Even people who have no intention of becoming collectors enjoy the look of American glass from the early and mid-nineteenth century. Being able to identify the different types, giving them a date and naming the manufacturer, makes browsing through your city's antique malls, flea markets, and yard sales more fun. You may even find that you have a favorite pattern. Vintage glassware collectibles are part of the history and culture of America.
The words 'vintage' and 'collectible' can be confusing. Basically anything for which there is a demand can interest collectors, and anything made in your grandparents' era can be called vintage. Many feel that the year of manufacture should be included in an item's description, if possible, just as people do when they speak of a fine wine.
Antiques, on the other hand, have value that is supposed to be enduring. They don't go 'out of fashion', and they are usually at least one hundred years old. Collectible glassware may be fifty or sixty years at most. It is affordable, and people usually buy it because they like a certain pattern, color, and function.
Functional items made of glass include drinking glasses, platters, serving dishes, and decorative items like paperweights or table-top ornaments. Glassware has always been a popular wedding present, so patterns popular in the 1930s and '40s are plentiful. Even the cheapest glass, like 'Carnival' which was given out as BINGO prizes at fairs, is colorful and prized seventy years later.
It's fun to link styles of glass to history. In America, Depression glass (as it is now known) was a cheap, molded line and not all that well made. However, it was affordable and came in gorgeous colors like cobalt blue, pink, pearly white, and iridescent. Housewives could buy it at the dime store or get it in a box of cereal or detergent. This pretty style was definitely a bright spot in the otherwise dreary 1930s.
The popularity of patterned glass remained popular through the World War II years, when imported dishes and ornaments were unavailable. Look at Fostoria glass online to get an idea of the dishes, pitchers, vases, punch bowls, salt shakers, and platters made for the American home. Clear glass was popular, as well as pink, green, and opaque white. Cambridge and Heisey were other leading brands of hand-molded and colored 'elegant glass', a cut above the cheaper, machine-made Depression items.
Many people remember their grandmother's glasses or serving bowls, or have found a box of colored and patterned glass in the attic. It's fun to identify these family pieces by maker and date of manufacture. You may find that you like the nostalgia of using them on your own table or that you actually have a valuable heirloom. What might have seemed old fashioned or fussy can now be charming and quaint. Go online and see all the different categories in this genre.
This is a great hobby. It makes trips to city antique malls and flea markets more fun, as you identify what you're seeing. Maybe you'll find a piece that is rare because of its function or color and get a real treasure. Take a hint from Martha Stewart and serve your distinctive desserts on vintage glass plates, hang WWII glass ornaments on your Christmas tree, or find a patterned shade for a hall lamp. There is no end to the decorating possibilities in using glassware from earlier times.
The words 'vintage' and 'collectible' can be confusing. Basically anything for which there is a demand can interest collectors, and anything made in your grandparents' era can be called vintage. Many feel that the year of manufacture should be included in an item's description, if possible, just as people do when they speak of a fine wine.
Antiques, on the other hand, have value that is supposed to be enduring. They don't go 'out of fashion', and they are usually at least one hundred years old. Collectible glassware may be fifty or sixty years at most. It is affordable, and people usually buy it because they like a certain pattern, color, and function.
Functional items made of glass include drinking glasses, platters, serving dishes, and decorative items like paperweights or table-top ornaments. Glassware has always been a popular wedding present, so patterns popular in the 1930s and '40s are plentiful. Even the cheapest glass, like 'Carnival' which was given out as BINGO prizes at fairs, is colorful and prized seventy years later.
It's fun to link styles of glass to history. In America, Depression glass (as it is now known) was a cheap, molded line and not all that well made. However, it was affordable and came in gorgeous colors like cobalt blue, pink, pearly white, and iridescent. Housewives could buy it at the dime store or get it in a box of cereal or detergent. This pretty style was definitely a bright spot in the otherwise dreary 1930s.
The popularity of patterned glass remained popular through the World War II years, when imported dishes and ornaments were unavailable. Look at Fostoria glass online to get an idea of the dishes, pitchers, vases, punch bowls, salt shakers, and platters made for the American home. Clear glass was popular, as well as pink, green, and opaque white. Cambridge and Heisey were other leading brands of hand-molded and colored 'elegant glass', a cut above the cheaper, machine-made Depression items.
Many people remember their grandmother's glasses or serving bowls, or have found a box of colored and patterned glass in the attic. It's fun to identify these family pieces by maker and date of manufacture. You may find that you like the nostalgia of using them on your own table or that you actually have a valuable heirloom. What might have seemed old fashioned or fussy can now be charming and quaint. Go online and see all the different categories in this genre.
This is a great hobby. It makes trips to city antique malls and flea markets more fun, as you identify what you're seeing. Maybe you'll find a piece that is rare because of its function or color and get a real treasure. Take a hint from Martha Stewart and serve your distinctive desserts on vintage glass plates, hang WWII glass ornaments on your Christmas tree, or find a patterned shade for a hall lamp. There is no end to the decorating possibilities in using glassware from earlier times.
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