Juliana Bug Figurals: Learning the Basic Families

Part 1 of the Let’s Get Buggy Series

Few pieces of Juliana jewelry are more fun to collect than the bugs.

DeLizza & Elster created an amazing variety of jeweled insects, from whimsical bugs with colorful bodies to elaborate rhinestone creations covered with navettes, chatons and unusual metalwork.

They are also a wonderful group to study because they demonstrate something that is extremely important when identifying Juliana jewelry:

A documented design did not always appear in one exact form.

Colors changed. Stones changed. Bodies changed. Wings changed. Small construction details changed.

Two bugs from the same general design family can look surprisingly different from the front.

And, as Juliana collectors have learned over the years, the front is only half the story. Sometimes the back tells us even more.

Start With the Body

One of the easiest places to begin comparing Juliana bugs is the body.

Some of the most whimsical examples use a large colorful body surrounded by rhinestones and metalwork. Other versions use plastic cabochons, large faceted rhinestones or entirely different stone shapes.

Simply changing that central element can completely change the personality of the bug.

The example below is especially useful because the front shows how dramatic the colorful painted wood body is, while the back lets us study how that large center element is mounted and how the wings and surrounding stones are incorporated into the design.

From the front, our eyes naturally go to the color and sparkle.

Turn the piece over, however, and you begin to understand how the design was actually constructed.

That is why I have always encouraged collectors to look at the back of a suspected Juliana piece.

Pretty stones may get our attention.

Construction helps tell us what we are looking at.

Same Family, Very Different Look

Now look at the next examples.

At first glance, differences in color can make related designs feel completely unrelated. One bug may be bright and fiery, while another uses cooler blue and green tones.

But when you compare both the front and the back, the relationship becomes easier to see.

This is one reason identifying jewelry solely from a single photograph can be dangerous. It is very easy to remember one documented piece and expect every authentic example to look exactly like it.

Instead, mentally remove the color from the equation.

Look at the arrangement of the body and wings.

Look at where the navettes are positioned.

Study the metalwork.

Then turn the piece over and compare the underlying construction.

Once you begin doing that, similarities that were hidden by different colors become much easier to recognize.

Watch the Navettes

Navettes are another detail worth studying carefully.

Some Juliana bugs use only a few elongated navettes around the body. Others use several. Their size, color and placement can vary from one version to another.

Even small rhinestone accents may change.

That does not necessarily mean we are looking at an entirely different design.

Think of these pieces as having siblings.

They may share the same basic construction and design idea while wearing completely different clothes.

This is one of the reasons studying many confirmed Juliana pieces is so valuable. Eventually you begin recognizing the underlying design rather than relying on an exact stone-for-stone match.

Rhinestone Bodies Change Everything

Some Juliana bugs replace the smoother body element with a large faceted rhinestone.

This is where the design can begin to look dramatically different.

The two bugs below are especially useful to compare because the large center stones immediately dominate the design. Change the shape of that body stone and suddenly the entire silhouette and personality of the bug changes.

Now look beyond the center stones.

Compare the surrounding navettes.

Compare the head.

Look at the antennae.

Notice the small stones finishing the lower portion of the body.

Those relationships can be much more useful than the exact color or shape of one stone.

This is exactly the kind of variation collectors begin to recognize after studying multiple confirmed pieces.

The Wings Can Change Too

Bodies are not the only things that vary.

The wings can change dramatically as well.

Some Juliana bugs are heavily filled with rhinestones, while others have a much more open wing construction.

The open-wing example below is particularly interesting because the front gives the piece a very different appearance from some of the more stone-heavy bugs we have already examined.

The back makes the construction even easier to understand.

This is a perfect example of why I like having both views available.

From the front, the sweeping open metal wings become a major part of the design.

From the back, we can see how those wings are incorporated into the framework of the piece.

A collector who had only memorized the appearance of a more heavily rhinestoned bug might easily overlook a variation like this.

But once you begin studying how Juliana jewelry was actually put together, the relationship becomes easier to recognize.

Why the Back Matters

I know I have said this many times over the years, but it is worth repeating:

Always look at the back.

With Juliana jewelry, the back can be almost more important than the front when you are trying to understand a piece.

The front tells us what the designer wanted us to see.

The back tells us how they made it.

On these bugs, the back can reveal how the large body element is mounted, how the wings are attached, how the surrounding stones relate to the center construction, and how the metal framework beneath the finished design comes together.

It can also reveal similarities between two pieces that look quite different from the front.

When researching an unidentified piece, do not just search for another brooch that looks like yours from the front.

Compare the backs as well.

That is often where some of the most useful clues are hiding.

Look at the “Tail”

Another small detail I like to watch is what I have always called the bug's tail.

Some designs finish with a single chaton at the bottom of the body. Others may use a small grouping of stones.

It seems like a tiny detail, but these are exactly the sorts of differences collectors begin noticing after studying a design family closely.

Take another look at the rhinestone-bodied bugs shown earlier and pay attention to how the lower portion of the body is finished.

A small change does not automatically mean a piece is wrong.

It means we need to keep looking.

And Always Look at the Antennae

Now go back and look at the bugs shown throughout this article.

Notice the antennae.

On these particular examples, we repeatedly see metal wire curling upward into loops at the ends.

That is a useful feature to remember.

But I do not want you to turn that observation into an absolute rule.

Not every documented Juliana insect is going to look exactly like these.

In fact, some of the most interesting bugs we will examine later in this series will give us very good reasons to talk about antennae again.

That is where things get especially interesting.

Learn the Family, Not Just the Photograph

If there is one thing I hope you take away from this first group of bugs, it is this:

Don’t memorize one photograph and call that the design.

Learn the family.

Look at the body.

Study the navettes.

Compare the wings.

Notice the small stones at the bottom.

Look carefully at the antennae.

And turn the piece over.

Always turn it over.

The color may be the first thing that attracts us to a wonderful Juliana bug, but the construction is what helps us understand it.

And the more documented examples you study—front and back—the easier those relationships become to recognize.

Coming Next: More Juliana Bugs

We are only getting started.

In Part 2 of Let’s Get Buggy, we’ll move into some of DeLizza & Elster’s more distinctive insect figurals, including bumblebees, wasps, glitter bugs and dragonflies.

Some of those designs introduce completely different construction ideas—and a few identification clues that collectors definitely need to know.

Love Juliana figurals? Browse our current selection of authentic Juliana figural jewelry at Our Vintage Rose Jewelry.