Fall Into Bakelite Jewelry

Maybe it’s that time of year or maybe it’s the sheer essence of the colors, but Bakelite jewelry reminds me of the fall with its earthy colors of honey and amber, or red, grassy green, bright yellow, and brilliant orange, as well as the burgundies, tortoiseshells, and lilac.  There is just something that draws you into the distinctive plastic pieces in their varying shapes with fish, animals of each sort, or painted flowers along with other fantastical designs.

It may just be the interesting history that goes along with or the connection that it has to the period that we refer to as Art Deco which is when the phenomenon really took off. The women of the era were able to adorn themselves with jewelry at a time when there was not a lot of disposable income for them to use for fine jewelry.

Bakelite Jewelry History

Leo Baekeland created the novelty Bakelite jewelry in 1909. He was a chemist, and manufacturers in the industrial market found that forming this plastic was easy and could be done into nearly any shape. The amazing thing was that after it was set, it would not melt under even the most intense heat. Nothing could damage it. The material was meant to be inexpensive so that anyone could access it. Most production of Bakelite stopped around the time that World War II began.

Bakelite Today

Bakelite jewelry is just as in fashion today (for some) as it was back in its heyday. These pieces including brooches, bracelets or pendants and necklaces along with so many more pieces are highly sought after as collectibles due to their vintage charm. The only issue that the plastic has is that the color changes when the chemicals in the jewelry are exposed to the air over time, so a once white piece may now be a pale brown in color.

Varieties of Different Bakelite Jewelry

Anything that you can imagine in jewelry was made into a Bakelite piece with their own distinctive mark being placed on it. The designer was very creative and decisive on the direction he wanted his pieces to go and the colors were always bold and brilliant.

• The locket. Bakelite lockets would often display a cameo design. For collector’s this item is generally a bit more difficult to come across than some of the other Bakelite pieces.

• Earring jewelry. The earrings in the Bakelite collection were, for the most part, clip on. The plastic proved to be chunky and often heavy for the person wearing them.  These were displayed in a lot of geometric-type shapes.

• Ring.  The rings were formed out of one piece of Bakelite and were substantial pieces that did not prove to be particularly comfortable to wear. Because they were made out of one piece of plastic, there was no way for the wearer to have them resized if the fit was wrong, so if you’re a collector and want to have a Bakelite ring to wear, make sure the sizing is correct.

• Necklace. Strings of hefty beads or molded and carved pendants or thick chokers were the style of the necklaces that were produced from Bakelite back in the day.

• Bracelet. These were very durable coming in either a bangle style or linked, and finding these will prove worthy as they can definitely still be worn today.

• Pins/brooches. These were fun, eclectic pieces made into all different kinds of shapes and characters and objects. If you can think of it, it was probably made into a Bakelite brooch.

Value of Bakelite

If you are a collector of Bakelite, there are a number of things that will determine the value of each piece.

• Color. When the chemicals in the plastic is exposed to the air it changes the color of some of the pieces, particularly with the turquoise which will turn to a greenish color. So, some colors are quite rare and, therefore, more valuable than others. Having an actual Turquoise Bakelite would be very valuable.

• Design. If you have pieces that have multiple shades of Bakelite or that have been painted or carved or laminated these are among the pieces that will bring the most money.

• Condition. Jewelry that is missing a necklace clasp or the back to an earring, or if you have jewelry that is scratched up or scuffed in any way or has chips in it, this will depreciate the value. Usually the Bakelite jewelry will hold up well to any condition, very sturdy.

• Vintage. There are some pieces that are in high demand because they are unique, e.g. The animal shaped pins or the florals as well as the polka-dot pattern.

• Wearable. If you collect to display this won’t be an issue for you, but if you collect to wear, some of these pieces won’t be as accommodating as they were years ago. The earrings may prove heavy, the shoe clips aren’t necessarily appropriate for the shoes today, but the bracelets and necklaces as well as the lockets, pendants and brooches, game on.

Some of us are minimalist in our lives, but if we began to collect something, this would so be it. These pieces are so much fun and really stunning. It’s no wonder these have remained a hit over the course of time.