WOOD JEWELRY

One way to survive hard times is with wit... a sense of humor and an appreciation for the absurd. The 1930' to the 1950's, Depression years followed by war years, brought about some of the wittiest and most absurd jewelry of the 20th century, and some of the most fun to wear. Wood jewelry was either assembled, as the wood beads mixed with plastic, glass and other materials, or carved and painted, as the figurals shown below. Fashioned by both jewelry companies and home crafters, the designs seem endless and the creativity amazing.

   HASKELL early Hess wooden floret beads and glass seed beads coil bracelet. View showing the woven coil cover construction of the bracelet.  Closer views of beads. View   View   #H22088

    HASKELL Hess early unsigned dress clip with wood florets and green glass beads, 3".   View   #H26700

   WOOD, straw, coral and aqua beads 2-1/2" dress clip, probably Czech. View  A similar brooch is in "Amazing Gems".   #Y19780  

     HASKELL wooden bead bells and stars pin in blue, red, green and natural colors, 3". Clips and pins in this series came in various colors and designs and this one is particularly lush and long. A Frank Hess for Miriam Haskell, it is unsigned as was typical for this era, circa 1940.   View   #H19700

    HASKELL early unsigned wooden beads pinecones pin, 3-1/2". Each pinecone is formed of graduated flat flower-shaped wood disks, capped by a black glass seed bead. A Frank Hess for Miriam Haskell, it is unsigned as was typical for this era, circa 1940.   View  View    #H19832

   HASKELL Hess unsigned wooden beads and florets pin, 3".  View   #H26587   

     WOOD beads multi-color and white wooden 3" dress clip with floret beads at the top, very Haskell in it's style, but it could also be Czech.   View  #H20853

  WOODEN multi-colored beads 3-1/2" dress clip with green wooden leaves.   View   #w21708   

HASKELL early unsigned multi-colored wooden beads pin circa 1940, 2-1/3". A Frank Hess for Miriam Haskell, it is unsigned as was typical for this era, circa 1940.  View  #W23389

      WOODEN beads and flowers bracelet, red, blue gold cream and green, 7 by 1-1/4", and matching dress clips, 1-1/3". The two blue stations on the bracelet are pressed with a floral design. Circa 1935, probably Czech.  View   View  #w22174

WOODEN Suzanne Brand Made in Czechoslovakia multi-colored wooden beads purse with zipper top, circa 1935, 8" by 5". See a similar purse in Moro's European Designer Jewelry on page 188 and in "A Passion for Purses" by Higgins & Blaser on page 232. .  #P25403   
WOODEN Haskell and Czech jewelry and purse.

  WOOD balls necklace made of bells in red, blue, green and yellow and wood bead clappers, circa 1935, 15" by 7/8", strung on string.   View   #w34362

     WOODEN and glass beads clip in red, yellow and blue, clip back marked "Made in USA', 2-1/3".   View   #w27739

  WOOD and glass beaded 3-3/8" by 1-1/2" pin.   View

  WOOD multi-colored bead 2" pin.  View   #w23805 

    HASKELL Hess wood red and brown beads with green glass seed bead tips and green wood and seed bead bow top dress clip, circa 1930s, 2".   View   #w27310

    HASKELL early unsigned wooden beads and leaves necklace, 15" by 2".   View    View   #H25068

    HASKELL Hess wood beads dress clip with green glass seed bead finials and green wooden leaves, circa 1930, wonderful colors, 2-1/8".  View   #w21534 

    CZECH natural wooden seed bead coil bracelet with multi-colored dyed wood bead ends in red, yellow, blue, orange, 8" by 1/2".   View   View    #w26608

     CZECH natural beads with multi-colored wood seed beads necklace in red, blue, green, circa 1930, 17". The three multi-colored beads are comprised of small wood beads woven over a red color larger center bead, really lovely.   View   View  #w26607

     CZECH wooden natural and stained multi-colored bead 8" bracelet circa 1930. Elements include flat flower-shaped disks, round beads and glass seed beads in lovely colors.  See a similar bracelet in Moro's European Designer Jewelry on page 187.     #w23804

  WOOD round acorn-shaped beads with colored caps and spacer beads 16" necklace .  #w22877

   WOODEN multi-colored acorns brooch, 4-1/4".  View   #w24293

  WOODEN green and brown acorns strung on a 14" gold tone chain.   #w21598

  WOODEN multi-colored olives and green leaves pin with olives in red, blue, yellow and brown, 3-5/8". One tiny black glass seed bead is missing from the bottom of one yellow olive.  View   #w25375

WOOD bells bracelet with green plastic leaves strung on a celluloid chain, circa 1950, 8".    #W61409

WOOD red berries brooch with brown leaves, 2".  View   #w25404