Gustavo Trifari was born in Naples, Italy in 1883 and trained as a goldsmith under his grandfather, Luigi. In 1904 he emigrated to New York and began working with an uncle making costume jewelry. Circa 1910, he and his uncle founded Trifari and Trifari. Circa 1912, Gustavo branched out on his own and began to make high-quality pieces under the name Trifari. In 1917, sales manager Leo Krussman came on board and in 1918 they founded Trifari and Krussman. In 1925 the company becomes Trifari, Krussman and Fishel (TKF) after Carl Fishel joins as a salesman. In 1930 designer Alfred Phillippe joins as chief designer. Phillippe retired in 1968. He initiated the practice of using multi-colored Swarovski rhinestones which were hand-set. Trifari was purchased by Hallmark in the late 1970s. Produced a wide range of jewelry and a wide range of quality. The most sought after pieces are early Trifari and pieces designed by Alfred Phillippe. They used many different signatures. T under a crown since 1939, KTF since 1935, KTF with the T saddled with a crown since 1954.
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