Monday, September 6, 2010

Anthropologie Lost and Found - The Vaguely Familiar

Anthro lost and found...

The inspiration for this post was induced by several of my own recent posts.  Lately I have discovered many long ago sold out Anthropologie items elsewhere.  I thought I would share a few of them with you.


Butterfly Cuff - Anthropologie name unknown 2008 - by Jessica Kagan Cushman
I am wearing it here.
You can purchase this bracelet for $170 from Max and Chloe here.




Mountain Laurel Necklace - by Lavish - Sold Out -  Anthro orig $158 - Jan 2009
I am wearing it here.
You can purchase one similar by Lavish for $169 here. 


Ephemera Necklace -  by DeJarnette - Sold Out - Anthro orig $128 - Jan 2009
You can purchase this necklace for $124 here.
Also an affordable single strand for $58 by DeJarnette here. 
Not worn in an OOTD yet.


Tree of Life Necklace -  by Nakamol - Sold Out - Anthro orig $68 - Oct 2008
I am wearing it here.
You can purchase this Necklace by Nakamol for $68 here.



 Other Worlds Kaleidoscope - by Sea Parrot (Oct 2009 Catalog pg 7) 
 Anthro orig $368, on sale $200 - March 2010 

These are collectors items hand crafted by a husband and wife team  in my home state.  Kennebunkport, Maine. I gifted this rare Anthropologie sale find to my Mother for Mother's Day.  A co-worker was so taken by the Kaleidoscope he immediately ordered one for his Mother direct from Sea Parrot. I couldn't find these beautifully crafted works of art anywhere on sale.  

You can purchase the same style known as Traditions here.


Bejeweled Bee Ring - by Kenneth Lane - Anthro orig $105, sale $70 - July 2009
I am wearing it here.
You can purchase the same ring for $120 from Macy's here.




Remember the Crackled Bluewings Cuff? March 2010 Catalog. Anthro orig $68, sale $40, Jun 2010.
Reviewers commented that the cuff was too heavy to wear.
When it went on sale, I ordered one, de-constructed it, and then reviewed it.
It immediately sold out.
Not worn in an OOTD yet.



It wasn't until recently that I realized the Cuff was designed by Nakamol.
When I visited her website, I found a ring that resembles the cuff design with one bloom.  No sign of the 3 bloom cuff.

You can purchase the ring for $18  here.

Review as GeoInCalifornia

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 Ladies! Break out the Wire Cutters!, Date: May 12, 2010 By GeoInCalifornia from Anthro Starved Bakersfield, CA

Aesthetic/design: 5 out of 5

Quality: 5 out of 5

Pros: gorgeous natural stone, nothing else until I got done with it
Cons: requires some wire snipping"As is, this bracelet deserves ONE STAR. But when I got through with it, I scored it a FIVE. I gave the FIVE STAR rating hoping to attract attention.

The Bracelet is much too BIG! EXTREMELY HEAVY! But very gorgeous. I have a 6" wrist and it fits perfectly. But there is no way I can wear this bracelet for more than a few minutes with the weight of all three blooms.

IF YOU want to make this work...prepare for extreme surgery. My friend and I have come up with a simple and quick method to salvage the bracelet. All you need are a pair of wire cutters. But once you snip you can't return, so be sure this is what you are prepared to do.

1. You are going to remove the side blooms and wear the bracelet with one bloom in the middle. Then you can make two necklaces out of the blooms. Keep one necklace for yourself, and give one as a gift.

2. Before you cut with the wire cutters, bend the bracelet back to the flat position it was shipped in. Make sure you cut only the fine wires that hold the stone blooms on the bracelet. The blooms themselves are wrapped together with heavier wire. Don't cut those. Make as many cuts as you need to pull off the two end Blooms from the base bracelet. This is easily done in just a few minutes.

4. Once you have removed the two end blooms, easily bend the bracelet to fit your wrist. The hardest part was hooking the Lobster Claw to the chain. The bracelet will have a tendency to roll because the bloom is so heavy. I pushed it up my arm and it stays very well.

5. You might need a pair of small needle nose pliers to unwrap the wire from the blooms that you cut off the bracelet. Find some cording, leather, or a chain and hang the extra bloom for a fabulous necklace.

It's too bad such extreme measures had to be used to produce a wearable result. I wonder who designed THIS TRAGIC but beautiful mess."

5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

Remember the recently Sold Out Lanai Welcome Necklace?



This is an Etsy Copy of the Lanai Welcome.
You can find the shop name to order this necklace and see me wearing it here.

Vaguely familiar current Anthro items...

Shell Spiral Ring - by Aprosio and Co. of Italy - Anthro orig $178, on sale $80 -  July 2009
Not worn in an OOTD yet.
This isn't one of my favorites.  I was surprised Anthro recently brought this piece back in a pair.

You can see the overpriced set of SNAIL SHELLS for $238  here.

Stone Garden Necklace - designer not indicated - Nakamol?
I am wearing it here.
Anthro orig $178 - Sold Out Dec 2009
This is obviously Nakamol.  Although my necklace does not have a designer tag.

There are so many of these on the Anthro site I probably missed a few.  They are beginning to look a like to me.  Which decreases their value and makes them not so special.

See more examples of Nakamol necklaces here,


See more examples of Lavish Jewelry here.

I could go on and on. But I think you see my point.  I used to believe once a beloved treasure was gone, it was gone.  Now I know that is not always the case.  These were just a few of my own examples.

Do you have a story about a lost treasure (doesn't have to be Anthro) that you missed, searched for, then found? Why did it get away?  I usually miss out because I am short of funds. Did you search or find it by accident. Did someone else find it for you? Are you still looking for it?

I am still looking for...

