Looking for a present for that special person in your life (or maybe yourself)?

Then Bakelite could be the way to go and if you have started to read my blog recently then you might of seen the word “Bakelite” mentioned a few times on here and could be wondering exactly what I’m talking about? Is this Bakelite something I have recently baked? Did my husband baked it (because I certainly don’t bake lol)? If those thoughts passed thru your head you would be incorrect, Bakelite is actually a plastic or its more technical name: “polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride” Say that 3 times fast..or say it at all 🙂

Disclosure: Some of the links on my blog from Etsy , eBay, are Affiliate Links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Note: If you click on an item and it is no longer available, don’t fret! The websites I have provided are updated daily with 1000’s of new & vintage items. Just do a quick search and see what you find.

Bakelite! The Must Have Vintage Fashion Accessory

Brief History of Bakelite

Bakelite was created by accident by Leo Baekeland (a scientist and a millionaire from selling his photographic paper patent to Kodak), in 1907 when he was trying to find a replacement for shellac and ended up creating one of the first plastics made from synthetic materials (discovered it would never melt). The plastics were used from everything from radio and telephone casings to kitchenware, jewelry (very popular due to its low cost to purchase especially during the depression) and even children’s toys (Wikipedia-Bakelite).

Collection of Bakelite products in a museum.

-Picture from the Bakelite Museum in the UK-

World War 2 though brought the end of Bakelite production by the main producers of the plastic “Catalin Corp” due to the need to focus on the War effort and this saw new plastics like fiberglass, vinyl and lucite take its place in popularity.

Bakelite is now highly converted for its retro appeal by the mid-century vintage loving crowd. The jewelry more than anything and if you we’re to go on Etsy or eBay right this second you will see many pieces of Bakelite for sale at insane prices. As example…the 1940s Bakelite cherry necklace below.

Source: Etsy

Don’t fear though, you can find Bakelite at lower prices than what I have shown here (especially if the vendor is not aware they are selling Bakelite or you win it on eBay or you get a nice seller who sells it under value or the piece is not as fancy, etc.).

Fake Bakelite: The vintage world has been taken over by “Fakelite” aka “looks like Bakelite but is not and very inexpensive to purchase”. I personally own a few pieces myself from Luxulite and I love them (especially on my low budget). They are a SUPER way to get the look of Bakelite without the cost.

1940s vintage style bracelet 1940s style bangle bakelite like fakelite

Here are some vendors on Etsy that you can buy from today:

Luxulite (my personal fav)
The Pink Bungaloo (pictured above)
Mrs Polly Lucite
Loretta Lou Jewels

****CAUTION: REAL Bakelite is hard to spot unless you know some tricks to test the plastic or know trusted vendors online or in stores. Decolish has as a great blog post on Bakelite testing that is a must read if you wish to venture into purchasing a piece or two of your own. People will try to sell you fake Bakelite at high prices so proceed with caution.******

In the Rockabilly & mid-century vintage crowd the women love their Bakelite and there is many a blog and online pictures with these beautiful women wearing gorgeous Bakelite bracelets (the plastic comes in the most beautiful colours and can be carved, inlaid or laminated with decorative designs thus making them the most popular). I have started my own collection myself and currently own a bracelet, brooch and earrings (like the collection of bracelets below).

These Bakelite yellow bracelets were being sold as set on Etsy

Source: Etsy

So with all that said, I will leave you with a some Bakelite jewelry images to get you dreaming of beautiful bangles and brooches to put under the Christmas tree (or even before that!). Happy Shopping!

Vintage marbled amber Burnt orange Bakelite, thick hoop earrings 1940s / 1950s.(avail as of March 17th, 2022 HERE).

Source: Etsy

1940s Vintage Bakelite Brown and Orange Dress Clip (Tested). Dress Clips can be worn at the neck of a blouse or dress as they just clip onto the fabric. Very fun fashion accessory! (August 2020 Update)

1940s Vintage Bakelite Brown and Orange Dress Clip (Tested). Dress Clips can be worn at the neck of a blouse, dress as they just clip onto the fabric. Very fun fashion accessory!

Source: Etsy

Vintage Butterscotch Bakelite Charm Bracelet (Tested). Such a stunny piece of Mid Century Jewelry. (August 2020 Update)

Source: Etsy

Bakelite Brooch/ Signed Shultz Jewelry/ Vintage Bakelite Buttons and Butterscotch Ball Dangle Brooch.

Source: Etsy

Fantastic 1940s Bakelite Grape Cluster Brooch via Etsy.

Source: Etsy

Deeply Carved Floral Leaf Motif Heavy Butterscotch Yellow Bakelite Bangle 1930s.

Source: Etsy

Vintage Bakelite Bracelet Transparent Apple Juice Marbled.

Source: Etsy

Do you love Bakelite as much as me? Share any thoughts you have on this topic in the comments section below.

Shopping for Bakelite: I have recently created a regularly updated, Etsy collection page of ‘Vintage Bakelite‘ jewelry that you can find HERE.

Further Reading:

Collection of vintage fashion blog posts from the 1920s-1960s

Thanks for dropping by!

Liz

“What is Montgomery Ward“?

Montgomery Ward was created by “Aaron Montgomery Ward” in 1872 as the first every dry goods mail-order catalog business in Chicago Illinois. After several years of working as a traveling salesman among rural customers. He observed that rural customers often wanted “city” goods but their only access to them was through rural retailers who had little competition and offered no guarantee of quality. Ward also believed that by eliminating intermediaries, he could cut costs and make a wide variety of goods available to rural customers, who could purchase goods by mail and pick them up at the nearest train station (Wikipedia-Montgomery Ward).

Montgomery Ward Firsts and Highlights

The Slogan “satisfaction guaranteed or your money back”, Ward began using in 1875 (he created it)

In 1883, the company’s catalog, which became popularly known as the “Wish Book”, had grown to 240 pages and 10,000 items

By 1904, the company had grown such that three million catalogs, weighing 4 pounds each, were mailed to customers

1926 the first Retail store is opened

1929 saw Montgomery Ward Double its stores to 531 across the United States

In 1939, as part of a Christmas promotional campaign, staff copywriter Robert L. May created the character and illustrated poem of “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” Six million copies of the storybook were distributed in 1946. The song was popularized nationally by the actor and singer Gene Autry

1950’s saw the store fall into its eventual downfall as the company was slow to respond to the general movement of the American middle class to suburbia. It’s competitors (like Sears) built stores where the customers where, Montgomery Ward chose to stay in City Centers and Main streets where the customers no longer shopped like they used too

1985 the catalog portion of the business closes

December 28th, 2000 Montgomery Ward makes the announcement that it will shut its doors for good (Wikipedia-Montgomery Ward).

Wow that is some history, terribly sad that the business ended up closing its doors in the end though 🙁

All that sad part aside, lets take a look at some of the pictures from the Catalogue shall we? (Note: You will be seeing more of this book in future posts as I plan to use it as reference for blog posts to come).