Fabulous Fakelite: Review of Bow & Crossbones Jewelry

*Not sponsored, I bought these items with my money and these are my opinions.*

  The brand Bow & Crossbones has been popping up quite a lot in the vintage community, and after having a look at their products I decided to dive in and order a few pieces.

  Bow & Crossbones is a UK based company that makes reproduction vintage jewelry, a lot of it is what is known as 'fakelite'(they also make reproduction lucite).  Fakelite is, usually, a modern resin plastic item that mimics the look and feel of Bakelite, but without the dangerous chemicals(and high price point).  What caught my eye with this brand in particular(since there are several companies making fakelite) was their 'Adelaide' line, which looks just like the very rare Philadelphia colored Bakelite, one of my favorite designs.  Since actual Philadelphia Bakelite is incredibly expensive, I was thrilled to find such a close copy.

  B&C then released their 'Tini Deco Fan' line, so I last minute bought the earrings(I'm looking for more bold but still casual earrings).

All.

Closeup of Adelaide bracelet.

Closeup of Adelaide earrings.

Closeup of Tini Deco Fan earrings.

  Overall I'm very impressed with this company.  The shipping cost from England was reasonable, and arrived in a little over a week.  The colors are almost exact shades of original Bakelite pieces(which was important to me so I can mix these with my actual Bakelite), and the texture and weight are very close as well.  I would absolutely purchase from Bow & Crossbones again, and highly recommend to those interested in mid-century reproduction jewelry.



Further Research:
Bow & Crossbones: 40's 50's Repro & Vintage Accessories
Bow & Crossbones: Adelaide Bracelet
Bow & Crossbones: Adelaide Fan Earrings
Bow & Crossbones: Tini Deco Fan Stud Earrings

For The Love Of Vintage Plastics: My Bakelite Collection

  Bakelite has been found in almost every antique store I've ever walked into, yet only when I find particular pieces at good prices do I indulge.  However, there is also the past-time of trying to find Bakelite among the heaps of costume jewelry at thrift and antique stores alike, and although I'm not quite obsessed enough to dig through mountains of plastic jewelry to find some, I have a couple pieces that weren't marked and only after purchasing did I discover to most likely be Bakelite.

My largest Bakelite piece - a sewing box from probably the 1920s/30s.  The outside is tarnished(as is usually the case), but the inside has retained its beautiful original color, a deep red swirled with black.   Inside the lid is stamped 'Domart Sewing Box, Patented, Made in U.S.A. by The Domart Company, Glenside, PA.'

  As for Bakelite jewelry - I'm surprised at just how directly the value is reflected in how collectible the piece is.  Bangles can go for hundreds of dollars in some cases, yet brooches and earrings can be found at much lower prices.  I personally don't like bangles, but I love earrings and brooches, so this works in my favor(I also like to coordinate colors, so being able to buy matching sets is wonderful!)

Two bar brooches from the 1930s, and one rather large piece from the 1940s.  Unfortunately I didn't notice that the red one was glued together in the corner, but for the price I'm still quite happy with it.

Red pair with screw backs, 1930s/40s; green/yellow swirl pair with clip-on backs, 1940s/50s; brown carved pair whose original backs were replaced with pierced ear backs(not done by me!), 1930s/1940s.

Three buckles, all 1930s/40s.  The green one was sold as Bakelite, but the red and brown weren't - I only found out once I cleaned them and they emitted that pungent chemical smell all Bakelite collectors are familiar with(I'm still not completely sure about the brown buckle - the hue is different from my other brown Bakelite, but I'm still including it).

A rainbow of Bakelite!

For The Love Of Vintage Plastics: My Celluloid Collection

   My celluloid collection has been, almost accidentally, steadily growing since I started collecting antiques.  It turned out many of the items I wanted to buy were made from celluloid, which heightened my interest in learning about this plastic.

  As I had mentioned in my post about celluloid, I first became interested in collecting this plastic through searching for decorative hair combs.  Most hair combs from the 1910s-1930s are made from celluloid, so my love of combs inadvertently started my love of celluloid.

Decorative hair combs, circa 1910s-1920s. 
(There's a possibility the tortoiseshell comb is galaith, but with no markings I suppose I'll never know.)

  I then became intrigued by the beautiful dresser sets of the 1920s-1930s, many of which were made of a mother of pearl-like celluloid.  This type continues to be my favorite form of the plastic, and I struggle with having the will power to not purchase all of it.

 My pieced together, almost matching, dresser/toilet set in Maize Pearl with black edging, circa 1920s-1930s.

Button hook and cuticle cutter are from the same set, unmarked.

Mirror from a different set, unmarked.

Brush from a different set, marked 'DuPont USA'.

Shoe horn, circa 1920s.  A different pattern of pearl, marked 'Hampton Arch Amerith'.

Comb marked 'Lady Bobbie Trade~Mark' in Maize Pearl with rainbow swirl edging, circa 1920s-1930s.  While cleaning I broke off two of the teeth.  I managed to super-glue them back on, but I won't be able to use it now for fear of further damage.  Take it from me - be gentle with vintage plastics!

 Fold-up mirror in White Pearl, circa 1950s.  Marked 'Japan'.

  The rest of the pieces I've acquired are of the French Ivory/Ivorine/Pyralin style. 

Another dresser/toilet set, more specifically a manicure set, all matching, circa 1920s-1930s.  The close ups of the handles visibly show the faux striations to mimic true ivory.

Floral brooch, circa 1930s-1950s.  Not the usual French Ivory type, has no lines and light blushes of paint on the flowers.

Glove stretcher, marked 'French Ivory', 'Made in England', circa 1900-1910.  This is the only celluloid piece I bought not because it was celluloid, since at the time I thought French Ivory meant actual ivory.

My current whole collection.