Celluloid, Bakelite, Lucite and other vintage plastics

[KittyT]

I agree whole-heartedly! I just want people to be informed so they know what they are getting - there's a lot of non-bakelite being sold as bakelite out there.

Oh, absolutely! I bought some bakelite dice on ebay to make earrings out of, only to discover that they're not really bakelite. It's OK, they were like $4, and I can still make awesome earrings out of them, but there IS a ton of stuff being passed off out there.

Thanks for the info!

 

[BeBopBaby]

Here's an interesting article on how to spot bakelite:

http://reviews.ebay.com/Bakelite-amp-Catalin-All-you-need-to-know-Testing_W0QQugidZ10000000000748322

Another little known fact - most bakelite jewelry isn't really bakelite - it's catalin (a very similar plastic). Bakelite has become the blanket term for all of the jewelry, similar to how people call all tissues Kleenex. Kleenex is the name brand - not the product, but people use the word interchangeably with tissue.

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

Thanks for that article! Hm, we should move this discussion to the bakelite thread. Anyway, I will have to pipe in and agree that the bracelet looks to be a copy. I think it might actually have been made by Classic Hardware, which means it probably is still worth about $75 retail. http://classichardware.com/retail.html

I want it though. Daisy, if you wish to get rid of it...

 

[AllaboutEve]

Daisy - I don't think that bracelet is bakelite. I think it's a modern copy.
But don't let that stop you from wearing it, it is super gorgeous! In fact, I'd like to get one myself!

But for future reference - a tell-tale sign that something is bakelite is that when it was originally made they had to cast the bracelet shape - then carve the design out of the casted shape. You're bracelet looks like the design was molded, not carved. A vintage bakelite bracelet wouldn't have been molded.

I could be wrong though - I think you really have to handle the bracelet to tell if it's fakelite or bakelite. When you get it try the Formula 409 test. A little spray of Formula 409 should turn yellow when you put it on the bracelet. Also, if you put it under hot water or rub it really hard, you should smell an acrid smell like formeldhyde. Formeldhyde was used in making bakelite and you can smell it when heat or friction is applied to the bracelet.

That's really useful info BeBopBaby, I hadn't heard of the formaldhyde test before.

I have been warned by a number of reliable sources that Bakelite jewellery is an absolute minefield of fakes as it is so desirable and so easy to replicate.

Some of the replica jewellery is just adorable and I suppose that if you're not fussed about having the real McCoy then it's a good option just so long as the price tag bears witness to it being a replica piece.

Ebay is supposedly brimming with reproduction jewellery so I suppose you would need to make sure that you ask the seller all of the relevant questions before commiting to anything major.

Lovely jewellery here ladies!!!

 

[pretty faythe]

Hmm, I guess stores would get a little peeved at you though if you ask to look at that pretty little bakelite bangle, pull out a little travel bottle full of 409 and spray it though. [huh]

 

[SarahLouise]

In a fit of procrastination from studying for finals, I hung up all my clip back earrings! All but three pairs here are vintage. I'm so happy to have them out! Too bad my screw back ones kept falling off

What a fabulous collection! I currently store my vintage earrings in a small jewellery box but it's becoming too cramped in there for my liking.

 

[BeBopBaby]

Hmm, I guess stores would get a little peeved at you though if you ask to look at that pretty little bakelite bangle, pull out a little travel bottle full of 409 and spray it though. [huh]

If you handle enough bakelite, you can start to reconize it from the fakes without Formula 409. Bakelite is a very dense plastic that makes it's own unmistakeable clunk noise when you flick it with a finger or it hits off of something. Modern plastic is much lighter feeling and it doesn't make the same noise.

Also, if in doubt at a store you can always rub the bracelet really hard with your thumb until the bracelet feels hot from friction and sniff the bracelet. It will smell like formeldehyde.

You can also tell by the color of the bracelet - new bracelet colors are never the same as the old, aged bakelite bracelet colors. The old bracelets change color as they age and develop a sort of patina that new bracelets can't reproduce.

