Gemstone Fruit Salad 1930s Clip-Mates by Trifari
USD$795.00
Additional information
| Maker | Trifari |
|---|---|
| Size | 2 1/4" x 1 5/8" |
| Condition | Excellent |
| Date | 1936-1937 (based on mark and issue of first fruit salad series, per Brunialti) |
| Marks | "CLIP-MATES" and "KTF" (barely visible on one clip back) |
| Reference | Utility patent # 2,050,804 (for brooch mechanism) issued to Alfred Philippe in 1936 |
This Trifari fruit salad piece was designed by Alfred Philippe. It features the company’s popular trio of acorn-shaped, molded glass to imitate carved gemstones (rubies, sapphires, and emeralds). This design is one example of Trifari’s Clip-Mates, their answer to Coro’s Duette. This piece can be worn as a brooch or as separate dress clips. The influence of Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels on Philippe is evident in the fruit salad lines he designed for Trifari in the mid-1930s and early 1940s. The setting of this special early piece is rhodium-plated metal with diamanté accents. The pin closes with a roll-over safety clasp. You can see the utility patent for the brooch mechanism here, shown below Trifari’s name. Scroll down to see a fruit salad bar brooch, also by this maker but with stones in a different shape.
In stock
Coordinating Pieces
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QuickviewGemstone Fruit Salad Art Deco Bar Brooch by Trifari
Vintage Brooches & Pins, 1940s Jewelry, Trifari JewelryUSD$250.00
QuickviewGemstone Fruit Salad Art Deco Bar Brooch by Trifari
Vintage Brooches & Pins, 1940s Jewelry, Trifari JewelryUSD$250.00This 1930s bar brooch features a line of teardrop-shaped ruby, emerald, and sapphire-glass stones topped with and surrounded by diamanté. The molded glass was used by costume jewelry makers to imitate the Indian-carved gemstones – known as fruit salads or tutti frutti – which were so popular in the Art Deco era. Trifari made their first fruit salad pieces in the late-1930s, typically using acorn-shaped stones. This piece has the popular trio of colors but in a different shape with an added gem: the company called cabochons with a diamanté center shoe-buttons. The design of this rhodium-plated setting is similar to pieces from the company’s Ming series in the 1930s. The pin closes with a roll-over safety clasp. This brooch goes with just about everything! Scroll down to see an early Trifari fruit salad double-clip brooch (Clip-Mates) in the same colors.