IT MAY BE "ARTISTIC" BUT IS IT REALLY A SHERMAN?

The heading on a recently ended eBay auction for the lovely set shown above read as follows:

DAZZLING HUGE GREEN SHERMAN ARTISTIC NECKLACE EARRINGS

With the word "Sherman" in the title, of course I took a look as I'm sure so did many others. The seller used words like "breathtaking", "fabulous", "unique" to describe the set, and certainly, it's very lovely. But it had only one bid and sold for $65. Why?

My guess is that those who know, buy, collect and sell Sherman doubted it was a Sherman, despite that headline. Even more, they doubted what the seller said about this piece:

I HAVE HEARD A RUMOUR THAT THE "ARTISTIC" COMPANY WAS ANOTHER COMPANY THAT GUSTAV SHERMAN STARTED

THE QUALITY OF THIS SET IS JUST AS GOOD AS SHERMAN

Well maybe the quality is as good as Sherman, but I, for one, have never heard that rumour. Have any of my readers? I've gone through all the vintage jewelry books on my shelf, including Valerie Hammond's "All that Glitters" and the latest "Sherman Jewellery: the Masterpiece Collection" by Sandra Caldwell and Evelyn Yallen and can find no reference to a company called "Artistic" or even an allusion to Sherman having started another company under that name. Can anyone shed any light on this? I wonder who started such a rumor?

My point is this: from the viewpoint of someone who's new to Sherman, how easy is it for them to fall victim to this kind of advertising? If it's not a Sherman, and I don't think it is, what of the buyer who's congratulating herself on snagging a gorgeous "Sherman" for such a low price? She then happily wears it believing it's a valuable Sherman and then one day decides to sell it herself and tells everyone interested it's a Sherman, unless someone clues her in first.

This kind of thing happens all the time, especially on eBay. The most abused is the Juliana line by DeLizza & Elster. Because no Julianas were signed, sellers are taking many lovely unsigned pieces, advertising and selling them as "Juliana". Again, it all comes back to the buyer needing to educate him or herself about vintage designer jewelry: learning what to look for, what makes one piece a Sherman, another a Juliana, another a Haskell, and another an "Artistic".

Most likely, there is a company called "Artistic" somewhere out there but where and when did they produce and where can one find more pieces by them? If any of you know, please leave a comment on this blog. In the meantime, if you're buying Sherman, even if it's artistic and likened to Sherman, don't assume it is a Sherman. Buy it because you like it. Buy it as a example of lovely vintage jewelry. But while it may be artistic, is it a Sherman?

You know where you can be sure you're getting authentic Sherman Jewellery? From SHERMAN JEWELLERY SHOWCASE and OUR SHOP AT RUBY LANE. It's artistic all right but more importantly, it really is SHERMAN!

WHEN BUYING SHERMAN JEWELRY, BE AWARE & BEWARE

Today's post has been prompted by a story one of my colleagues has just shared with me. She's pretty upset and rightfully so.

She won an auction for a Sherman demi on eBay for which she paid $180 USD. The demi was a pretty fuschia colored brooch and earring set. Now, I don't know about you, but for $180 US, I'd be expecting a set in top condition.

Well the set arrived, and to her horror, there was a large, noticeable chip in one of the earrings. Now we're not talking about a "flea-bite" i.e. a chip so small you need a magnifying glass or a loupe to see it. No, this one was big, visible to the naked eye.

Furthermore, the wear to the backs of the earrings was considerable, down to bare metal with verdigris yet. What makes this so bad is not just the fact that she had paid so much for this set but that the seller had described it as in 'MINT' condition! Okay, let's consider what "mint condition" means. To me, it means no signs of wear, as if it's been boxed and unworn since the day it was purchased. Now let's get real here: how often do you come across "mint" vintage jewelry? It's very hard to find. After all, most of these lovely pieces are pre-loved and most likely, often worn. So they simply cannot be "mint".

In my humble opinion, as a seller, the onus is on us to be as honest as we can be. Yes, things can slip by us, but if we're selling Sherman or any other vintage rhinestone jewelry, we need to be looking at the stones through strong loops, testing the stones to see if they are sitting securely in the prongs, looking at each stone for any sign of clouding, milkiness, dulling. All of these detract from the value of the piece and we owe it to our buyers to be honest about the condition of the jewelry we sell.

I have several loyal customers, one of which buys a lot of my Shermans. She recently purchased the wide bracelet shown below:

Now when I received this bracelet from a seller, and I paid a lot for it, I was terribly disappointed in its condition: she had gone on and on about how beautiful it was, how un-marked, how the stones glittered and how little she had worn it. I couldn't wait to see it. As soon as it arrived, I got out my loupe and saw far more wear to the aurora borealis than should have been there if she'd only worn it a few times as she stated. Some of the prongs were loose. We tightened them. It did indeed glitter beautifully despite that and thankfully, there were no cloudy stones. But in my heart I knew I couldn't ask what I would have for a bracelet like this.

So in my description I fully disclosed the details of its condition and hoped someone would want it regardless. I set the price at a very reasonable dollar taking its condition into account. My loyal buyer bought it almost as soon as I listed it. Her reason? She told me one reason she buys so much from me is that she knows my descriptions are honest. I don't say something's "mint" when it's only good. She trusted my assessment on this one completely.

When she finally got it, she wrote to say how ecstatic she was with her purchase and yes, she could see what I'd found fault with, but to her it was still worth what she paid and more. Now that's what a seller wants to hear and what a customer deserves: our honesty and full disclosure of any issues we're aware of so the customer can make an informed decision before buying.

So the message in all this for buyers is this: be aware and beware. Ask questions, especially if you're new to buying Sherman and if you are buying on eBay. There are a lot of honest sellers on eBay and we all know there are the others. So read descriptions carefully. Check the return and refund policies. And don't think that eBay is the only place to get a bargain on Sherman jewelry. Quite honestly, some of the Shermans available from our SHOP AT RUBY LANE and at our Sherman only site at SHERMAN JEWELLERY SHOWCASE (Canadian dollars) are better than you can get on eBay. So shop around! There are lots of good honest sellers out there and when you find one, stick with them. Bookmark their site or their shop. Subscribe to their mailing list so you can be on top of new additions or sales. You can subscribe to our mailing list at Ruby Lane via THIS LINK. (You need to be registered to subscribe).

As for my colleague who prompted this blog, she did manage to get a refund after many heated emails and lots of frustration. The seller accused her of chipping the earring! My colleague asked if she was also responsible for the dirt and wear to the earrings in the short time she'd had them? She had to provide photos to prove her point and get her refund. None of that would have been necessary if the seller had been knowledgeable, caring and above all, honest.

Do you have a horror story to share about something you've purchased? Why not tell us about it in a comment on this post?