I love antique jewelry for many reasons, many of which can be read here. I love the fact that almost every piece is handmade. There is something to be said about crafts made by another human instead of mass produced by machines. I love how each piece has its own history. Antiques generally are influenced by the period of time they where made in. Victorian Jewelry is inspired by the Victorian era of the British Empire. Art Deco is inspired by the French modernist movement in the early 1900′s. And so on. There are many other pieces of jewelry that are not ancient and are just beautiful and unique in style. Costume jewelry and retro jewelry is jewelry that is less than 100 years old and fits in the estate jewelry category. Many of the pieces are beautiful in such unique ways, they offer character and style which is again totally different than what you can get from some mass producing jewelry store.
If you are interested in antique and estate jewelry, check out the site. I am sure you will find something that inspires you!