What is the difference between fine jewelry and costume jewelry?

Mostly cost, secondarily how it's made, what it's made of and what it is used for. Kind of like the difference between an actual bar of gold and a bar of lead painted gold.

While fine jewelry might have a real natural diamond in it, costume jewelry might have "paste", (an imitation diamond).

Now that genuine but artificial diamonds are common, I don't know how they would be classified.

Costume jewelry is either gold plated or gold colored rather than solid gold. If there are stones, they are either semi precious or artificial.
Fine jewelry is "karat gold", either 10, 14, 18 or sometimes 22 or even 24. Fine jewelry can also be platinum or any of the other platinum-group metals (palladium, osmium, iridium, ruthenium or rhodium) although they are uncommon. Silver jewelry can be classed as either costume or fine, although I'm not sure how this determination is made.

In British English, the spelling is 'jewellery'. Just in case anybody was curious. And the third 'e' is pronounced.

Well, we streamlined it for you.

It is easy to spot the costume jewelry. The metal is usually lumpy like and stones glued on. Stuff looks awfully gaudy and oversized. There was a shop next door that made these things and I saw a lot of rejects in their trash cans.

Quote centrox:

I always wondered why some people over here pronounce the nonexistent third "e" in the word. Apparently it's not nonexistent, it just moved across the ocean.

Just like some people over here still call an airplane an aeroplane.

This is not true. There is lots of well-designed and well-crafted costume jewelry.

The jewelry is still out on the answer to this question.

Bad joke

This thread brings to mind Guy de Maupassant's classic short story, The Necklace.

The difference between fashion jewelry and Fine jewelry is the quality of the metal used in the jewelry and the authenticity of the stones set into the pieces.
Items considered to be Fine jewelry are constructed high levels of gold, sterling silver, or platinum plating. Fashion jewelry is simply painted on, low levels of silver and gold, if any of either is used at all.
Stones must be natural gemstones, which possess all the visual, chemical, and physical properties of mined gemstones to be categorized as fine jewelry.
Since they are natural, cultured pearls are categorized as fine jewelry. All natural diamonds are considered to be fine jewelry.
Fashion Jewelry falls in the middle. While fine jewelry base metals are gold and silver, fashion jewelry is plated metals, plated with pure gold and real silver.
For Instance, A gold ring with coral gemstone is classified as Fine Jewelry

On the other hand a gold plated brass ring with same coral gemstone is Fashion Jewelry

I do not know, jewelry is just jewelry

The difference between fine jewelry and costume jewelry is the quality of the metal used in this jewellery. Fine Jewellery is made of natural stones, pearls and it's generally more expensive than costume pieces.

how many do you use? we use one

Whether Roger is the oyster or the pearl it sounds like he loves a good jewellery joke.

Fine jewelry made of real gemstone and are costly. On the other hand costume
jewelry made up of inexpensive materials and are cheaper then fine jewelry but nowadays costume jewelry is in trends.

That's simple.

It is defined by the metal. Jewelry made with (genuine) gold, platinum, silver (etc). = Fine Jewelry.

Jewelry made with anything else - brass, copper, bronze, aluminum, (etc, etc) or Base Metal (which is a combo of different metals), plated metals, leather, fabrics (etc). = Fashion Jewelry.

Fine jewelry is way more expensive and made with precious stones and metals.