Collectible Friday - Bakelite Flatware

For Collectible Friday we are going to finish off the Bakelite collection. This is the flatware section. I have also put some miscellaneous kitchen utensils in this group.
First I am going to show you my rarest piece. After this everything else will pale in comparison but so be it. These are utensils with insert Bakelite silhouettes. I have knives and forks. In the Bakelite book I have they only show knives and forks so I have no idea if spoons were made. I also don't know what these were made for. If the silhouettes were used for a special event or a giveaway of some kind. I have owned these for years. They run between $150.00-$175.00 a piece.The other flatware I own are Red & Butterscotch Bakelite and Lucite, Two-Tone Bakelite, Tri-Color Bakelite, the Chevron Bakelite (the one with the yellow "V"), Englishtown Stainless Steel Bakelite and Lucite (the "tear drop" pattern) and some miscellaneous colored ones.
I also show the tri-color Ekco beater, which I use and it is wonderful, though it is slightly heavy for an egg-beater and a frosting cake spreader that is an Androck with the bullet handle. I bought that one at the Goodwill for .25 years ago. It is a little milky but it can still frost a cake with the best of them.Bakelite flatware has come down in price over the years and can still be picked up for a pretty fair price. The rarer pieces will cost more, they actually made some New York World Fair pieces but I have never found any. They also made flatware with the card suits inlaid in them. I lost out on those in a bidding war a few years ago and hope to find them again some day.

I use the tear drop pieces every day. They are our regular silverware. Since I use vintage whenever possible, I do a lot of hand washing. Bakelite should not go into the dishwasher, since the water temperature is too hot. The only pieces I don't use are the silhouettes.

Hopefully you have enjoyed the Bakelite chapters and it will inspire you to pick up some. It is fun to use, so brightly colored and pretty. We all need a little pretty these days.

Collectible Friday - Bakelite Napkin Rings

For Collectible Friday we are going to do Bakelite napkin rings.
I am showing you only a very small selection of the ones I own. We could say it is because I am too lazy to find the rest but in actuality it is because the cabinet I store them in has one of the doors stuck and I can't for the life of me, get it opened. Short of actually squeezing myself into the display cabinet and trust me no one wants to see that, I can't get them out. Maybe next week.

Napkin rings came in many shape and sizes. Some with eyes and some not. The colors were mostly red, green, yellow, black. Sometimes you can find a mottled colored one. These are from the end of the day Bakelite. The small pieces of Bakelite that was left over at the end of the day were all mixed together and a few more pieces were cut out. Most of these were taken home by the employees but some were sent for sale. Also, the end of the day Bakelite would be used for a prototype piece, something that they had designed and wanted to see in a 3-D form.

Napkin rings are very plentiful. The prices very depending on the condition of the piece. On my Mickey Mouse it would be worth more if the graphics were still on him. Unfortunately the graphics were made of paper and time is not a good friend of paper products. Plus, day to day use wore away the paper.
The next one is a souvenir from the 1939-1940 New York World's Fair. This piece features the trylon and perisphere buildings, which made up the theme of the fair. Again, the wording, while not in paper, is being worn away. I don't use this one very much and I only own the one. It was a pricey little piece and I don't plan to buy anymore. I think it is cool though.
Then I have two different rabbits, a rocking horse, two different fish, and a duck. These are common pieces and are easily located. Some have the beads for eyes, which are my favorite. The rocking horse is slightly strange since it is short and fat, sometimes I think it could be a rocking dog. Next week, door willing, I will show the rest.

One interesting thing about Bakelite is if you are lucky, you may be able to find the "mistake" napkin rings. Since some many of these items were made by hand, mistakes happened. Maybe they only got one eye, or the dogs were not uniformed, etc. These were generally to be thrown away but a good portion of them were taken home by the employees or sent out to the company store in their "Goof" pile. These are the ones I look for. All the ones I have ever found have been way out of my price range, but as in all things, hope springs eternal.

Book 'em Sunday - Vintage Vavoom

Today for Book 'em Sunday we are going to do Vintage Vavoom, Romantic Decorating with one-of-a-kind finds. This was published in 2007 and was written by the Editors of Romantic Homes Magazine.This book showcases the idea of using vintage and one of a kind items in your home. Be it items you have inherited, or items you collect yourself. Basically it teaches you to live outside the box. Believe me, I am so far outside the box that I can no longer even see it! See this book works.

It will provide you tricks of the trade and show you new ways to use items. Also it helps you to make a home that is cohesive and not cluttered. Now I never really took that clutter part to heart, but you can, or do as I do and ignore it.
The pictures are wonderful and it is always nice to see what other people collect. Plus it gives you ideas for displays using components that you already own.
I love to live this way, so this book is right up my alley. I'm not really into china or knick-knacks but I adore linens, books, and vintage kitchen items. This book has all of that and more.

So give it a look through.

Collectible Friday - Bakelite Animals

For Collectible Friday, we are going to do Bakelite Animals.

I have no idea what the intended purpose of these were but because I collect Bakelite, these joined the group.

Bakelite was discovered between 1907-1909 by a Belgian doctor, Dr. Leo Baekeland. It was the first plastic made from synthetic components. The discovery of this product allowed for the mass production of plastic items such as toys, jewelery, flatware, decorative items, telephones, game pieces. Basically, if you could think of it, it could be replicated in plastic.

In 1993 Bakelite was designated an ACS National Historical Chemical Landmark. In the past few years, items made of this substance have become highly collectible.