Sea Star Ring - July 2009
Anthro cancelled my order twice  - OUCH!

I would love to hear your story.  Please write me a comment or send me an email.  Include a photo of you with your prized treasure.

Or leave me a comment about anything at all.

I will post your Lost and Found story.

Laura (lauramartinsemail@yahoo.com

11 comments:

AnthroYogi said...

Thanks for the info, it is fun to see Anthro pieces other places. And I guess Anthro's prices are reasonable! I saw this necklace on the cover of Uncommon Goods catalog, and thought of you! It is a little different and twice the price, but same concept.

Tree of Life Necklace

Laura said...

Hi Katie,

Anthro prices are very reasonable, and if on sale the best around.

The Tree of Life has been popular for as long as I can remember. Clear back to the 70's.

There was swarm of bees over my house early this morning. I didn't let my cats out in the yard till later.

While I was rounding up the Kitties just now, I saw two huge Monarch's fluttering around in my backyard. They must have had 5 or 6" wing spans. The size of a bird.

I ordered the Lavender Dotty Cluster tights
and the Lass and Laddie's to go with the Babergh. I know, Yellow Shoes, I'm crazy huh!
I like to be different.

Laura

Lisa - respect the shoes said...

Aw, Laura, this an awesome post! The floral jewelry pieces are colorful and gorgeous - they all surely stand alone as beautiful and unique statement finds.

Laura said...

Hi Lisa,

It was just a bit of fun with Anthro jewelry. I love wearing the stuff.

Mandy said...

Wow Laura, what gorgeous jewelry you have in your collection! I never tire of seeing your pieces, especially when you do your OOTDs!

I'm especially loving what you did to the Crackled Bluewings Cuff to make it wearable! Too cool and very innovative! I think it looks much better after you performed "surgery"!

I wish I had a Lost and Found story to contribute, but I don't (yet)! And I hope you find your Sea Star Ring! It is adorable! :)

Laura said...

Mandy,

I fear the Sea Star is gone forever. But then you never know. I haven't checked in over a year. Maybe I will try again. Unfortunately I don't know the designer. And that is actually a real cultered pearl.

Katie said...

I am so happy you ordered the Lass and Laddie shoes. I think they are just adorable! I had on my yellowish sandals when I tried the dress on and I liked the colors. You already know I don't buy a lot of shoes, but the Lass and Laddie did make my wishlist. I doubt they'll make it to a sale, but I'm watching them! I am bummed free shipping is over, but it is probably for the best. It was just too easy to pull the trigger on things with no shipping!

Now I am waiting for the tights with the little foxes to make it to stores (supposedly Sept. 20) so I can see them in real life. Either they are going to be super cute or super 5-year-old looking. We shall see!

Jamie - Thrifty Threads said...

Laura, I am so very, very impressed by the surgery you performed. But I agree that your version of the Crackled Bluewings cuff looks MUCH better than the original. And that piece was a great price for Anthro jewelry.

And I love all of Sarahporns' pieces. The next jewelry purchase I make will definitely be from her store.

When I get stressed at work, I find that I tend to start shedding jewelry. All of it feels too heavy, even if the lightest things. During really hectic times, I'll end up with a pile of whatever bracelets and rings I wore that day. Necklaces and earrings always seem fine. One of my coworkers does exactly the same thing when she gets stressed.

BTW, I wore the Soliloquy Top in a recent OOTD. I just love it!

Marcela said...

Hi Laura! I saw a link to your blog on Anthroholic and I'm loving it! There is everything about Anthro in here, but no chaos at all!

About all the "stone" necklaces, I discovered something that can be useful. I was browsing some necklaces on Etsy and I saw necklaces very similar to the "Stone Garden Necklace". I think this is typical Thai jewelry. I found 3 people from Thailand who sell these necklaces on Etsy for 60-80 dollars. My "Stone Garden" was bought on Etsy. Here is the link: http://www.etsy.com/listing/61135987/multi-color-stone-flower-handmade.
I also bought this one: http://www.etsy.com/listing/50815098/multi-strand-crystals-with-14-turquoise

After buying many of these necklaces, I decided I could make them! I found the same stones on online bead stores/bead suppliers and now I have a lot of fun making them. I save my budget for clothes and shoes and I am thrilled to wear something that I made. The "Stone Garden" is more complicated, and I don't think that it's Nakamol, I think it's really from Etsy. The ones that have the flowers attached to the strands covered with crystals are not hard to make at all! I was able to make these for myself: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msuarez/sets/72157625270121000/with/4972735154/

More items that you will recognize, all from Etsy:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/42134161/one-of-a-kind-necklace

http://www.etsy.com/listing/38633123/one-of-a-kind-necklace

http://www.etsy.com/listing/61263216/white-shell-and-pearl-flower-necklace

I loved this three shops that I listed above!

Laura said...

Hello Marcela,

Wow you found one of my first posts. This is a fairly old one. Relatively speaking, as I haven't been blogging for very long.

I'm not too quick to agree that Anthro would purchase jewelry from Etsy. I highly doubt that is the case. Unless it happened to be a jewelry artist that was already becoming well known and perhaps used Etsy as a spring board for selling jewelry at one time.

Thank you so much for your links. I will check them all out. Although I already have an excellent source in my friends shop WahtVeritas on Etsy.

Regards, Laura

Marcela said...

I totally agree with you! The person who made my Stone Garden is Nareerat Tansuwansophon. You can find her jewelry on Novica website and in many other places. But she has a store on Etsy called Norah jewelry and it's much more affordable to buy directly from her. Certainly Anthro is not buying jewelry on Etsy, but famous artists as Nareerat have Etsy stores, so it's another way to find their jewelry (and save some money).

For some reason, the link I found to your blog brought me directly to this post. But all of them are really good!

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