Way up north is a two story white cottage nestled among acres of clover grass & blackberry bushes where bears dine daily with never a care, for all is fine and definitely rare on Evetta Hill!

Evetta Hill was my Great Grandmother....a slight spry raven haired beauty who's femininity shone through even her most headstrong of whims! A woman of elegance and incomparable taste, she surrounded herself with the riches of the earth as well as truly beautiful things.
We here at Evetta Hill come from a long line of Antique & Vintage collectors. We will be offering a sampling of the things we know & love best and are sure Evetta would have approved of.
So sit back, relax and prepare to be charmed!

What is RARE? I am seeing more and more hearts being listed online as rare these days?..... it is very disconcerting and potentially deceptive to the new or novice collector, especially when market prices have hit some all time highs where hearts are concerned.
One of the problems is that many of the folks selling puffy hearts are novice collectors in their own right so apparently they figure if they haven't seen it in the past couple of years it must be rare. True enough as it is, if you are an obsessive heart collector and scour the internet daily for hearts you will, without a doubt see many many hearts. "Many, many hearts" does not equate to ALL hearts though. Unless you have literally seen hundreds & hundreds of different motifs (yes, there are that many) over the years you probably are giving inaccurate information by telling your clients that something is rare. It may be scarce on the market today but chances are it has shown up before, is in someones collection right now, and will show up again.
and, finally as I continue to see a multitude of reproduction hearts being sold as Vintage, and Vintage hearts being sold as Victorian, please be aware that any jeweler can test for Sterling but the majority can not distinguish truly Vintage or Victorian hearts unless they are an appraiser of such or have dealt in antique jewelry for along time. I am not an appraiser, nor think of myself as an expert; I have over 20 years experience with puffy hearts and have a knowledgeable and large circle of antique dealers/experts at my disposal to verify and help me if I should require it. I always ask for expert opinions/back up if I have any question of authenticity - it is just responsible and good sense if you are serious in your trade.
Thankfully there are many many reputable and honest sellers/dealers out there to buy from who do know their trade. If you are not sure get second opinions, most will gladly help you!........

If you are a current collector of Puffy Heart Charms you are among friends here at Evetta Hill! If you are new to charm collecting or just new to Puffy Hearts, welcome..we are here to offer you a fine selection and answer all of your questions as best as we can!

Due to the demand for exceptional heart charms, your investment in any heart at Evetta Hill is substantial & we understand that. We stand behind all of our charms!

Puffy Hearts are also called Victorian Hearts, Friendship Hearts & Sweetheart Hearts. Most are actually hollow or puffy, not solid, but some are not as puffy as others. If puffiness is a true concern for you please ask for specifics, I do not typically differentiate in the magnitude of 'puffiness' in my descriptions! They are all equally collectible and look fantastic combined.
Puffy Hearts date back to the Victorian/ Edwardian eras. These are very rare and typically found on a bangle charm bracelet. A lot of Puffy Hearts are decorated with Victorian looking, or Art Deco looking, or Art Nouveau looking designs. This does not indicate that they are truly Victorian Hearts, frankly, the majority are not!

The resurgence of Puffy Hearts dates to the 30's & 40's! This is where most Puffy hearts that we see have come from! Commonly a Military keepsake, soldiers would frequently send their 'Sweetheart' a remembrance charm, thus the 'Sweetheart Charm'. Ever increasing in popularity, the Puffy heart became a favorite gift item, often having the heart engraved with their name or initials. Given to a friend or loved one, they were then collected on bracelets or necklaces.
As engraved hearts are truly one of kind keepsakes because of their uniqueness, they are of higher value to some collectors! Engraving was done freehand and by machine.

Enameling was another common embellishment on hearts! Most Vintage enameled hearts are not in 100% condition, rightly so after 60 some odd years the enameling deserves to start showing some wear! This does not always determine the value or lack of; some damaged enamel is perfectly acceptable and is an individual preference. Our only recommendation is that if there is damaged enamel, leave it alone, to try and remove it may be detrimental to the actual heart and chances are if you wear your hearts the enamel will possibly continue to wear on it's own. What you do not want is newly applied enamel to a Vintage Heart, and yes, this has happened.
In addition to wear & tear on enameling, a lot of Vintage hearts themselves are actually damaged. Collectors often find dings, dents, and teeth marks, yes they look like they were used as a teething devise sometimes, to be perfectly acceptable. It is truly a personal preference! Let me say though, you should never pay as much for a severely damaged heart unless it is extremely rare. There are a lot of exceptionally fine hearts on the market so why settle for less! Please note, small amounts of damage are perfectly acceptable and very common, again due entirely to age! They are Vintage, let them show it!!

Reproduction and or new hearts are in great abundance now days. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with New, as a collector I find it very disheartening to see new hearts sold to unwary people as Vintage! Some of the popular molds used in the 30's & 40's were also brought back into circulation in the 80's and used to manufacture new hearts, reproductions! Although sometimes hard to tell apart there are definite indicators.

Here are some helpful things to look for when buying Puffy hearts!
Hearts that are truly Vintage will usually show patina, the miniscule scratching that occurs on Sterling after lots of time & wear, which fills with actual tarnish giving the surface a soft, sometimes smoky look. Some people 'clean' their hearts making them shiny again, usually not appreciated by the true collector and sometimes lessening the value, but it has happened so patina may not always be present unfortunately.
Engraving is also a good indicator, and the engraved word/s may also show wear or patina...a good thing!
The stamping and or makers mark on the back is also something to look for. The stamp 925 is a newer indicator of Sterling so a heart stamped 925 is probably not Vintage.

Your best defense against unwillingly buying a new or reproduced piece is to know your seller, ask a lot of questions, and do your own research! That said, I hope you enjoy perusing some of the finest collectible hearts in circulation. These are some of the same hearts used in Pilula Jula Commissioned pieces, so if you are interested in an actual bracelet, let me know!!

Enjoy!!