Bogoff Jewelry

The story of Bogoff Jewelry begins in Poland in 1908 when Henry Bogoff was born. At the age of 16 he emigrated to the United States looking to avoid persecution and improve his futures.

After marrying, Henry and his wife moved to Chicago toward the end of the 1920s. There they set up the Spear Novelty Company which produced buttons, belt trimmings and various other rhinestone accessories. It turned out that Spear’s novelty line would be very popular and by 1940 Henry founded Jewels by Bogoff specifically for costume jewelry.

Bogoff often travelled to high end jewelry stores looking for ideas. He would then translate those ideas into rhinestone so that they were affordable to more people. Bogoff’s rhinestones were very high quality and set in rhodium or silver tones. The pieces were made in fairly limited quantity so as to be more collectible.

The entire production process focused on refinement and detail. The jewelry was cast in molds and polished lovingly by hand. Every rhinestone was also placed by hand with glue, and Bogoff guaranteed his workmanship for life.

Henry’s wife Yvette played an important role in the company’s success by heading up sales. Her efforts resulted in having showrooms not only in Chicago but Los Angeles and New York City. Jewels by Bogoff employed 200 people.

Henry died unexpectedly in 1958. Yvette endeavored to keep Bogoff Jewelry going, but the world and consumer demands were changing. She was only able to keep the offices opened for a few more years before having to stop production.

Bogoff Marks:

Besides having high-quality clear and colored rhinestones, false pears, and silver and gold plated metal, watch for “Jewels of Bogoff” or just “Bogoff” when you’re shopping for Bogoff Vintage Jewelry. Bogoff did not copyright any of his pieces.

Bogoff vintage jewelry usually fetches a pretty good price. In particular necklaces and bracelets (with leaf designs), earrings and pins are all highly sought after by collectors, having been made in small runs. As with any vintage jewelry, check the piece for problems that may detract from its value. In particular, worn spots in the plating or missing rhinestones seriously hamper Bogoff pieces since these were “signature” style markings.

Here are the current listings on eBay:

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