Birth and Rebirth in Collectibles Trends

Do you ever wonder about what specifically spawns certain trends in collecting and decorating? What makes a certain type of item suddenly become in demand, or even have a powerful resurgence after being ignored or reviled for decades?

I had often wondered this very thing in relation to the iridescent glass we think of as "carnival glass" today.

I have been fortunate over the years to pick up a number of carnival Indiana Glass Harvest Grape pieces from the 60s and 70s-- all inexpensively at thrift stores and antique malls.

But I was always curious what it was that triggered modern manufacturers to suddenly start remaking the colorful glass that had been so popular 50 years or more before.

Well, would you believe I recently found the answer to this, in casual reading?

Yup, I'd been going through volume three of the Imperial Glass Encyclopedia, when their section on carnival satiated my curiosity once and for all!
In the 1960s, not only did Marion Hartung publish books on the subject, bringing the glass back into the light (so to speak), but an article in the Atlanta Journal and Constitution newspaper (August 18, 1963) on the topic dubbed old Carnival glass the "Cinderella of Modern Antiques."

In response, Imperial, Fenton Art Glass and other companies began reissuing carnival pieces, many from their original molds. And the revival grew well into the 1970s.

This got me thinking about how it had taken some appreciation from Martha Stewart to get the collectibles community showing renewed enthusiasm in the creamy green glassware known as jadite...
While I've noticed costs for jadite have gone to more reasonable levels in the last year or so, there for a while antiques dealers were offering jadite for princely sums. Where Martha waxed poetic, the market agreed. Everyone wanted beautiful, soothing pieces made of this opaque, aqua glass.

So this got me pondering again: what do you think is a highly underrated collectible today?

As I've always been a fan of the Carnival glass, I notice right now I'm one of the few that finds it magical. Will it have its day again?

And I adore McCoy's art pottery pieces, particularly ones from the 1940s. It always makes me wonder why McCoy pottery ends up being about half the price of Hull, even though their style is very similar...
So my question is open to you folks:

Is there a collectible item out there that you adore and feel hasn't received the attention it's deserved?

What is your "Cinderella Among Collectibles"?

Clear Beauty in Westmoreland County Pressed Glass

Just outside of Pittsburgh, in Westmoreland County, lies rolling hills, friendly people... and a tradition of beautiful quality glass-making.

Not being a Pittsburgh native myself, my initial thrifting endeavors led me to wonder just how it was that I kept uncovering so many marvelous lustrous pressed glass pieces...

Dainty daisy-pressed carnival glass shoes... Iridescent moonstone hobnail bottles... shimmery pink or purple or aqua bowls...

And all typically between $6-$20 for these artistic-looking pieces!

Well, it turned out that beginning in the 19th century, Western Pennsylvania was an important hub for American glass-making and was home to Westmoreland Glass, Empire Glass, L.E. Smith Glass and the McKee-Jeannette Glassworks, among others.

L.E. Smith Glass, in Mount Pleasant, PA, has been making American pressed glass since 1907, and the style continues to have that turn-of-the-century look.


You can see the stylized "S" mark above. Both the two tall vases, and the shoe on the right-hand side are Smith pieces...As are this candy dish, and the bright aqua bowl here...
Interestingly, Smith Glass and Fenton of West Virginia are the only glass works from that era that continue to operate in the region today. Fans of pressed glass can even visit the Smith factory for tours. You can check out their web site by clicking here. I haven't gotten a chance to do the tour yet myself, but I think I need to take some time this spring to see the birthplace of much of my favorite glassware!

The Kovels Guide indicates that Westmoreland Glass was in operation from 1890 until 1984, in Grapeville, PA. These pieces bear an overlapping WG mark...
Like Smith Glass, the pieces are often thick pressed glass in a variety of colors and cut-glass-styled patterns. My favorites have a rainbow luster shimmer like this little candydish I'd thrifted...


This bowl alone weighs several pounds. I imagine so much Westmoreland and other pressed glass exists today because of its thick, durable consistency...
This little crystal tophat is also a Westmoreland piece.
I wasn't able to find a mark on this marigold carnival piece, but I suspect it, too, began life in Westmoreland County...
So while current prices for this type of glass-- at least in my region-- are very affordable, it doesn't make these pieces less desirable to me.

And if you're a fan of turn-of-the-1900s collectibles, you might just want a piece of Westmoreland County glass in your own home, to carry on that period feel!

Happy hunting!