Vintage Avon sterling silver rings



Introduction

Avon has come a long way since its beginnings in the 1880s. What started off as an innovative marketing idea by a travelling book seller is now a multinational company with offices in over a hundred countries. When most people think of Avon they probably think of cosmetics and perfumes but the product range is so much wider than that, and there is a huge market for vintage Avon collectibles such as Christmas decorations, dolls, figurines, plates and of course, jewellery.

avonspoonring

The Avon Treasured Heart spoon ring

Avon Treasured Heart sterling silver spoon rings

Avon began life in 1886 but didn’t branch out into jewellery until over 70 years later. The company is best known for its costume jewellery made from materials such as base metal, rhinestones and thermoset plastics. However, they did also produce a number of lines of sterling silver jewellery. One such is the “Treasured Heart” sterling silver spoon ring.

Spoon rings were a big fashion thing in the mid-1970s, which is when Avon issued its Treasured Heart ring. A lot of spoon rings were made from actual silver spoons (or forks), but the Treasured Heart ring was of course fashioned from scratch. As you can see from the photo above, the Treasured Heart spoon ring is stamped on the inside with the words “Avon” and “Sterling”, along with a copyright symbol. Avon Treasured Heart spoon rings were well made and substantial, weighing over 5 grams. Being open ended, they are adjustable by one or two ring sizes either way – in other words, they should fit any finger size from a 6 to a 9. They are becoming highly collectible and the price is going up all the time.

Avon Secret Key sterling silver rings

The Avon Secret Key sterling silver ring was another sterling silver ring produced by Avon in the mid-1970s (1976, to be exact). Like the Treasured Heart spoon ring, the Secret Key is open-ended and slightly adjustable. Again, it is stamped on the inside with “Avon”, “Sterling” and a copyright symbol, and weighs approx. 4.5 grams. This is a beautiful ring and if anything, even more collectible than the Treasured Heart ring – it can fetch high prices on auction sites.

Sterling silver Avon lily rings

Like the Treasured Heart and Secret Key rings, Avon lily rings also date from the 1970s. They are also adjustable and have the same markings on the inside (“Avon”, “Sterling” and a copyright symbol).

Avon RJ sterling silver rings

If you ever come across a ring that’s stamped on the inside with “Avon RJ”, then you may be interested to learn that the RJ stands for R.J. Graziano, an American designer who has been in the jewellery business since the mid-1970s. He made sterling silver rings for Avon from 1976 to 1980 or thereabouts – as well as the Avon RJ stamp, Graziano’s Avon rings are also stamped on the inside with “925” and a number which denotes the ring size. RJ silver rings made for Avon are characterised by their femininity and classic gemset designs, often with floral motifs.

© The Silver Snake 2016

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