Jewelry

Laura Mae and Amanda Jean Hornberger believe some special pieces of jewelry deserve a second life.

In 2010, the Lancaster County sisters founded Maejean Vintage, an online Etsy shop selling vintage clothing, accessories and home decor. It now sells fine vintage jewelry.

The sisters have shared a fascination with beautiful old things since childhood. They remember playing in their grandparents’ 18th-century home in Paradise, in what MomMom and PopPop called the “antique room,” which was full of Victorian sofas and antique china.

“I think that kind of sparked our interest in old stuff,” says Amanda Jean, of Lancaster city.

Maejean Vintage has been tagged a favorite shop by more than 20,000 Etsy users. It has more than 4,000 reviews, culminating in a five-star rating.

The site has sold jewelry to Debra Messing, star of television show “Will and Grace”; a major character in Showtime’s “Masters of Sex” appeared with one of the business’ lockets and a purse.

A job loss and a hobby

Before starting Maejean Vintage, Laura Mae worked as a kindergarten teacher in the Columbia Borough School District. When she lost her job due to budget cuts in 2009, she signed up to be substitute teacher and spent her spare time on her hobby of seeking out all things vintage.

She purchased a large container of jewelry at an auction for $200. It took her a month to sort through the tangled mass. While some of it was junk, the lot had its fair share of precious metals, too.

“I’d say within in a few weeks I made the decision to take my name off of the sub list. … I started seeing with how things were growing, that I could potentially make a career out of this,” she says.

She consulted with an expert about her finds and, soon after, the Etsy shop was focused entirely on jewelry. Maejean Vintage has sold jewelry made from the 18th century through the 1980s.

The sisters ran the business entirely by themselves for five years. Amanda Jean, who graduated from Temple University in 2015, came home weekends to help her sister package and ship jewelry.

In March 2015, Amanda Jean enlisted Dahlia Jean Miranda, of Mount Joy, to join the team, having met her at a yoga class.

“It got to a point where we were like, we can’t do this alone anymore,” Amanda Jean says. “There are just so many different things we need to do. … She (Dahlia) is the perfect person for it because she loves old stuff. She loves vintage jewelry.”

All three Maejean Vintage employees say they often envision who owned the piece before, and look for clues such as engraved names or dates to help imagine its history.

“That’s my favorite part of it,” Dahlia says. “The mystery.”

The work involved

The sisters acquire their inventory at flea markets, some more than five hours away. Back at their Lancaster studio, they sort and identify the pieces and address any imperfections with their jeweler.

Dahlia handles jewelry cleaning, first giving the pieces a dip in an ultrasonic cleaner before polishing them. Once the jewelry is shiny and clean, the women photograph the pieces in natural light. Each piece requires at least five photographs, and some customers even request a video.

The sisters then edit and upload the photos, write a detailed description of the pieces — including weight, size and materials used — and promote the items on social media.

After a sale is made, the pieces are shipped out. If the price of a piece is more than $100, it is insured. Customers can return items, but only if they notify the shop within three days of the items’ arrival.

The women of Maejean Vintage pride themselves on their five-star rating.

Dahlia handles customer service, answering questions and addressing concerns of their customers. Some buyers are international, so language barriers occasionally pose a challenge.

She also works with individuals wishing to purchase an engagement ring.

“It’s really neat when they send us pictures after, where they said, ‘She said yes,’ ” Dahlia says.

Maejean Vintage’s most recent endeavor is its white sapphire collection, which repurposes antique settings that have missing or damaged stones. They say the sapphires are a more affordable alternative to diamonds and are durable enough for everyday wear.

It’s just another way Maejean Vintage preserves the bling of the past.

Student gemologists

The Hornbergers are currently working toward their graduate gemologist degrees at the Gemologist Institute of America. They are take online courses for the degree, which also requires three laboratory sessions in New York City.

“It’s helping us learn more and be able to better identify when we see good buys out there,” Laura Mae says.

The sisters are happy with their current setup but discuss one day opening a brick-and-mortar showroom to increase face-to-face interaction with clients.

They say they are looking forward to meeting customers from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 26. They will be participating in Forty Elephants, a vintage and handmade market at the Masonic Center, 213 W. Chestnut St.