Painted Apple Juice: Three Flowers

Throughout this week I've been posting painted apple juice buttons made of Bakelite; and here's the grand finale. This button gives the illusion of three flowers submerged in a golden-hued pond. Like all of the other buttons I've posted this week, the back of the button was given a carved treatment with paint filled into the carved areas—enhancing this button with a vivid splash of colors. A portrait of botanical flourishes, each flower is freckled at the center with a small rash of yellow spots. Going back to the 1930's, this dreamy button concludes my week of painted AJ Bakelite.

-Sherbert McGee

Painted Apple Juice: Red Radiance

Of all the apple juice Bakelite buttons that I'm posting this week, only one of them doesn't spotlight a painted flower design. This is that button. In lieu of daisies or roses, here we have a sharp pattern of slanted lines and a wealth of bright red. The lines were carved into the back of the button and then painted black. The red paint covers most of the base of the button as well, except for a tidy square window that was left blank and which perfectly frames the 4 buttonholes on this bold masterpiece. Imagine several of these large and striking buttons on a snazzy garment from the 1920's or 1930's. This painted zinger is too hot!

-Sherbert McGee

Painted Apple Juice: Dark Bouquet

Here's another apple juice button made of Bakelite and bursting with flowers. The button was carved at the base with a design of blossoms clustered between shoots of grass. The carved areas were then filled in with yellow, violet, pink and green paint. The flowers resemble bunched pompoms if not tightly gathered buds. Once the paint was applied, a final coat sealed the back of the button in a shade of grayish black. This is unusual because most painted AJ buttons aren't fully painted and show plenty of the original, transparent, amber-tone Bakelite. This button is a dark exception with the entire base of the button covered in paint. It's a rare view of nighttime floribunda, circa 1929.

-Sherbert McGee

Painted Apple Juice: Gardens Galore

All of the buttons I'm posting this week are Bakelite apple juice buttons with painted features. Most of the painted features depict various flowers and here's a bright eyeful of just that: Flowers aplenty. Gardens galore. The large, central button has been carved along the bottom with two blossoms. These carved areas were painted a brilliant shade of red that gives the floral design a strikingly Japanese look. The smaller four buttons, also carved with flowers underneath, have been painted green, red and a splash of yellow. They too are quite eye-catching with their vintage prettiness and picturesque quality. These buttons go back nearly a hundred years. All together, I consider them to be a flowerbed of the 1920's.

-Sherbert McGee  

Painted Apple Juice: Daisies

Since last month I've been talking about this fantastic week of painted apple juice buttons that I've been excited to share; and here we are! All week I'll be posting AJ Bakelite featuring brightly colored designs, wispy tendrils and lots of flowers. Today's button is the commencement. The structure of it is a smooth mound of chunky, transparent Bakelite that was carved at the bottom with two daisies and their stems. Adding to the pictorial charm of this vintage button, the carved areas were then filled in with paint—and voila! White daisies appear with green stems through this amazing globule of light. I love painted apple juice Bakelite and I'm excited to share more buttons like this during all of this week. Get set for some fancy finds.

-Sherbert McGee

Big Rockin' Rockers!

 

 

Nothing's jollier than Bakelite rocker buttons. These rotund and colorful trinkets came in a variety of sizes, but size is difficult to convey in a photograph. Wider than the previously shown rockers in my collection, these are a slightly bigger style. The zippy tones range between black, red, green, dark brown, maroon, creamed corn and apple juice. The shapes vary too. Several are thick semicircles and two of these rockers are wedges. I've been collecting Bakelite buttons for many years; and the excitement of finding a vintage rocker button never gets old. These two-tone merrymakers go back to the 1930's and I think they're the perkiest and most joyful buttons ever made. Rock on!

 

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BUTTONS FROM THE ATTIC

-Sherbert McGee

Cookies/A Pressed Button

The Bakelite cookie buttons presented in this photo are all black and creamed corn, but they each sport a different style. The lowermost yin-and-yang button is pressed with tight ridges. The button directly above it is made of two separate pieces of Bakelite with the black square riding the cream-tone clover. Next, a beautifully carved button reveals an art deco motif with loads of rtizy flair. As if these cookie buttons weren't enough, I garnished them with a black, Bakelite button shaped like a teardrop and pressed with a feather design. Products of the 1930's, these buttons exude oodles of charm and personality. 

Visit Doreen's online store:

BUTTONS FROM THE ATTIC 

-Sherbert McGee

Green Goddess

What's this extraordinary treasure? I'll tell you exactly what it is. One of my all-time favorite buttons, this is a green Bakelite marvel in the shape of an exotic blossom. A green Goddess, if you please. Look at the design on this major beauty. The center of the button is texturized with shallow etchings while the border of the button has been meticulously carved with six craggy petals. The Bakelite is a tender asparagus tone with just the slightest bit of oxidation along some of the edges where a tinge of orange highlights has developed. Bakelite changes color over time like a chameleon. At any rate, this angular rose goes back to the 30's with its artfully sculpted contours and verdant hue. Naturally, a button this pretty is a rare wonder. I've never seen another one like it.

-Sherbert McGee

Rootbeer and Rootbeer

Taken from an old winter coat, these huge & heavy buttons are imitation tortoise, or if you're a collector of bygone plastic fashion relics, these are rootbeer Bakelite buttons. Made back in the 1930's, they're carved on one half with a sort of fish-scale design and on the other half with an upward geyser of luscious curves. See their syrupy glow and warm maple tone. Rootbeer Bakelite is a treasure. I've had these buttons for several years and I don't remember where I found them.

-Sherbert McGee

Glorious AJ Bakelite

Let's take a look at apple juice Bakelite by way of three shimmery old buttons. Transparent Bakelite, so dreamy and glowingly effulgent, is a Prystal variety of the vintage plastic that attracts collectors for its golden clarity and eye-catching gleam. The three buttons pictured here show a bold variety of sizes and designs. The bottom button is my favorite with its wavy topside and carved underside of circular ridges. The smallest button here is also carved at the bottom with a thorough patchwork of spiffy etches that give the button a spotty texture. Lastly, the big button at the top is a less yellow shade of AJ Bakelite and more of a white wine tone. The carving along the underside of the button depicts a large flower. Adding to the button's attractiveness, the flower has been painted bright red. Nothing's prettier than painted apple juice Bakelite; and on that note, I'll be posting a full of week of PAINTED APPLE JUICE buttons starting one week from today. Stay tuned, folks! These are some of the loveliest buttons in my collection.

Visit Doreen's online store:

BUTTONS FROM THE ATTIC

-Sherbert McGee

Red+Wood: Bonanza!

Red times five! Here's a great set of red Bakelite buttons on wood. These vintage buttons are fantastic and I have to say that this photo isn't too bad either. Now how'd I end up with so many wooden buttons with red Bakelite focal points? The top two buttons pictured here are elongated toggle buttons. Below the toggles, my favorite is the clover button—topped with a red Bakelite stud that's been carved with a crisscross pattern. The button next to it is a spiral design with the Bakelite resembling fan blades. And then there's a smaller button bearing a handsome stripe. These buttons go back to the 1920's and 30's. Notice the variety of colors in the wood. I'm smitten by these diverse oddities. When Bakelite meets timber, the result is an eyeful of winsome stuff.

Visit Doreen's online store:

BUTTONS FROM THE ATTIC

-Sherbert McGee