My Collection (part one)

Hi folks, its been a while but I am back. I took some time out from compacts while I tried out some new craft ideas - i've made t-shirts, wood burnings, candles, and crocheted hats. Its been fun and I'll continue to have crafty weekends but I miss my compacts so thought it was timely to share a few from my collection with you.

As mentioned in my previous post Butterfly Wings I have been very lucky to obtain a few butterfly wing compacts...

A Gwenda compact picturing the ship Asturias. This ship was in service between 1925 and 1957. Asturias was a passenger ship on which people embarked on 4 - 5 week journey from Britain to Australia. For more information you can visit http://www.ssasturias.net. The image on the compact is sadly damaged but remains a fine example of a compact made with genuine butterfly wings.

Here we have another Gwenda compact featuring the HMS Somersetshire, 1927 -1954. Butterfly wing compacts are easily damaged through general wear and tear and exposure to sunlight or damp so its rare to find one in good condition. The inside of the compact however is immaculate.

Next up is from the 1935 Empire Exhibition which is in excellent condition. If you use a magnifying glass you can see the scales of the butterfly wing showing that genuine butterfly wings were used rather than a foil background.

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I'll be looking to expand my butterfly wing compact collection and will keep you posted as I learn more about them. Aside from butterfly wings, Stratton is my brand of choice and take up the majority of my collection...

I was so pleased with this addition, an original Stratnoid containing rouge:

Another exciting find was this Stratton lipstick holder. It came with the original tag still attached which I found fascinating...

My research and hunt for beautiful vintage compacts continues; I will keep you posted with any new finds and share the rest of my collection with you soon....

L'Oreal Beauty and the Beast Collection

Apologies for this post being about a new product rather than vintage but I just had to share this with you..... L'Oreal have launched a special collab collection of Beauty and the Beast lipsticks and nail varnishes today and I can imagine them being an amazing rare find in a few years time. The movie is one of my old time favourites and I couldn't help but think that some of the designs in this new collection stack up to the beautiful designs we have seen by Stratton. They look so pretty and elegant.

They have only been launched in Italy (so far) and they have already sold out from pre-sale orders. I'm afraid I missed out however there is a lot of demand so I'm hoping they will expand the launch. 

Here's the link for the lipsticks on Amazon Italy

Fingers crossed!

Butterfly Wings!

My mind has been blown - I recently learnt that some vintage compact designs were actually made with real butterfly wings. There are several designs I have found so far by popular brands such as Gwenda and Coty. They have a beautiful iridescent blue background, reflecting different shades of blue. There are a few of these designs around however if you're looking for one with genuine butterfly wings watch out as some have also been made by creating the same effect with foil.

At first I couldn't believe that real butterfly wings were actually used, I searched the internet for evidence of such claims but I couldn't find any definitive answers from a credible source. I decided to try my luck and contact Juliette Edwards to see if she could help me. I felt very privileged to receive a reply straight away which was very informative - confirming that they were indeed used, and how to identify real butterfly wing compacts.

Juliette advised that this topic is covered in her book “Compacts- A Collectors’ Manual” - I'll get this added on my Where to Look post.  Most of the butterfly wings used came from the Amazonian butterfly called 'Morpho Didius'.  They were also used on pin trays, brooches, and jewellery. Coloured foil was also used as it was presumably cheaper and easier to resource. Foil also lasts longer, if the butterfly wings were to get damp, they would shed scales and lose colour. The Cites agreement now prohibits the use of such natural materials. 

The best way to identify if the design is made with real butterfly wings is to look at the design with a magnifying glass. If its a real butterfly wing compact, you'll be able to see the scales on the wings. I have two butterfly wing compacts but at the moment I'm undecided on whether they're real butterfly wings, I need another couple (always a good excuse ha!) to compare them to and determine if they are genuine. I'll keep you posted!