Tuesday, January 5, 2010

Coppola e Toppo

Deanna Farneti Cera's wonderful new book on the jewelry of Coppola e Toppo is a must read for anyone interested not just in vintage jewelry but vintage fashion. 

Coppola e Toppo jewelry was chosen by the haute couture houses of Schiaparelli, Jacques Fath, Molyneux, Robert Piquet, Pierre Balmain, Balenciaga and Christian Dior.   There are beautiful, simple photographs of the pieces and great archival photos from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.

This is one of my favorite images in the book.  Veruschka is wearing a Coppola e Toppo body ornament.  Photographed by Gian Paolo Barbieri for Italian Vogue, 1975.

The 'interior life' of a vintage dress is often extraordinary.  There can be boning, built in corsets or bras and little grosgrain ribbon belts to hold the waist and the line of the dress.  It was very interesting in reading Fashion Jewels Coppola e Toppo to discover that the jewelry was entirely embroidered.  It was even more interesting to read that Serge Matta, who was assistant to Elsa Schiaparelli and brother of the great surrealist painter, Roberto Matta, may have developed the technique of embroidering beads on a rigid metal plate for Coppola e Toppo.  You know how in real estate it is always location, location, location?  Well, in vintage it is the details, details, details.

In 1962 Coppola e Toppo started making belts with crystal beads for Emilio Pucci's classic silk dresses.

We are very fortunate to be able to offer some exceptional pieces from Coppola e Toppo.  Here is the first, more to come...


Late 1950s Coppola e Toppo Earrings

For more information about this item please email info@rarevintageinc.com or call (212) 581 7273

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