By the end of the summer, there will be a new crown jewel of downtown. Longtime collector Sharon Ryback is opening the Museum of Costume Jewelry at 60 Haywood St., across the street from Pack Memorial Library. LOVE this opening sentence!

From bracelets to brooches and over-the-top bejeweled necklaces, the hundreds of pieces behind the cases largely come from Ryback's personal collections. For the past 10 years, she's been planning to open the museum, giving the works of art a new home for others to appreciate. In the 31 exhibits, you'll find jewelry and accessories from legendary names such as Coco Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli, and Christian Dior.

The displays will present more than just gemstones to gawk at and stones to dream about sporting. They will offer unique insight into the cultural and political happenings of bygone eras, like an upcoming exhibit commemorating the 80th anniversary of WWII. The exhibit features "patriotic and sweetheart jewelry," including brooches women would wear on their lapels to indicate they had a son or husband in service.

The left image shows WWII-era sweetheart jewelry, and the right shows an Art Deco-era piece. | Photos via Sharon Ryback

Ryback also has a few pieces of trench art jewelry, which hail back to WWI when soldiers would create accessories like embellished cuff bracelets out of airplane aluminum to send back to their loved ones.

The goal of the museum is to offer education on the evolution of jewelry throughout the 20th century, from Art Nouveau to The Glamour Years. The space will include a library of jewelry books and a classroom area for lecture series, which will invite fine arts students and local jewelry artists to hear from historians and curators.

The Museum of Costume Jewelry is expected to open later this summer, beginning with a special exhibit celebrating the 100th anniversary of Art Deco. And if you consider yourself a fashionista, you're in luck because the gift shop will be filled with high-end vintage and pieces from noteworthy jewelers like Gripoix.