Dress Clips

So I recently discovered dress clips and went a little insane. An entirely new way to wear jewelry! An entirely new type of jewelry to shop for! This week I bought this vintage German dress clip with odd little spiky flowers that change from green to gold to violet as you move. It goes with almost everything I own. (If you want a dress clip exactly like this, check out GoAntiques.)

I got mine from the fantastic Etsy shop Dollherup, which has some of the strangest and coolest vintage jewelry I've ever seen. Oh, and they also sent me a second dress clip as a thank-you gift, a pretty gold-tone filigree piece. They are awesome. And they are having a 20% off sale on all vintage jewelry September 22-25!

Dress clips were most popular in the 20s and 30s, and could be used to gather up a loose dress for a tighter fit, but this is my favorite way to wear them. (This website has a nice summary of other ways to wear them.) I've been clipping mine onto v-neck sweaters and dresses. They seem to stay balanced better than a brooch, and they don't leave holes in your clothes. And there are so many different kinds of dress clips:

Carved bakelite clips in juicy colors. (1940s Red Bakelite Floral Clip, $26.50 from AriesgirlVintage; Vintage Butterscotch Bakelite Carved Pineapple Dress Clip, $35.00 from The Antique and Collectible Exchange; Pea Soup Green Carved Bakelite Dress Clip, $65.00 from Ecrater)

Ornate clips in pairs. I'm planning to get myself some of these and wear them pinned to the corners of a square-necked top. (Rhinestone Dress Clips, $2.00 from Katseclectics; Vintage Fur or Dress Clips Pair Art Deco, $6.50 from MyCreations4U; gorgeous Sterling and Rhinestone Dress Clips, $18 from Ohmymilky.)

Cameo clips. (Antique Cameo Dress Clip c.1900, $95 from Eric J. Phillips; Vintage Figural Silvertone Dress Clip, $4.50 from FarawayEyes; Vintage Victorian Dress Clip, $44 from Darling Harbor)

Sculptural dress clips. Some of these are so bizarre and wonderful -- moving windmills, chessmen, vases that hold real flowers. A little more normal but just as lovely: Cluster of Grapes Vintage Dress Clip, $16.50 from Ohmymilky; amazing Goldtone Dress Clip with a Bird, $18 from Hollywooddesign; Leaf and Berry Rhinestone Dress Clip, $18 from Ecrater)

And the classic Art Deco rhinestone numbers. (Vintage Dress Clip, $50; 1930s Dress Clip with Rhinestones, $65 from Ecrater; West Germany Signed Marcasite Dress Clip, $14 from SeeJayneKnit)

My plan is to start shopping in the $2.00 range and work my way up to the terribly expensive ones.