Collecting Costume Jewelry 101 The Basics of Starting, Building and Upgrading

I have been collecting costume jewelry for over twelve years. My collection includes examples of beautiful jewelry from many different designers. It is a constantly growing and changing entity. For many years, I taught computer science to students ranging in age from pre-kindergarten to 8th grade. I regularly wore pieces from my collection to school, which never failed to attract the attention of my students. They loved to touch the jewelry and ask me to tell them when it was made, and why it was special. At the time, there were very few published materials available to help teach computer science to young children, so I frequently wrote my own lessons. My philosophy of education was that students learn in stages, so I wrote easy-to-follow step-by-step lessons. I also believed that students learn best in an environment where they are not afraid to try and possibly make a mistake. I have applied this same philosophy to the writing of this book. Included in this book is the information I believe a beginning collector must have to begin building a collection. I have also included tips on how to avoid mistakes and how to trade up lesser-valued pieces to obtain higher quality jewelry. My husband of 27 years understands my passion for collecting costume jewelry. He carefully searches for interesting antique stores on the east coast, and then he plans trips to these stores. He even volunteered to help me take the photographs for this book. We have two grown, much-loved children who live near our home in Delaware.Carroll, Julia C. is the author of 'Collecting Costume Jewelry 101 The Basics of Starting, Building and Upgrading', published 2004 under ISBN 9781574323801 and ISBN 1574323806.