Victorian Hair Work Tiered Drop Pendant

Contrary to popular belief, hair jewelry was not always mourning jewelry. Sometimes these intricately woven pieces were created as love tokens from sweethearts, family members and cherished friends as a way to feel closer to the other. It also was worn merely as fashion since hair jewelry was in vogue during the Victorian era.

Gaining in popularity during the Civil War, hair work was an affordable and common at-home drawing room past time, much like knitting. Patterns and templates were widely available in newspapers, fashion magazines and periodicals. Many young women earned a living making hair jewelry at home.

For those less skilled or crafty, hair jewelry also could be purchased through catalogs or from jewelry stores. All one had to do was decide which piece they would like to have created and then send off a lock of hair to have it transformed into the piece of their dreams.

This striking pendant was most likely purchased from a hair jewelry catalog. We have included a page from the "A. Bernhard & Co. Catalogue, 1870 Manufacturers of Diamond Work & Ornamental Hair Jewelry" catalog with a similar example. 

It originally was part of a pair of earrings, but tragedy befell its mate, so we decided to transform the surviving earring into a pendant so it could live on. 

This piece is a wonderful example of table worked hair and is set in a modest gold filled material. It comes on a new gold filled chain.