As most of you already know I also do bespoke antique jewellery searches, so when someone is looking for a special something I am able to help! Well, a few months ago I embarked on an antique cufflink-journey, as a lovely lady wanted to give her husband a pair of antique cufflinks for his birthday. The search went from continent to continent (literally, as I was in South Africa at one point where I came across some beautiful cufflinks!) and here is a selection of what I found:
A pair of gold antique cufflinks from Jewel Tree in Cape Town
My first stop was our fabulous Jewel Tree in Cape Town, where the owners showed me the most beautiful range of antique cufflinks…
Antique cufflinks at the Jewel Tree in Cape Town
A pair of exquisite gold cufflinks at Jewel Tree in Cape Town
Antique cufflinks and tie clip at Jewel Tree
After spending a loong time in the beautiful Jewel Tree I continued down Long Street – which by the way is the perfect street for antique shopping in Cape Town – and ended up at Atkinson’s Antiques. They also put on a fabulous selection of antique cufflinks for me:
A pair of antique gold cufflinks at Atkinson’s Antiques
These 10 carat gold cufflinks have most likely travelled all way from the US, and cost R2900 (approximately £165).
Antique Cufflinks with engraved Golf Clubs at Atkinson’s Antiques, Cape Town
There is of course alway the option of engraving a symbol of the gentleman’s favourite sport on the cufflinks!
Atkinson’s Antiques, Antique Cufflinks in Silver with Onyx with what we think is the letter “U” engraved
Our lovely lady was looking to engrave the cufflinks with her husband’s initials, which I thought was a wonderful idea – what a personal present! However, when speaking to an antique trader he advised against that since it brings down the value of the cufflinks once you want to sell them onwards, as finding someone with the same initials will be pretty difficult! I would however still go ahead and have them engraved because the though here wasn’t to buy them as an investment with the view to one day selling them. When you buy antiques it can be a good thing to keep in mind not to make changes to the pieces so that they retain their value – or you can just give your children names with the same initials as yours or your partner’s, so that passing any engraved pieces down in line will be easy pie!
A big thank you to:
Jewel Tree – 113 Long Street, 8001 Cape Town and to
Atkinson’s Antiques – 213/215 Long Street, 8001 Cape Town for letting us view your beautiful collection! Obviously if you see something you like send me a quick message here on email on info@decadesofelegance.com and I will put you in touch with the right people!
Decades of Elegance 