Costume Jewelry Brooch Repair Question
Good morning, I'm back with another question. I have this brooch with a broken clasp, missing the long pin. It is unsigned, is it worth the trouble of fixing the clasp? And if yes, how does one go about doing this?
8 comments
tobaccocardyahoo
·1 year agoI usually apply the same standard to every type of merchandise.
Is it worth repairing, and will including the repair in the detailed condition statement for the item improve its chances of selling, and the price it brings.
The answer is almost always NO if I am selling on Ebay.
If you are convinced the design has value, price it with the defect and see if it will sell.
I rarely repair anything, other than what my wife tells me to, and she no longer is involved in our online sales.
Prices on ordinary things have dropped so much in the past 15 years that there is no noticeable loss.
evelyb30
·1 year agoIf all else fails, I'd glue the clasp shut and thread a jump ring or eye pin through there and make a bail. Instant pendant.
saintsantiques
OP1 year agoGreat idea!! Thanks!
idealgems1
·1 year agoPinstem is easy. We used to charge $10 for a non-dealer retail customer when our store was open before we retired in 2020.
saintsantiques
OP1 year agoIt's just missing the pin, has the rollover catch & hinge. I'll probably just throw it in a repair jewelry lot, the rhinestones are not a pretty color anyway, the "black diamond" gray. If it was recognizable and a good designer it might be different. Thanks everyone for the help again!
idealgems1
·1 year agoIt's really hard to tell from your photos whether it is just missing the pinstem or is missing the hinge and maybe even the catch too.
We used to do repairs like this every day. I will concur with @1940fc that it may not be economically worth it (for resale purposes) if it needs more than just a pinstem. You can also fit a one-piece stem, hinge, and catch piece with a bar (that a collector or purist will recognize as non-original) pretty inexpensively. They can be soft soldered, cemented, or sometimes welded on, and function well.
Most of the time we did repairs on a piece like this because it had sentimental value to an end user customer...or went with a particular outfit or something. We did lots of rush repairs on stuff like this the afternoon of a local prom night!!!
saintsantiques
OP1 year agoLOL! I just noticed the dog hair in my hasty photos!
1940fc
·1 year agoHmmmmm..I don`t see it as a top drawer piece. I would think a pin catch would have to be soldered back on (kinda hard to see with the metal reflection). I`m not sure it would be worth the effort.
You could sell as is for a repair piece or a harvest piece or you could harvest the stones yourself for fixing another piece down the road. Many years ago..that`s what I would do.
But as always..wait for others... in case it IS a somebody piece 🤗