Mid-Century Openwork Floral Earrings with Green Rhinestones
Description
Pair of gold-tone openwork floral earrings featuring looping wire petals centered with green rhinestones and accented by smaller matching stones, mounted on clip-back fittings.
Item Type
Ear Clips - Pair
Made/Created
Date made
circa 1945 - circa 1958
Notes
Dating is supported by openwork atomic-era floral styling, early clip-back construction, and the use of colored rhinestones popular in post–World War II costume jewelry.
Jewelry Details
Gemstones
Notes
Method of Manufacture
Machine-formed wire framework shaped into looping floral petals
Soldered assembly onto central backing plate
Mass-produced costume jewelry construction with hand-set stones
Electroplated gold-tone finish applied after assembly
Setting & Construction
Central rhinestone mounted in a raised cup setting
Smaller stones secured in closed-back settings (adhesive-set rather than pronged)
Openwork petal design created from rounded metal wire loops
Hinged clip-back findings with tension spring mechanism
Materials
Gold-tone plated base metal (likely brass alloy)
Green faceted glass rhinestones (emerald-tone)
Metal clip fittings with plated finish
Technical Dating Indicators
Lightweight wire-loop floral motif associated with late 1940s optimism and decorative experimentation
Clip earrings replacing earlier screw-back dominance
Atomic-age organic abstraction blending floral and geometric design
Absence of maker’s mark typical of department-store costume jewelry
Ethnography
Notes
These earrings reflect mid-century fashion’s fascination with stylized nature motifs interpreted through modern industrial design. After WWII, jewelry designers increasingly combined traditional floral symbolism with abstracted forms influenced by modernism and atomic-age aesthetics.
Green rhinestones were particularly fashionable during the late 1940s and early 1950s, complementing popular clothing colors such as chartreuse, jade, and emerald tones seen in postwar textiles.
Clip earrings indicate social norms prior to widespread ear piercing, when women commonly selected interchangeable costume jewelry to coordinate with seasonal wardrobes. Pieces like these were worn for:
Daywear and office attire
Social gatherings and church events
Semi-formal evening wear
Color
Green, Gold
Condition
Overall Condition
Good
Date Examined
Mar 2, 2026
Notes
Moderate age-related wear to gold-tone plating, especially on reverse
Minor oxidation visible on clip mechanisms
Rhinestones present with slight clouding to central stones
Structural integrity intact; clips functional
General Notes
Note Type
Description
Note
This pair of mid-century floral earrings demonstrates the blending of natural inspiration and industrial design characteristic of postwar costume jewelry. Formed from looping gold-tone metal wires arranged into stylized petals, the earrings reinterpret the traditional flower motif through modern openwork construction. At their centers, emerald-colored rhinestones provide visual focus, while smaller stones add rhythm and balance across the design.
The airy structure reflects changing aesthetic preferences of the late 1940s and 1950s, when jewelry became lighter both physically and visually, complementing evolving fashion silhouettes. Advances in electroplating and rhinestone manufacturing enabled affordable accessories that captured the brilliance of fine jewelry without the cost of precious materials.
Such earrings were widely sold through department stores and mail-order catalogs, allowing women to participate in contemporary fashion trends regardless of economic status. Today, they serve as artifacts of mid-century optimism and the democratization of personal adornment, illustrating how costume jewelry translated modern design ideals into everyday wearable art.
