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There are many styles of vintage clips used. Some were pairs which clipped onto shoes to dress up a plain pair of pumps. Others were fancy clips used on fur stoles and light weight dresses. Combination brooches also has special mechanisms so that the pair could be worn as a single clip.

While modern day sellers often use the term dress clip and fur clip interchangeably, there are definite differences in the design and intended use of them. There is even some confusion on the terminology for Coro and Trifari combination pins - but each had their own terminology.

Fur Clips were long clips - often enhanced with rhinestones and other stones, and sometimes with repousse designs. They had a back mechanism which consisted of two long sharp prongs which are attached to a spring on the back of the clip. They were made this way so that they could pierce fur without doing much damage to the fur pelt. Design hallmarks were found on the inside of the spring clip, on top of the clip length, or on the piece itself. Sometimes they would be marked in several places.

Some notable designers of fur clips include Trifari, Blackamoor, Hobe', Boucher, Eisenberg, and Corocraft, among others. Here are examples of Trifari, Boucher and Kenneth Lane Fur clips.

Many sellers call dress clips fur clips, but this is incorrect. Dress clips have a much larger and wider piece of metal which has "teeth." The teeth are intended to grasp thin material such as a dress or shirt. Some dress clip backs were flat hinged pieces of metal, or wired mechanisms with no decoration at all. Others were made of ornately filigreed metal. As with Fur Clips, designer markings can be found on the back of the clip, under the clip or on the piece itself.

Early designers of Vintage Fur clips were Miriam Haskell, Trifari, BSK, Coro, Eisenberg, Nettie Rosenstein, Hattie Carnegie and others. Here are some examples of fur clip mechanisms:

These are similar. It is a design technique where two clips have an additional mechanism which allows the two clips to be worn as a single pin. Coro made their own and called them Duettes, and Trifari's version was called the Clip-Mate. Many sellers refer to Trifari's version as a Duette too. There are many other manufacturers of these double clips - many were European in design. Here are examples - the first two pictures are a Coro Duette showing the finished pin and the separate parts. The last picture shows a Trifari clip-mate.

Shoe Clips were commonly seen in the 1950s and 1960s and are still made today, although not as often worn as they used to be. They were worn in pairs and were meant to embellish a plain pair of shoes. Here are some common shoe clip designs:

Scarves have been very popular through all ages. Special scarf clips were commonly seen in the middle of the last century. The clips consisted of a design which looked a lot like a brooch, but instead of the normal pin clasp, the back of the piece had a hinged clip which held the scarf in place. They differed from the dress clip in that they had no "teeth" as part of the design - just a strong hinged clip, since the scarf material was often bunched or knotted before the clip was used, so it wasn't as thin as a dress and needed no teeth to hold it in place.

I have also seen designs where there is a "channel" for the scarf to slip through the back of the design.

Vintage dress Clips, Fur clips and duettes are highly collectible and much sought after. For best investment potential, it is desirable to purchase a pair of the same design. Try to find fur clips with good metal finish and clear stones. Unsigned clips can be purchased relatively inexpensively, so there is no reason to sacrifice condition.

Shoe and scarf clips are readily available and inexpensive. In most cases, they aren't highly valued, but some designers such as Musi have a following.

Most vintage dress clips and fur clips were manufactured during the Art Deco and Art Nouveau period up to the mid 1950s and 60s. Earlier and later examples are available, but they are exceptions, rather than the norm. There aren't many modern designers making fur or dress clips, but contemporary designer Kenneth Jay Lane does have them as part of his jewelry line. Duettes and Clip-Mates were popular between the 1930s and 1950s. Shoe clips were popular in the middle of the 20th century and are still made today.