Moss agate doesn’t really contain any moss (or any other ancient plant matter) in it. Rather, the stone’s chemical components—compressed under pressure, with heat, over time—give the impression that fluffy bits of organic material have been trapped within the stone. And, sometimes, little landscapes can be imagined within the randomly abstract compositions. The cufflinks above […]
In the late Nineteenth Century, Western artists and designers became fascinated with “The Orient”—both the Near and Far East, which were increasingly opening-up to Europeans. Western artists looked to Asian design for inspiration and, after re-interpreting the look through European eyes, produced “Orientalist” designs: paintings, ceramics, sculpture jewelry, and fashion. Impressionist artists painted in […]
Also just-in, a pair of especially lustrous mother-of-pearl cufflinks. They’re bordered with 10 karat white gold fronts and finished with nicely gold-plated backs. White mother-of-pearl is a classic shirt button material, and, thus, a classic cufflink component. This pair just happens to be a little extra-nice. Please come into the shop to see the full […]
Shown above, another pair from our collection of newly-acquired vintage cufflinks—these crafted of polished carnelian cabochons. Carnelian is a hard, semi-precious stone found in Brazil, India, Siberia, and Germany. Its rich, red color is due to the stone’s high Iron Oxide content. Carnelian has been mined for some 5,000 years and can be found as […]
I’ve recently purchased a cache of handsome cufflinks from a Fort Worth collector. Over the next few days, I’ll share some of them with you. Please come into the shop if you’d like to see the full assortment. Shown above, a pair of Art Deco beauties, enameled in bold black and robin’s egg blue. A […]
As we wrap-up our look at Autumn wedding parties, let’s turn our attention to the man who is sometimes overlooked during the nuptial planning frenzy: the father-of-the-groom. While traditional wedding practices usually highlight the mother-of-the-bride (and, often the bride’s father), the groom’s dad is often left out of the spotlight. Yet—quite possibly—there is no prouder man […]
In recent days, I’ve written about the up-coming Autumn wedding season—vintage glassware (a popular wedding gift) and cufflinks (a nice gift for the groom). Here’s another thought: how about some handsome cufflinks for the groomsmen? The pair of cufflinks shown above were made in the 1930’s—during the Art Deco period—and are fashioned of nicely-beveled black […]
While we’re talking about autumn weddings, how about something for the groom(s)? A beautiful and classic dress set would make a nice gift for the husband-to-be. The set above, made in the 1930’s, is crafted of black mother-of-pearl mounted into octagonal, shield-form settings. The set can be worn complete (for black tie) or just as […]
From our earliest days, we’ve been mesmerized by the sapphire—birthstone for the month of September. It is amongst the hardest of gemstones and amongst the most-expensive, as well. And, some might argue, sapphires are the most beautiful. Sapphires belong to the corundum family which includes rubies. In fact, sapphires and rubies are often found in […]
Perish the thought: Christmas is four months away! Here at LEO Design, we’re well-into our pre-Holiday planning: writing orders, scheduling staff, booking buying trips. The season will be here before we know it. The cufflinks above—enameled in a pattern of woven red and green ribbons—are rather “Christmassy”, don’t you think? But, rest assured, they are […]
It’s July and the month’s birthstone is the ruby. Alas, I am clean-out of rubies—though I did manage to find this handsome pair of ruby enameled cufflinks from the Art Deco period. The said ruby enameling lies over radiant guilloché work and the whole lot is set into gold-plated mountings. Not rubies, fair enough, […]
Another interesting pair of cufflinks, new to the shop: sterling silver Vietnamese dragons snarling—ready to strike—from their positions, coiled upon your wrists. Probably from the 1920’s or 1930’s, these cufflinks are unlike any I’ve ever found. Please click on the photo to learn more about them. More cufflinks tomorrow.
And yet another beautiful and unusual offering from our newly-acquired collection of vintage cufflinks. Bold American Art Deco, fashioned in sterling silver, with pistachio and amber enameling over a graphic guilloché pattern. It doesn’t get more Art Deco than this! Please click on the photo to learn more about this particular pair, visit our on-line […]
Another example from our new collection of beautiful, vintage cufflinks. This pair is enameled in a refreshing, Mediterranean blue over a swirling, radiant guilloché pattern. Please click on the photo to learn more about them—or visit the shop to see our large collection of beautiful cufflinks. More cufflinks in days to come.