And you can also tell by the way I mentioned earlier - the designs on modern fakes will be made from molds. Sometimes you can even see a line where the molds come together. Old bakelite will not have a mold line because the pieces are cast into their shapes and then the designs were hand carved and machined. The designs should look hand done - whereas the fakes look molded.

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

Also, if in doubt at a store you can always rub the bracelet really hard with your thumb until the bracelet feels hot from friction and sniff the bracelet. It will smell like formeldehyde.
.

This is my technique. Works like a charm.

 

[RedHotRidinHood]

One thing to remember-sometimes red and black do not test well. I have a couple dead-on red and black bakelite bangles that I know in my heart are the real thing, and they don't test out with anything. Karima Parry says in her books that this is pretty common. She runs this great website, and is quite the expert:

http://www.plasticfantastic.com/testing.html

 

[KittyT]

This is my technique. Works like a charm.

What the hell does formaldehyde smell like?

 

[BeBopBaby]

Have you ever dissected an animal in science class? They're usually preserved in formeldehyde & that's what it smells like. It's an acrid, chemical smell.

 

[KittyT]

Have you ever dissected an animal in science class? They're usually preserved in formeldehyde & that's what it smells like. It's an acrid, chemical smell.

If I did, I sure wouldn't remember it. Chances are I refused to do it!

 

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

If I did, I sure wouldn't remember it. Chances are I refused to do it!

It smells like awful, stinky chemicals. Trust me, if you smell something horrid after you rub a plastic bracelet, you're in luck

 

[dhermann1]

Catalin

Here's an interesting article on how to spot bakelite:

http://reviews.ebay.com/Bakelite-amp-Catalin-All-you-need-to-know-Testing_W0QQugidZ10000000000748322

Another little known fact - most bakelite jewelry isn't really bakelite - it's catalin (a very similar plastic). Bakelite has become the blanket term for all of the jewelry, similar to how people call all tissues Kleenex. Kleenex is the name brand - not the product, but people use the word interchangeably with tissue.

Catalin radios are also extremely collectable. They tend to be worth ten times as much as an otherwise identical wooden radio, believe it or not.
Here are some links:
http://www.catalinradio.com/
http://www.decoradios.com/catalin/catalin.htm
http://www.radiocraze.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=1&osCsid=913442eb31a312e19fb990cc6170938e

 

[ITG]

This is a type of bakelite reproduction (faux) but cute Scottie dogs
Retrolite Treasures Bracelet:
http://www.campbellscotties.com/productpage.asp?cat=8

 

[ShrinkingViolet]

Hooray, I just acquried my first piece of early plastic jewellery.
It's a stunning Lea Stein celluloid fox brooch:

I've searched for a bit of info and apparently she was a French designer
who was active in the 50's but was heavily inspired by art deco style.
Is anyone familiar with this designer?

 

[ITG]

That fox is foxy!

 

[Laura Chase]

I just love bakelite jewelry, to me it represents a cheerful mood and a less severe look than for example gold or stones. ShrinkingViolet, I love your fox. Have you worn it yet, and if so, what did you pair it with?

Have any of you seen this type of brooch before? It's bakelite and quite large, measuring aprox. 7 centimeters/2.8 inches in length. I'd love to know if this type of brooch has a particular name because I really want to find some more like it.

 

[BeBopBaby]

Have any of you seen this type of brooch before? It's bakelite and quite large, measuring aprox. 7 centimeters/2.8 inches in length. I'd love to know if this type of brooch has a particular name because I really want to find some more like it.

Are you sure it's bakelite? In my years of collecting and researching bakelite, I've never seen a bakelite brooch like that before. The other thing that makes me question it is that white bakelite very rarely ever stays white over the years. White bakelite almost always turns a creamy yellow or ivory color from contact with sun and skin. It is extremely rare to see a white piece of bakelite. The only way a piece of white bakelite will stay white is if it's been in a drawer untouched and it's never seen sun, which is pretty much a very hard thing to do.

Here's some more info:

http://reviews.ebay.com/Bakelite-am...0000748322?ssPageName=BUYGD:CAT:-1:LISTINGS:5

 

[imoldfashioned]

Wow! Good job on your first piece, that's fabulous!