artist or for the artwork on the album cover. Make sure they are in good, playable condition. The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Mamas & Papas, Allman Brothers and Peter Noone are all popular. Old gaming systems, especially Nintendo sets, are great gifts, but watch out! They might be pricey because they are so hot right now. Does the system work and include gaming cartridges?
And of course, you can’t get a better gift for the collector in your family (or yourself!) than our newest book, Kovels’ Antiques & Collectibles Price Guide 2022. The 2022 guide has a record 3,000 color pictures of items sold this year, more than 500 marks to help make dating and identification easier, and 12,500 expert reviewed prices of items sold during the past year. We also write about market trends and include new, hot collectible topics like baseball cards, robots, 1950s to 2000 Scandinavian furniture and early examples of photography. To order: $29.99 plus $4.95 shipping and handling, call 800-303-1996, or go to Kovels.com and select the “Shop Kovels” tab. What a great gift!
As we wind down another year at Kovels, we want to thank all our faithful readers and fellow collectors. Have a wonderful holiday season and here’s to an exciting and fun 2022!
Top 7 Antiques and Collectibles That Are Selling Now
“What’s “in” now?” a Kovels.com reader just asked. Kovels’ October “Top” list reports on 7 antiques and collectibles that are currently in demand and selling fast. Hint: Sleek and “modern” are in; clunky and “brown” are out.
1. Costume jewelry is the most popular item sold at shows. Vintage is more affordable than new, but pieces marked with makers’ names like Miriam Haskell, Hattie Carnegie and Trifari sell for more now than in the last 10 years. Modernist silver jewelry is hot, especially Mexican pieces by William Spratling and American pieces by Art Smith. Prices are in the thousands of dollars. Look for pearls, long chains, enamel bangle bracelets and anything with big colored stones, like large pins and cocktail rings. Good diamonds from the 1950s are down in price; good rubies are up.
2. Studio pottery. Twentieth-century American art pottery has been catching eyes and higher bids. Since the 1970s, art potteries like Rookwood and George Ohr got the most attention, but works by smaller, not-so-famous potteries are growing in popularity and getting good prices. Some late 20th-century studio potters: Beatrice Wood, Peter Voulkos, Otto and Gertrud Natzler, Edgar Littlefield, John Mason, Henry Varnum Poor, Antonio Prieto, Herbert Sanders, and Frans Wildenhain.
3. Vintage purses and scarves. The luxury secondhand market, a phenomenon that started only 10 years ago, is now a multi-billion dollar industry. Some pre-owned accessories are selling for more than new. Look for Judith Leiber, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermès, Coach, Vera and Gucci.
4. Fifties’ furniture, not “brown.” Today’s buyers are on the hunt for blond and light wood pieces from the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s – sofas, chairs, tables and desks with sleek design and clean lines. Oak and clunky is out. Anything marked Eames, Saarinen, Bertoia, Nelson, Wormley, Robsjohn-Gibbings, Finn Juhl, Herman Miller or Knoll is in demand, but unmarked and less expensive midcentury pieces are also wanted. Fast-selling accessories that complete “the look” include 1950s pole lamps, floor lamps and table lamps, metal wall hangings, and iconic plastic chairs.
5. Space memorabilia. Baby boomers were at an impressionable age for the early flights and moon landings and are snapping up items with historic value – pins and patches, photographs and magazine articles from early launches through the space shuttle flights, especially when signed. Toys, models, postal covers and artwork are also popular. Higher prices are paid for things that have actually flown in space and they go into orbit for items that have gone to the moon.
6. Hot Wheels vehicles. Hot Wheels have been hot since 1968, when they were introduced to compete with Matchbox cars made in England. Collectors favor and pay more for cars with “Redline” tires (tires with a red circle on the outside rim, used on vehicles until 1977). Cars in their original blister packages sell for hundreds of dollars and some have sold for over a thousand.
7. Banks, mechanical and “still.” They’re more than in. As major collections of mechanical banks are being sold, prices are high and going to established collectors. But less pricey tin banks are attracting new, younger collectors.
So if you’re looking for what’s hot, pass on your grandmother’s figurines and head for her vintage rings and brooches. Say no, thanks, to the mahogany corner cabinet but consider the midcentury modern desk. And don’t ignore the toys – they are also going up in value.
