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antiques, chinese, tian-tsui - February 05, 2020

Inside a Tian-Tsui Trunkshow

Tian-tsui is a lost technique. It's magnificent blue Chinese silver jewelry - the color is derived from a kingfisher feather overlay. Feathers were meticulously cut and glued onto the metal to give it an iridescent blue sheen. Shashi imported a lot of jewelry before he started designing - he sold it wholesale at trade shows but some of it remains in his warehouse. Our collection of tian-tsui (and most of our Chinese antiques) was originally imported from Beijing - much of it purchased from the Beijing jewelry company - a very large exporter of antique jewelry in those days. A mere six or seven small boxes of these pieces remains in...

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antiques, chinese, museletter, new items, sale - December 03, 2019

The Museletter: November 2019

Please pass the savings - black friday sale. Staff favorites like chinese antiques. Holiday gift ideas by budget: under $50, $50-$75, $75-$100, $100-$150, $150-$250, $250-$500, $500-$1000 and Over $1000

Laurel Burch Jewelry: The Early Years

The late, great Laurel Burch was an artist turned entrepreneur. Most prominently known for her jewelry designs, colorful cats, horses, and animals and beautiful fabrics. Shashi and Laurel met in the early 1970s - in San Francisco - and struck both a romantic and business partnership. Together they founded Laurel Inc. - manufacturing Laurels designs as a 50/50 joint venture. The Laurel Inc. / Laurel San Francisco designs represent the first examples of Laurels commercial work, as such they are highly collectable. The fledgling company first attempted manufacturing directly in San Francisco. They trained hippies and assorted counter-culture types to do jewelry production, but...