Third-generation jeweler Alex Kantor wears a brooch on his suit lapel every day at work, and without hesitation he says it’s one of the smartest business decisions he has ever made.

“Every time I wore one at a trade or antique show, it would sell,” says Kantor, known as “The Brooch Man” on Instagram, where he shows off his collection. “People always saw these pins lying flat on the trays, but no one actually saw how they were worn.”

Much like Kantor, other brooch fans say the accessory is finally getting its well-deserved runway and red-carpet moment, thanks to celebrity endorsements, fashion-forward styling, and the support of jewelry designers who’ve been inspired by the style. Also known as pins or clips, brooches, which trace their history to the Middle Ages when they were used to secure clothing or hats, are now squarely in the jewelry spotlight.

“They are having a moment because of their effortlessness in making the simplest outfit look amazing,” says Lucrezia Buccellati, whose great-grandfather, Mario Buccellati, started designing brooches in 1919, the jeweler’s first year in business. “Brooches have always been classic centerpieces within our collections.”

Not for nothing does the brooch maintain a reputation as a symbol of wealth and status. Look to its biggest fans, including Queen Elizabeth II, who owned 98 brooches; Elizabeth Taylor, who got engaged to Richard Burton in 1962 with a Bulgari emerald and diamond pendant-brooch that sold at Christie’s in 2011 for an astonishing $6.6 million; and Madeleine Albright, the first woman secretary of state, whose politically inspired brooches spawned a book (Read My Pins: Stories From a Diplomat’s Jewel Box) and museum shows.

Perhaps owing to its history as a totem of the rich and famous, the brooch fell out of favor with street style-setters for a decade or two. But about five years ago, it resurfaced as a key accessory on runways—including Armani, Erdem, Tory Burch, and Carolina Herrera. Must-see streaming shows such as The Crown and Bridgerton also fueled interest in brooches, giving modern audiences a look at how queens or countesses might have worn them.

Then again, contemporary styling trends are also giving brooches a new lease on life. Whether on the catwalk or the streets of New York City, brooches are popping up as hair accessories and handbag adornments. Fashionistas pin them to capes, while Hamptons socialites attach them to Hermès scarves. On TikTok, women are showing off whole pin collections by using them as buttons on vests or jackets.

The biggest brooch advocates of late, however, have been men—notably actors Jared Leto, Barry Keoghan, and Timothée Chalamet. During the 2024 awards season, celebrity jeweler Martin Katz helped give the brooch an extra boost by creating diamond-studded versions, often with animal silhouettes, that make his work easily recognizable. Actor Kieran Culkin wore the designer’s pins to the recent Critics Choice, Emmy, and Screen Actors Guild awards, where he won for his role in HBO’s Succession.

“Pins are especially nice for a designer because of their scale—it’s a larger canvas on which to create,” Katz says. “There are no rules. They can be whimsical as well as artful.”

Today, maximalism is in for both men and woman. You can see that reflected in the big brooches on other celebs such as Colman Domingo, who pinned a David Yurman high jewelry brooch to his bowtie at the 2024 Oscars, as well as Simu Liu, who used one by De Beers to clasp his Fendi jacket.

The hip-hop music world has also shown how its male singers and rappers can elevate their jewelry game to include pins and brooches. A$AP Rocky, Kendrick Lamar, and Jay-Z have all rocked brooches on the red carpet.

As a result, orders for these wearable pieces of art are up 7.5% year over year on 1stDibs, where clients are snapping up examples from brands such as Chanel, Cartier, Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, and Tiffany & Co., according to the online estate dealer.

The brooch is also on the rise in the realm of contemporary jewelry, says Bryna Pomp, the director and curator of MAD About Jewelry at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York. She says art jewelers have always embraced the pin, and they’ve made these accessories even easier to wear with the addition of magnets instead of traditional stickpins (no one wants to ruin their Hermès scarf or Lululemon athleisure top with a tiny tear, Pomp notes).

“The pin is the jewelry equivalent of a painting,” Pomp says. “It’s a piece of art that’s presented on the body instead of on the wall. There are many contemporary jewelry makers who frankly only make pins because it’s a very serious piece of jewelry. It’s a focused piece that is relatively small, so it’s the essence of jewelry.”

Pomp says she recently combined her collection with that of her Instagram-famous husband, Martin Pomp. “He wears a pin every Friday night on his blue blazer at our club, and he gets a lot of attention for it,” she says.

Wedding jewelry could also benefit from the brooch trend, says Nicole Corsini, marketing director for Lang Antique & Estate Jewelry in San Francisco. When a coworker replaced the boutonnieres on the groomsmen in her wedding with art deco bar brooches, the result was spectacular, Corsini says. Everyone was smiling as the men made their way down the aisle, their brooches glittering in the sunshine.

If you want to get a customer interested in a pin or brooch, start with an easy-to-wear style like the bar or a Victorian starburst motif, Corsini advises. A simple floral or insect shape also is an accessible starter piece.

“I always wear them to conferences as it’s an entry point to discuss what I do,” she says. “It’s an opening line that you’re wearing on your shoulder.”

Top: Martin Katz created his famous Bow Pin—featuring 1,137 diamonds weighing a total of 13.28 cts.—after he became fascinated with shredding paper on a long telephone call.

(All photos courtesy of respective brands)