Vintage sellers occasionally wonder what things available now will be sought after in 20 years. Notice we didn’t say things that will be valuable. That’s a loaded term that we’re not going to touch with an extra long fabric store advertising yardstick in this post. People have thought they cracked the code and battled the crowds to squirrel away things like Cabbage Patch dolls and Beanie Babies. Suffice to say the modern demand for those things has not met their expectations. On the other hand, Coro brooches, like the one in this week’s fresh to market vintage, have enduring popularity.
The vintage market works in mysterious ways. Things that sold in a flash five or ten years ago, collect dust now. Unexpected things can be super popular. Did the woman who owned the Coro brooch buy it because she thought it might be in demand in the future? Of course not. She bought it because it was beautiful. Which probably explains why it and other fine vintage costume jewelry pieces are still in demand.
The moral of the story? Buy things you love and don’t worry about its value in the future. Speaking of things you love, maybe you’ll fall for one of the things in this week’s fresh to market vintage!
Coro Red Dahlia Brooch
Coro is a well known brand of vintage costume jewelry, mostly because they were in business originating in 1901 and finally closing up in 1979. During that time they made a whole lot of high quality costume jewelry. This brooch is from the 1940s and is considered rare since they were not made in large quantities. I have seen the flowers described as both dahlias and chrysanthemums. I was unable to find an exact match in my reference books to verify the type of flowers. Either way, the brooch is lovely and would make a wonderful gift, perhaps even for yourself.
Red Dahlia Brooch, $79.95
Pam, Vintage Renude
Cast Iron Kilgore Dollhouse Table & Three Rocking Chairs c 1920s
A mixed lot of four pieces of the charming dollhouse furniture that the Kilgore Manufacturing Co. was known for producing in the 1920s. Founded in 1912 as a producer of cap pistols, Kilgore became a leading supplier of munitions and pyrotechnic devices during World War II. Happily, we have reminders like these of the kinder, gentler side of their product lines.
Mixed Lot – Cast Iron Kilgore Dollhouse Furniture, $95
Linda, Selective Salvage
1973 Betty Crocker New Outdoor Cookbook
It’s no secret that of all the unreal cookbook women, Betty Crocker is my favorite. Betty’s books are well written with reliable recipes using ingredients you don’t have to Google. Betty Crocker’s New Outdoor Cookbook is everything you want a Betty cookbook to be and more. The photos and illustrations are otherworldly fantastic. There is a drawing of a house that I want to move into right this second. And the recipes cover the range from everything you expect in an outdoor cooking cookbook to 1970s eclectic.
1973 Betty Crocker’s New Outdoor Cookbook, $15.
Laurie, NextStage Vintage
1911 Memorial Day Parade,Torrington, CT
This antique real photo post card (RPPC) captures the 1911 Memorial Day parade in Torrington, Connecticut. 1911 was between the Spanish-American War (1898) and the Philippine-American War (1899-1902) and WWI (1917-1918). People there would also be honoring contemporaries who lost their lives in the Civil War.
An RPPC is an actual photographic print made on light sensitive postcard paper. If you look at a mass printed postcard with a magnifying glass, you’ll see a series of tiny dots. If you look at an RPPC, you will see a continuous tone–no dots. In 1902, Eastman Kodak made a camera that was specifically for postcard-sized film, and paper that was photo paper on one side and printed on the back with spaces for a message, address and stamp. Photographers were often hired to document small town events and historic locations. They would then print the images on the special paper, producing micro-local postcards for merchants. Amateurs were also able to use the camera, but mailed the photos back to Kodak for processing. RPPCs were available from 1900-1990, but were most popular from 1905-1915. Think of all the historic moments captured on RPPCs, which make fabulous framed art.
1911 Real Photo Postcard from Memorial Day in Torrington, CT, $55.99.
Available from this week’s guest, Picture Perfect Postcards
Memorial Day is a holiday with two meanings. It’s a somber day, one to remember the fallen. But it is also a day of joy since it marks the unofficial start of the summer season.
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