Brooches: A Must-Have Vintage Accessory

One accessory that I never leave home without is a brooch. Vintage brooches are often inexpensive, and fairly easy to find. I have been so lucky over the years to have been given nearly all of my brooches as gifts, or I have found them while thrifting.

I have been collecting brooches for several years, and I have amassed quite a collection. I love each one, and I love finding outfits to wear them with.

This is most of my collection. In the past I had been storing them in a jewelry box, but it was hard to find the ones I wanted to wear, and to be honest, I ran out of room. I have seen some other ladies display their brooch collection this way, so I went thrifting to see if I could find a frame and a cork board to put behind it. If you can believe it I actually found this frame with a cork board already attached to it!! All it needed was a fresh coat of paint and some material over the cork and it was ready to go!

I am now on the lookout for materials to make a second board because as you can see, I am out of space on this one already.

I decided to feature four of my favorite brooches and show you some outfit ideas to wear them with. This first brooch is one that my husband got me for my birthday a few years back.

I love it for so many reasons. First of all there is a kitty on it! Naturally, I was drawn to it because of this, but it is a pretty neat little piece on top of that. It features a gold kitty with an emerald green stone eye, sitting on top of a lucite fishbowl containing a goldfish. This is also a “signed” brooch with the stamp on the back that says Gold Crown. This is a fun one to pair with a day dress, or nearly any outfit really.

The next brooch is very special to me because it belonged to my grandma. She gave me her brooch collection about a year ago, and I treasure each one. This one in particular combines my love of vintage with my love of Halloween, so of course it made the favorites list!

I wear this brooch year round, whenever my Halloween heart needs a lift. Personally, I think it is a very elegant spider. It is also signed LA Sterling on the back.

Another favorite is this blue atomic starburst rhinestone brooch.

I found this one at a local thrift store and I couldn’t get it out of the display case fast enough. It’s so sparkly! I am a huge fan of anything atomic, and this brooch definitely fits.

I think it matches wonderfully with any outfit that has a hint of blue. I tend to wear this one with my more formal dresses because it adds that hint of sparkle!

The last brooch I chose is one of my cameos. I have always loved cameos. I think they are so beautiful.

This one is not a “real” cameo, as it’s not carved from a shell, but I love it all the same. It has a unique frame around it that is inlaid with small pearls.

You can’t go wrong with classic black and white.

If you are looking at starting your own brooch collection, a great place to start is the thrift store. There is usually a brooch or two in the jewelry display case, and they are usually a good price. Another good place to search is eBay. Often you can find a lot, containing several brooches for a fairly low price. Also, don’t forget to check at yard sales and estate sales. Dig through that bin of costume jewelry and you just might find some vintage treasure.

There are some great companies in the vintage community that sell novelty brooches such as Erstwilder and Match Accessories. I don’t currently have any in my collection, but it is definitely on my wish list!

I hope you’ve enjoyed my collection. I have sure enjoyed sharing it with you! Thanks for reading!