Because one of the components used to make Bakelite is formaldehyde, if you place the item under warm/hot water and rub, you can smell formaldehyde. This is one of the tests used to see if it is indeed Bakelite. You can also use scrubbing bubbles or a store-bought test kit. I find the hot water test works quite fine.

In my collection, I have flatware, napkin rings, pencil sharpeners, souvenirs from different events, these animals, jewelery, and various other items. A lot of these items came from France, since they just LOVED the art deco period and produced most of the items. Bakelite is very colorful and I still use mine to this day. I don't use the dishwasher, vintage items do better in a hand wash.

Elephants. I have found these to be the most popular. I have more than is shown, but I figured you would get the drift. I love these. The white ones are the only color I have found where the trunk drifts down, for the rest the trunks go slightly up. I have no idea why this is since elephants with the trunks up are considered lucky. Some are translucent, while the common ones are solid colors.
Dogs. These all look like very large Scottie dogs. Found in a variety of colors.
Horses. On these, you can find the regular horse or the art deco rearing model. The rearing model ones remind me of Ben Hur and I only have the two. I find these mostly broken. I don't know if it is because they are tippy or they were made thinner than the other horses.
Then we have the miscellaneous animals. I have giraffes, camels, monkeys (not shown) and some sort of weird big eared thing. I have two giraffes and two camels, which is all I have found. I own one weird big eared thing and that is one too many. I have no idea what it is. It tests positive for Bakelite so I let it remain, but it is a strange piece.
I don't collect these animals anymore. Though now that I say that, I will be somewhere and a new color will show up and I will be off again.

For the next few weeks we will be doing the rest of my collection of Bakelite.

These little animals are relatively inexpensive. I paid about $2.00-$3.00 a piece and now they run about $9.00 each. The rarer the animal and color, the higher the price.

So if you are out and about, keep your eyes peeled for Bakelite. Maybe you can start your own miniature zoo.

Collectible Friday - "Miss Cutie Pie"

Today for collectible Friday, we are going to do the "Miss Cutie Pie" collection.
These were produced by the Napco Company. The Napco company, National Potteries Corporation was begun in 1938 in Bedford, OH. They were very prolific during the 1950's and 60's, along with the other big pottery companies.

The "Miss Cutie Pie" was manufactured during the 1950's.
Again, I have to go with the I-have-no-idea-what-they-were-thinking scenario. These are cute but I have to say, also a little creepy. Maybe it is the fact that you are drinking out of someones head that gives me the willies. Or, if you own the cookie jar with the lid, taking off the top of someones head to grab a cookie. Anyway, I own four of the collection and they live in the top of a bookcase. I have two creamers, one pink and one blue, one egg cup, and one coffee cup.
There are quite a few pieces in the collection. This was true for most kitchen pottery. I guess it was if you had the cookie jar, it made sense that you wanted your entire kitchen surrounded with the same theme. Some themes had more pieces, while others just had the bare bones. In this collection you could own, salt & pepper shakers, teapot, spice shakers, cookie jar, sugar & creamers, egg cups and mugs.

The attention to detail is wonderful. The little girls (I'm going with girls here) have expressive faces with little freckles dotting their cheeks. Cherry red lips, some open, some closed. Different colored hair and eyes. The little faces are surrounded by either pink, yellow, or blue color with little white flowers. The little white flowers are on all the pieces.

They have a nice shiny glaze and the colors are nice and bright. The prices range between the middle of the road to the higher end, for more pristine pieces. The cookie jars are hard to find with the lids intact, as is the teapot. This is true for most pottery as well.

You will find glaze bubbles, missed glaze, and crazing on some of the pieces. This just adds to its vintage charm though.

So if you like this kind of stuff, and a lot of people do, take a look around an antique store and see if you can find a "Miss Cutie Pie."

Emma Bridgewater

Today for our collectible, we are going to do Emma Bridgewater pottery.

This is what I am currently collecting. I mostly have the Black Toast & Marmalade line. She also does Polka Dot, Kitchen Garden, Speckled Hen, and Dinosaur & Circus. I also have some of the Chatty Penguins but I am not sure what line that is from.

Three of my pieces, the Chatty Penguins and the Peace/Love & Cocoa are older pieces and I bought those used. All of my other pieces are new and still sold in stores.

The moo creamer I received for Valentine's Day and it is one of my favorites.

These are hand made pieces from the United Kingdom and are absolutely beautiful. They are a little pricey but because of their unusualness, I think they are worth it. I received mine for Christmas gifts and it was the best gift.

I have been watching the secondary market (or Ebay) for other pieces. I would like to find the cups that match the cocoa pot. It is slightly funny though, I own 4 or 5 chocolate pots and never once have used them for cocoa. I just make cocoa in the microwave and use the little chocolate pots to hold a cup of extra coffee. See very versatile.

All of the pieces have sayings on them. Like:

The very smallest cup - smallest presents are the very best.
Moo
Happiness is a cup of coffee & a really good book and a piece of cake.
2 pints - a quart - that's 1/4 of a gallon - is that enough?
A very useful mug
Peace Love & Cocoa
Hurry up
Keep going. Are we nearly there? wait for me! form an orderly queue watch out Gosh, it's cold

I use the Happiness is a cup of coffee every day, sometimes multiple times! It is the perfect size and I love books, coffee, and cake, so I am cheerful every day. At least for 5 minutes.
I haven't lit the little candle yet but maybe this weekend.

This is a great collectible. It isn't something that just sits and looks good, you can actually use them.

So hopefully you have a store near you that sells Emma Bridgewater or you can find her on the Internet. When I start to downsize some of my other collectibles, I hope to purchase quite a few pieces of this pottery.