Zoe Kempe’s breath caught. Digging through a box of junk at a New York stall, she spotted an antique bracelet for $10.

Keeping a poker face, she handed over the cash and fled.

The piece by Italian designer Gustavo Trifari was worth somewhere in the region of $220.

It’s moments like these that the 31-year-old vintage jewellery collector lives for. She frequently sells her pieces at fairs, pop-up sales and sometimes on the spot to admiring passers-by, under the name Zoe Vintage. She spoke with Lifestyle about her passion.

Q: How did you start collecting?

A: I started when I was 14. My uncle, Geoffrey Roberts, was an antiques dealer and I went to some of the fairs with him in London and Paris. Some of my mother’s family lives in France. At first, I just collected old tins and buffed them up but then I got more into the jewellery. I lived in Paris for two years and would go to the flea markets on the weekends. I liked practising my French by chatting with some of the vintage jewellery dealers. I learnt a lot this way.

Q: What was so appealing about vintage jewellery?

A: I love it because it is different. There are a lot of unique pieces. I am not really a Tiffany’s girl; walking into a market and finding that little gem is more my thing. I go for costume jewellery, particularly Miriam Haskell, a 1940s and 1950s designer. Finding her pieces is really exciting to me. I should have been born in the 1950s. A lot of the women wore this jewellery because it was a lot more fun. It was about coming out and showing off that good times are to come.

Q: What’s so special about her pieces?

A: For me they are a lot more intricate, detailed and elegant than other pieces. The clasp tends to be very extravagant and she uses a lot of Japanese seed pearls and gold filigree. She would have made a few of the same piece, but her work was not mass-produced. She died in the 1980s, but she still has a shop in New York with more modern pieces. I don’t really go for modern.

Q: Is there anywhere in Bermuda to find vintage jewellery?

A: Not really, but sometimes you can find some really good pieces at church fairs. Someone may have donated something they found during a cleanout, or after a family member passed on. The Bermuda National Trust has a jumble sale in March with a jewellery section. Sometimes you can find some fun pieces there.

Q: What is your favourite market?

A: That would be the Marche aux Puces de Saint-Ouen in the North of Paris. That is where there are a lot of antique stores and vintage jewellery places.

Q: Do you need to speak French to buy pieces in the Paris markets?

A: It certainly helps. You need to be confident to be able to bargain and haggle. Otherwise, they will absolutely try to take advantage of you. They double the price of these things when they see tourists coming. A lot of the tourists go to the markets and want to buy an amazing piece to leave and go home with. When I walk in, being able to speak French, and asking questions that show my knowledge, they give me the real price.

Q: What markets do you like elsewhere?

A: In New York, I like going to The Garage (at 112 West 25th Street). I have done a lot of buying in Chicago, but mostly I like to shop in France. I try to go back to Paris at least once a year to see my family and walk the Seine like I used to. Anywhere I plan a trip I immediately look into where there is a market.

Q: Does vintage jewellery require any special care?

A: No, I don’t do anything to my pieces. I keep some of them in a cabinet so they don’t get knocked about in my jewellery drawer.

Q: When do you wear your pieces?

A: I don’t like to “save” things for a special occasion as you never get to wear them enough. So sometimes I will be a little fancy on an ordinary Tuesday. It’s way more fun that way! A lot of this started when I inherited some of my grandmother’s pieces. I am wearing her citrine ring today. It is quite a bold piece you would only wear for fun. It is from the 1930s.

Q: Where did your grandmother get it?

A: I think my grandfather, George Lyon, gave it to her. Her name was Elizabeth Ross-Gardner and she was Dutch, but spent a lot of time in France. Later she lived in Yorkshire. During the war she helped to smuggle Jews out of Holland, which was quite brave considering SS officers were living in her house. She was part of the underground resistance movement. The same grandmother gave me a gorgeous 1920s diamond sapphire ring which is probably my oldest piece.

Q: What do you get out of collecting?

A: I just get a lot of joy out of having something different. It is a lot of fun collecting. It is a huge rush when you find a piece. The problem is I buy lots of great things and then sometimes don’t want to part with them in a sale. You definitely need to have an eye for it.

Q: What is the hardest thing about it?

A: The hardest thing is the people who don’t appreciate it. They think it is just old junk. It takes a certain eye to appreciate and see the detailed work and see that things like this aren’t made anymore. These pieces were made in a simpler time, when one elegant piece might be everything to someone, compared to now when we have lots of jewellery in our boxes.

• For more information about Zoe Vintage e-mail zoekempe@gmail.com.