I’ve just bought a number on nice, new cufflinks—just in time for wedding season. Perhaps a gift for the groom to wear on his special day? Or a gift from the groom to his groomsmen? This pair has robin’s egg blue enameling over a radiant guilloché design, set into nicely-finished, gold-plated mountings. Please come into […]
The month of June is endowed with three birthstones: Pearls, Alexandrite, and Moonstone. And while pearls are not true “stones,” for millennia they have been valued for their rarity, costliness, and mysterious beauty. Pearls are the “build-up” of calcium carbonate, produced by fresh- and saltwater mollusks, when a small foreign object enters (and irritates) the […]
We finish our exhibition of newly-acquired cufflinks with a simple, elegant, and classic mother-of-pearl pair. A little “seed pearl” sits atop its lustrous bed, and the backings are nicely gold-plated. Please come into the shop and see the rest of the new collection—most of which we do not have on-line. Or, click on the photo […]
More from our collection of newly-acquired cufflinks: a sterling silver pair, possibly English, decorated with an impressed, coffered grid design. Please come into the shop to see them—and the rest of our new cufflinks—or click on the photo to learn more about this pair. More cufflinks tomorrow.
These cufflinks, made in the early Twentieth Century, are made of cut, sapphire blue crystal and are set into pierced sterling silver mountings. They are also “convertible” which means one can remove the “heads” from the center link and use the four separate pieces as shirt buttons (like studs). These are part of our new […]
The Scots are understandably proud of their native stones and use them liberally in their jewelry, crafts and other decorative objets. The pair of cufflinks, pictured above, are part of our newest delivery of handsome, vintage cufflinks. Made in Edwardian Scotland (c. 1905), these cufflinks proudly showcase the simple yet handsome stone—with its ancient and […]
Our newest cufflink shipment, now in store, includes this pair of American Arts & Crafts hammered sterling ovals. Decorated with a crisp Greek Key border, their hand-hammered silver centers gleam with a softly-diffused reflection. These are part of a larger offering of hammered silver Arts & Crafts cufflinks. Please come into the store or peruse […]
We continue our introduction of newly-acquired cufflinks; now showing a pair of English mid-century turquoise set in sterling silver. The black veining provides a handsome contrast against the saturated, otherworldly blue stones. Please come into the shop to see the full range of cufflinks—including the new shipment—or click on the photo above to learn more […]
On this day in 1905, Las Vegas was officially founded as a city. But its history began long before this date. In pre-historic times, what we now call Las Vegas (Spanish for “The Meadows”) was a verdant marshland, replete with vegetation and animal life (including mammoths, whose remains were found in the 1990’s). In time, […]
Here is another offering from our recent acquisition of handsome cufflinks, now in-store. The pair above was made at the turn of the Twentieth Century by Marius Hammer in Bergen, Norway. Mr. Hammer made jewelry for both women and men as well as decorated boxes, spoons, and other personal accessories (like card holders, thimbles, and […]
A new collection of cufflinks has just flown-in, including these sterling silver owls with gemstone eyes. Although this pair is not old—which the rest of my cufflink assortment is—I could not resist buying them! Come into the shop to see them or call to find-out more about them. You may also click on the photo […]
On this day in 1320, fifty-one Scotsmen signed The Declaration of Arbroath—a letter to Pope John XXII declaring Scottish independence and their intention to use military force, if necessary, to protect Scotland from invasion. Nearly seven hundred years later, 6 April has been declared Tartan Day in Canada and the United States—a day to celebrate […]
The Massachusetts Bay Colony, established by the Massachusetts Bay Company, was settled in the area surrounding (and between) present day Boston and Salem. The Company was strictly Puritan, and there was no separation of Church and Company, let alone Church and State. Most of the 20,000-or-so settlers were immigrants from England and their crossing […]
Saint Pádraig, the patron saint of Ireland, was from a Roman-era British family, born in 385 AD. His father was a deacon and his grandfather a priest. At sixteen, Patrick was kidnapped and shipped as a slave to Ireland. In a dream, he recounts, God instructed him to escape and head for the coast where […]
The week began with piles of snow and more is forecast for this weekend. Am I alone or is anyone else asking: Can Spring be Far Off? The cufflinks, pictured above, give me a little hope with their promise of spring. Verdant green enameling—not a new spring green, but not a mature, summer green, either—tops the […]
More recent acquisitions include the Emerald Green Enameled Art Deco cufflinks, shown above. See these and all of our newest arrivals—cufflinks, pottery, desk accessories, picture frames, candlesticks, and more—in-store or click on the photo above to learn more about this pair.
