Living A Vintage Life: Milk Glass Mania

Living a vintage life frequently goes beyond accumulating and using vintage goods, a vintageophile's life often includes a focused passion, a drive to collect some special item that touches the soul. For many that passion is Milk Glass. Whether solidly opaque or softly translucent, it has a special place in the heart of many collectors. ‘True’ milk glass has been described to me thus: “it looks like your glass of milk after the ice cubes have melted”. Loving a cold, iced glass of milk on a hot day, I understood the description perfectly. While many discriminating collectors still accept only the subtly opalescent pieces, Milk Glass Mania has created a generation of collectors who embrace all white glass as milk glass. And you know what? That’s alright with me because I love all of it!

I found a wonderful blog called Passion of MilkglassCollecting. She loves to blend her pieces with blue, happily displaying candles and flowers, and even lining pieces alongside her tub to hold fragrant bathing products.

Sometimes entire rooms are being decorated around milk glass collections with pieces displayed against deep blue walls, scattered across chippy mantles, on kitchen shelves or behind dust-free glass break fronts. A fun trend is using milk glass to decorate bridal showers and wedding receptions – there are even businesses that specialize in renting vintage milk glass for these occasions. Bliss Magazine has some pretty ideas for reception décor featuring milk glass.

Maybe you don’t have a lot of milk glass, but you’re coveting the look? Grab clear bottles, swish some white paint inside and let dry. Voila! Instant milk glass! Beach House In The City offers great instructions and photos.

Wherever a vintage trend develops, modern industry responds with reproductions, which is definitely true of milk glass. While some conscientiously-unburdened retailers may attempt to pass it off as vintage, most are simply responding to consumer demand. While I won’t go so far as to link you to some modern reproduction goods but I’m happy to point you to the website of the National Milk Glass Society. For a visual feast of milk glass, you can visit their photo galleries.

Use the comments below to tell me about your milk glass passion!
posted by Deborah Berry ~Three Chicks Vintage

Fresh Picks: Glorious Glass

While our Certified Shops offer a stunning array of Vintage Art Glass, a collection of humble and quirky old bottles and vases--the simpler the better--creates a heavenly aura when arranged on a sunny windowsill. The effect is mesmerizing, and brings a cheery splash of color to any room. Here are some new finds to get you started!

Cobalt Blue Mixed collection... 10karri $25.00	Antique Bottles - Chili Powd... KentonCollecti... $18.00	1970s Emerald Green Glass Pe... SurrenderDorot... $8.89
Two Old Bottles Nice Color queenofsienna $8.00	Bitter Fish. Vintage cobalt ... Kultur $16.00	Treasury Featured - Set of t... yeoldevintages... $12.99

Treasury tool by whalesharkwebsites

Born in the Month of July

I'm going to interrupt my series on Fenton Silver Crest to highlight this month's birthstones and such.

Vintage Boudoir Art Deco
Vanity Set
by KowGirlKitsch

People born in July are born under either the sign of Cancer (June 22 - July 22), the crab, or Leo (July 23 - August 22), the lion.

Cancers and Emeralds

Cancers traditionally claim Emerald as their birth stone, while Leos claim Onyx.  Emeralds, a member of the beryl family, were thought to have mystical powers and enhance clairvoyance, love, and happiness, and are also thought to promote healing.

Trivia - Emeralds are one of only two gemstones, the other being Topaz, that is listed as a birthstone in all of the ancient lists.

To find more offerings of Emeralds by the EtsyVintageTeam - please click here.

Vintage Mexico Sterling &
Black Onyx Necklace
by MaryBethHale

Leos and Onyx

Onyx, a form of quartz and one of my favorite gemstones, comes in the traditional black, or can be found with white bands on black or brown.  Onyx is also thought to enhance intuition and promote healing, and help curb bad habits.

My favorite form of Black Onyx can be found carved in old Mexican jewelry, similar to the example to the right.  These handmade pieces are very impressive in their design and creativity.

Mythology - Roman legend has it that the god Cupid trimmed his mother Venus' fingernails while she was asleep along the banks of the sacred Indus River.  As those clippings fell into the river and rested along the bottom, they turned to Onyx, as they were originally part of a god's body.

To find more offerings of Onyx by the EtsyVintageTeam - please click here. 

The Ruby

Modern, Mystical, and Ayurvedic philosophies (visit my blogpost for June for more information) all claim Ruby as the birthstone for July.

Vintage Ruby Red
Juice Glasses
by JudyGoVintage

Tiffany & Co., c1870, also promoted Ruby as July's Birthstone w/the following poem:

The glowing ruby shall adorn,

Those who in July are born;

Then they'll be exempt and free

From love's doubts and anxiety.

