You may have heard the term “Bakelite jewelry” once or twice in the past, but do you know what it is? Bakelite is actually a synthetic resin that is used for numerous purposes, with jewelry being only one of them.
There are a lot of Bakelite jewelry products in the market today but this plastic resin has been used to create jewelry since the 1930s. These accessories are becoming hot collector’s items, with vintage Bakelite bangles and brooches topping the list. The most common and probably the cheapest colors that these old bangles and brooches come in are pea green and the more subdued butterscotch. The more expensive Bakelite vintage pieces are those that come in numerous colors and are laminated. There are also bangles with ornate carvings as well as dotted bangles on the list of must haves.
Comeback of an Old Trend
The popularity of this vintage jewelry in the market today has led to the production of fakes. There are a lot of fake “vintage” Bakelite bangles, earrings and pins being sold online on auction sites. People who are willing to shell out the money for the real thing are being given tips on how to distinguish the real vintage Bakelite items from the newly made fake ones. One such tip that vintage Bakelite collectors are being advised to use when checking out a Bakelite item for authenticity is to use a cleaning solution which will show telltale yellowing if the Bakelite is genuine. Another way to distinguish a real vintage Bakelite from a fake is to use another piece of Bakelite. If you tap the two together gently, you will get a clunking sound that is telltale of real Bakelite.
Affordable Jewelry
While vintage Bakelite jewelry is a hot collector’s item, you may not have the cash to pay for such luxuries. They often cost beyond $100, even for a small piece, if it’s known to be authentic. If you like the look of Bakelite jewelry but do not really care whether it’s authentic vintage, there are artisans that sell Bakelite reproductions or pieces created from old Bakelite stock. These are cheaper than the collectible vintage items, while still being collectible in their own right.
With the popularity of Bakelite jewelry, old or new, there are copycats that are called “fakelites”. This copycat jewelry looks like Bakelite, and earrings, bangles and pins and are often sold in flea markets everywhere. If a buyer isn’t careful and doesn’t know how to distinguish a real Bakelite piece from a “fakelite”, they might end up paying an unreasonable amount of money for a replica.
Bakelite jewelry is being sold on a lot of online stores and the most common piece is the bangle. They may be ornately carved pieces or the simple polished and laminated bangle design that was very popular in the 60s. There are also Bakelite pendants combined with semi-precious chains and dainty Bakelite earrings in different colors and designs and pins in fashionable shapes and sizes. These new pieces are either reworked or crafted from old Bakelite material.
Get the Bakelite Look
Finding real Bakelite jewelry, vintage or otherwise, may take thorough searching and careful research if you are after the authentic stuff and not the flea market knock-offs that seem to be popping up everywhere. If you want authenticity, you may need to be careful with your choices, but if you are only after the “Bakelite look” for the sake of looking fashionable and don’t really want to bother with the specifics of checking for the real thing, you can find yourself enjoying the offerings of flea markets and discount stores.
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