While “on expedition” in the UK, I came across these British Boy Scouts cufflinks, enameled in yellow, green, and black. They are part of a large collection of new cufflinks now in-store. Come into the shop to see them (and my latest shipment of new goods), or check-out the on-line shop. I am adding new […]
Another pair of cufflinks, just purchased in England. From the British Royal Navy, these cufflinks would look equally good with dress whites or jeans and an oxford. See these—and a lot more newly-acquired merchandise—in the shop or click on the photo above to learn more about this particular pair.
Let’s continue our parade of new merchandise, lately-acquired in England and here in the States. Shown above, a pair of sterling silver, American Art Deco, white-enameled cufflinks. They provide crisp punctuation to a sleeve of any color. Click on the photo above to learn more about them, or pop-into the shop to see them in […]
And another pair of newly-acquired cufflinks—English Art Deco circa 1930. This example is just one pair of a large collection (numbering several dozen) that I assembled on my most recent buying trip. In the days to come, I’ll show you more of our newest cufflinks and other items, all now on-view in the shop. Some […]
More cufflinks from a recent buying trip. These are 10 karat gold, in the form of a stylized cross, edged with navy enameling, and finished with radiant machine-turning. See the full collection of new arrivals in-shop or a selection of them in the on-line store. More cufflinks—and many other recent acquisitions—to come in the following […]
Now back from England, I’m hurriedly processing a mountain of in-bound merchandise—cleaning, pricing, arranging, photographing, and posting to the LEO Design on-line shop. Over the next couple of weeks I’ll share with you some of our new arrivals, as they’re ready for sale. As quickly as possible, I’ll also post them to the on-line shop. […]
Another favorite of mine—especially “whilst” in England—is cufflinks. There are several collectors from whom I purchase them. One pair just-acquired, shown above, are English Art Deco with a black-enameled graphic atop a background of enameled faux tortoiseshell. These cufflinks—and many more pairs—should be in the on-line shop by Thanksgiving. More in days to come.
When Americans think of the Repp Stripe, they think of the classic Ivy League necktie with colorful, diagonal banding. But the history of the Repp Stripe goes far beyond neckties. In the British Isles—where group association is flaunted through heraldry and tartan plaids—Repp Stripes signify one’s membership in a specific group: a military regiment, a […]
The triskelion shown on the enameled cufflinks (above), are the ancient symbol of the Isle of Man, an island in the Irish Sea, halfway between Ireland and England. Settled some 6500 years BC, it has been invaded, conquered, and influenced by many. It retains, nevertheless, a rugged, independent—and perhaps defiant—individuality. Myth abounds on the island. […]
With the crisp fall weather, so comes the popular autumnal wedding season. Whether black tie or less formal, cufflinks provide just the right punctuation in a handsome groom’s ensemble. Many a bride-to-be has purchased from us a nice dress set for her fiancé to wear on their special day. Similarly, many future grooms have purchased […]
Amber is the ancient, fossilized resin of pine trees. 80% of it is found in Northern Europe, along the Baltic Sea—that large body of water surrounding (and beneath) the Scandanavian countries. Scientists believe it was produced some 44 million years ago. Because the resin was originally soft and sticky, amber pieces sometimes display “inclusions” of […]
In the decorative arts, the French term Guilloché (pronounced: Ghee-o-shay) refers to the technique of engraving very precise, very intricate, repetitive patterns, usually on metal. When produced using a “Turning Machine,” such mechanically produced guilloché work can achieve much finer, much more accurate, and much more closely spaced lines. Often such guilloché work is enameled-over, […]
On this day 1882, under a tent in Moscow (next to the construction site of The Cathedral of Christ the Savior), Russian composer-genius Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky premiered his masterpiece The Year 1812—more popularly known as the 1812 Overture. It had been commissioned by Tsar Alexander II to commemorate Russia’s brave defense of the motherland (and […]
Craftsmen and artisans have been hand-hammering metals for thousands of years, working them into shapes both useful and beautiful. Decorative metalwork reached its zenith of precision during the Renaissance through the Age of Enlightenment (18th century). During this period, delicacy and refinement were en vogue. A piece was considered finer if it had no sign […]