The Ruby, a Corundum variety, and the second hardest stone after Diamond, was often used as a talisman in ancient times to ward off evil and is thought to bring security and contentment.  Because of it's fiery color, Rubies are often associated w/everlasting love and good fortune.

Trivia - Only the red form of the gemstone is considered a Ruby, all other colors are considered Sapphires.

To find more offerings of Rubies by the EtsyVintageTeam - please click here.


Birthflower

The birthflower for July is the Delphinium, or Larkspur, thought to symbolize joyfulness.

1922 Delphinium Lithograph
For Framing by SurrenderDorothy

Fenton Silver Crest Spanish Lace

Fenton Silver Crest
Footed Cake Stand
by Treasure Hunt Vintage

Last week I talked a bit about Fenton Silver Crest and alluded, in that blog post, to a highly sought-after treatment to Silver Crest, known as Spanish Lace.

Spanish Lace was first introduced on a Silver Crest footed cake plate in 1962.  Spanish Lace continued in production until the 1980s.  The hardest to find in this slightly common line are the footed salt & pepper shakers,  and the Gone w/the Wind hurricane lamp, a most impressive piece at 24".

Collectors can also find the hand-painted decoration, Violets in the Snow, on Silver Crest Spanish Lace, but I will talk about that treatment next week.

Fenton Silver Crest
Spanish Lace Candleholder
by Silk Creek Gallery

Spanish Lace is not exclusive to the Silver Crest line, and can be found on a number of crests, including the teal and plum crests.  Additionally, Spanish Lace can be found w/out the crest in limited supply, on lines such as carnival glass, Country Cranberry, Persian Pearl, and Ivory Satin Glass.  Spanish Lace without a crest continued in production until the late 1990s/early 2000s, with some of these lines being made for QVC.

I'm a big fan of milk glass, and think, in general, it decorates a table like nothing else, especially at Christmas & Hanukkah time.  But when you couple milk glass with a highly ornate, and sometimes hand-painted, treatment - your guests are sure to be envious of your table and have nothing more to do than shower you with complements.

This classy Fenton line looks spectacular paired w/red and green, or blue table treatments.  Even placed on the mantle or on side tables to offer holiday bon bons, Fenton Silver Crest Spanish Lace simply dazzles.

The Etsy Vintage Team offers a wide selection of Fenton - please click here to review those pieces.

Blenko Glass Love

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is the first in a series of articles by guest writers, which we plan to run more or less weekly on various topics of interest to vintage lovers. Thanks to Jennifer of jenzee09 for sharing her love of Blenko Glass.

It all happened about 5 years ago. I was looking online at random pieces of Art Glass, when I stumbled on a piece of glass called Blenko. This was by far one of the most beautiful pieces of hand-blown glass I had ever seen. After further online investigation, I was in love! I had no idea all this beautiful glass was being manufactured right here in the good ol’ USA for more than 100 years.

Winslow 920-L from jenzee09

William J. Blenko founded the Blenko Glass Company in 1893. Originally located in Kokomo, Indiana, Blenko manufactured mouth blown (antique) sheet glass for stained glass windows. In the late 1930s Blenko began producing tableware. The Depression had ruined the stained glass market, forcing Blenko to expand and broaden its horizons.

In 1947 Blenko hired its first design director, Winslow Anderson. Mr. Anderson was given full creative freedom. His ideas changed Blenko Glass forever. New, creative, and unique pieces were manufactured. Vases and decanters were designed with sleek style and beautiful curves. Newer, brighter, bolder colors were used.

Blenko 6138

Through the years Blenko continued to work with design directors, most notably Winslow Anderson, Wayne Husted, Joel Philip Myers, and John Nickerson. These brilliant artists evolved Blenko’s designs even further, including designing monumental architectural scale pieces, standing 3 feet tall! 

Blenko glass has been a growing collectible since the 1960s and is easily distinguished by its shapes and colors (for reference, follow this link).

Blenko has used foil labels over the years, except for a short time, from 1958 to 1961, when a sandblasted mark reading BLENKO was used. The best way to identify authentic pieces is by referencing one of the catalogs produced by the company. Catalogs have been reproduced in hardcover books by Leslie Pina and are available online and in many local libraries.

Blenko #6527 from mascarajones

1977 Blue Top Mountain Line, from Modnique

 

Once I began to familiarize myself with the Blenko designs, I realized that Blenko Glass is everywhere. I’ve even spotted pieces on sets of old and new television shows!
 

Throughout the years, the company has remained in the family and has been passed down from father to son to grandson. Today, Blenko is still designing and selling beautiful tableware and art glass. They are located in Milton, WV, where they have been since 1921. They offer factory tours, a visitor’s center, and a gift shop filled with their newest pieces.

As for me, I now own nearly 40 pieces of Blenko in all shapes, sizes and colors. It sure is a lot of dusting, but boy does my apartment look pretty!