Collectibles -> Vintage-Retro-Mid-Century -> Bakelite

Most of us have heard the term Bakelite, even if we’re not entirely sure what it means. When we think of Bakelite we often think of plastic, as they seem to go hand in hand. But Bakelite is a type of plastic, most often used in costume jewelry in the early 20th century. It became most popular in the 1940s and 1950s, when costume jewelry in bright colors was prized over delicate chains and golden and silver charms.

Bakelite creator, Belgian Leo Baekeland, invented Bakelite in 1909, patented it in 1910 and sold it for a decade for industrial purposes before adjusting his factory to also produce Bakelite jewelry items. Bakelite was actually used for a number of things, including phonograph records for Thomas Edison. It was also now used for handles of things like mirrors, replacing the older more easily word celluloid plastic.

With mass production came the end of Bakelite’s popularity. But now collectors, and just fans of the jewelry, see out these earliest pieces for many reasons. There’s no shortage of Bakelite on eBay, but the problem is that you don’t now if something’s Bakelite or if it’s merely very good. Some people use Bakelite as a generic type term for plastic, which is incorrect.

Bakelite can be found online in auctions, in online stores, vintage shops and estate sales. Often in a batch of costume jewelry there will be some Bakelite items. Many of us who used to play dress-up often pulled those old pieces of Bakelite jewelry out of our mothers’ and grandmothers’ jewelry boxes and pretended to be someone we weren’t. This type of jewelry was most popular during the Great Depression.

The method of Bakelite production also serves to make the plastic unique. Instead of being melted and poured into a mold, the Bakelite often arrived in cylinders that required carving to reveal the design to be present in the jewelry. It could be melted down and poured in containers for shaping and coating, but most often it came in solid chunks. When manufacturers learned how to put color into Bakelite, it gave way to a period of bright colored furniture of the 60s.

It’s not easy to determine if a piece of jewelry up for auction is an authentic Bakelite or just vintage plastic. If you can handle the jewelry and do a hot pin test on it you’ll know. A heated pin touched to an inconspicuous spot on the jewelry should release a distinctive odor. Formaldehyde is an ingredient in Bakelite, so the heated pin should release that scent. Some Bakelite gives off a slight formaldehyde scent already. But when you can see it, you can ask the seller to test the item, if he or she sounds unsure.

A little research into the popular jewelry of the Depression era will bring you lots of info about Bakelite, and will make it easier to spot, even for the movie. Once mass-production began, Bakelite disappeared, but it can still find a place in your jewelry box today.

Originally posted 2008-12-02 14:00:41. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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