Vintage Lucite Purses

So my latest passion is vintage lucite purses. You have all seen them..those creative and beautiful plastic mid-century purses. Often boxy in shape with unique and very artful designs. Believe it or not, I have never had one in my collection until now.

Behold my first lucite purse:

Highly collectible now as they are no longer produced, they are a stunning addition to anyone's wardrobe or collection. They are truly a work of art and is open to such imagination. Like little pieces of jewellery, the original ones were clear and women would line them with beautiful scarves enabling them to match the scarf to their outfit.

Lucite was created in 1931 by DuPont and eventually sold. It is now a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Rayon Co. Ltd. Lucite is an acrylic, a high-end hard plastic and the most durable polymer. It doesn't degrade or turn yellow when exposed to sunlight, but remains beautifully translucent and shiny.

And the holy grail of lucite purses, the bee hive. This one is currently $495 on ebay. Yikes! But I'm seriously considering it.

Veronica

Lucite in the Sky With Diamonds

Lucite is a term for plastic. Specifically, it was DuPont's name for an acrylic resin that they developed, which when molded into a purse, can create some stunning accessories - works of art really!

Lucite purses were very popular in the 1950s, and over at Collector's Weekly, there is a fantastic write up about these gorgeous handbags.  I encourage you to read the article and drool over the beautiful bags! All images courtesy of Collector's Weekly.

Read here at Collector's Weekly.

Vintage looks so fabulous with its Patina

Today's blog is going to be a shameless plug for my friends' store called Patina.  They started modestly by working out of their home, revamping gorgeous chandeliers, designing lamps and faux finishing furniture and accessories and  much much more.  Over time, they were able to move to a shared retail space.  Now they proudly display their beautiful furniture items in a grand store that is over 3000 square feet in size.  I'm so proud of my friends who steadily and smartly grew their business. 

I must admit to being very surprised though, when their very classical, European furniture pieces started to disappear and in their place, came more modern and vintage pieces.  I see a lot of white metals like chrome and lots and lots of lucite.  Glass seems very popular as well as straight lined and simple shapes.  I wouldn't say that Patina's style is mid-century modern with teak furniture everywhere.  It's vintage and antique with a refined style that doesn't really fit neatly into one popular category.  The furniture and accessories are bold yet subtle, grand yet understated and always fresh in feel and mindset.  Patina is trendsetting, not trend following.  As vintage fashions are so desirable and enduring, our friends continue to realise their vision of styling interior spaces that are more and more vintage in feel.

If you would like more information about Patina, please email us at office@somelikeitvintage.com