Selecting a Jewelry Box to House Heirlooms

Every little girl loves to play with her mother's jewelry. They enjoy dressing up like their mothers and modeling their jewelry all over the house. Little do they know that one day the contents of this lovely jewelry box will one day belong to them. Many of these items are more than likely treasured family heirlooms, which will be kept in the family forever. They have been passed down from generation to generation and are kept safe in these decorative boxes.

Some storage units for these priceless pieces of jewelry can be even more lavish than their contents. They come in all shapes and sizes and can be as tall as five feet or as tiny as a few inches. The size of one's jewelry case strictly depends on how much jewelry needs to be housed. Jewelry stores and websites all over the country have these boxes for sale. They are extremely affordable and will keep your prized possessions safe from the world's elements. As long as you keep up with the yearly maintenance and cleaning of your jewelry, and store it properly, there is no reason you and your posterity will not enjoy these family heirlooms for years and years to come.

Trade it or Toss it

Women get emotionally attached to jewelry. You can tell who a woman is by the items in her jewelry box. Every few years, she needs to go through her collection of jewelry to see what to keep, what to repair, and what to let go of. You very likely have valuable pieces you don’t wear in your collection that can be traded in for items you will wear.

How do you determine if your jewelry has trade-in value?  Simple, consults a professional jeweler. We’ve all seen or heard of that cheap garage sale item being worth a lot of money at resale. You don’t want to make this mistake of letting something valuable go for pennies.

Every woman needs a jewelry wardrobe. Some women are lucky and have families that help them create a collection of pieces as they grow up. Some of us have to do that ourselves, but the great thing about that is not being stuck with family pieces that you don’t like.

The three factors to consider while deciding, whether to trade or toss your jewelry: material, design and vintage.  Some materials will always be worth money: gold, silver, pearls, etc. Some materials will only be valuable if they are in good shape. Again, your jeweler can advise you on this.  Design of jewelry may be a factor in trading it in-- even though it may be costume jewelry, a certain designer’s name or fashion era may create worth. Your jeweler may help to determine the worth of the piece.
Some vintage jewelry, even those pieces without a known designer or valuable materials, may be worth trading in. Your jeweler may also know other customers who collect certain pieces to help find a buyer.

So, consider things very carefully before you toss your old jewelry and consult with your jeweler to determine the value of your old, tired or just plain ugly hand me downs.