YOU STILL HAVE TIME TO BID ON THESE SHERMANS ON EBAY

If you hurry, you still have time to bid on these Sherman pieces ending tonight on Ebay. Pictured at the top is a superb deep topaz Swarovski crystal glass bead set, all signed, consisting of 2-row necklace and matching earrings. Bidding starts at $125 and right now there are 12 people watching this one but no-one has yet opened the bidding. Of course, they're all either just other sellers waiting to see what happens ... I do that all the time LOL ... or they are actually buyers hoping to snare a lovely Sherman set at a low dollar by waiting till the last minute. Such fun!

The same vendor is offering the delightful Aurora Borealis, very traditional, glass crystal earrings above. Since she offers combined shipping, this is a good chance to get a couple of pieces for one shipping cost. Bidding has opened on this signed set at $24.95 and there are 9 watchers. Will it go any higher? Who knows! She also has another set of signed Sherman earrings on auction. These are the baguette style, 1" high clip-ons shown below in soft topaz. Bidding starts at $19.95. Several watchers just waiting to grab this set for $19.95. A good deal if they do!



So hurry up and save! With combined shipping thrown in, you're well ahead on adding some nice Shermans to your collection. Good luck!

SHOULD YOU BUY JUST A SHERMAN BROOCH or SHERMAN EARRINGS or a SHERMAN SET?

Recently a colleague of mine who buys, collects and sells Shermans like I do, was telling me about one of her customers who is hell-bent on investing in Sherman jewelry but is still rather new at it. She apparently knows what to look for in terms of color and condition, but because she loves to wear Sherman brooches and bracelets, she's been busy buying up just brooches or just bracelets.

Well while there's absolutely no reason a buyer shouldn't do that if that's what she likes to wear, if you are an investor in Sherman or plan to sell it down the way, you should ALWAYS be looking to acquire sets. A Sherman brooch with matching earrings will always be more valuable than just the brooch or earrings. If that brooch and earrings are also paired with a matching bracelet, as in the photo below from my site at SHERMAN JEWELRY SHOWCASE, or if you can find a set that includes a necklace with the brooch and earrings, or even better yet, a 4-piece set of brooch, earrings, bracelet and necklace, then you have found a super valuable Sherman parure and it's definitely worth buying because then it has become a true investment. Incidentally, this applies to all the famous vintage

designers: wherever you can, try to get sets by Schiaparelli, Shreiner, Weiss, Miriam Haskell, Kenneth J. Lane ... the list goes on.

Why are sets so much more valuable? After all, you might not like wearing clip-on earrings but you love necklaces or bracelets. Part of the reason, as is common with vintage jewelry, the sets have become separated over the years. People have sold off a bracelet to one person and the matching brooch to someone else. Bottom line then is 2, 3 and 4-piece sets are much harder to obtain, and as you know, the rarer something is, the greater its value. That's why my colleague has now counselled her eager buyer to look for sets where she can. She doesn't have to wear all the pieces at the same time if she doesn't want to; she just needs to have as many sets as she can get!

But here's something you can do (and it's kind of fun) if you have only piece of Sherman ie. a brooch or necklace. You can become a hunter! Attend estate auctions in your aread. Online, scour eBay, Ruby Lane, Trocadero, eCrater or Cyber Attic. Or simply just type Sherman jewelry or Sherman Jewellery into Google or Yahoo and see what you can find. If you're really lucky you might find earrings that are a perfect match for that brooch or necklace you love.

Is it impossible? Not at all. I have found wonderful matches that way and have been able to turn a 1 or 2-piece set into a valuable 3-piece parure like my Sherman fushia set of necklace, earrings and brooch shown below. Because of the color, fuschia, each of the pieces alone is valuable, but as a set, it's value is many times greater.