Vintage Lunch Box

There was a time when almost every child carried their lunch to school in a metal lunch box. The idea of a lunch box has been around since the early or middle 1800’s. During the Victorian age, manufacturers began to produce tin food containers that resembled lunch boxes. Once the containers were empty they were used to carry lunches and other items.

The thermos bottle came along in 1903 and made the perfect partner for lunch boxes. And, by 1935, Mickey Mouse had became the first licensed character to grace a metal lunch box. In 1950, the television industry kicked off a long line of character lunch boxes.

The first company to pick up on the love for television was Aladdin, in 1950 they immortalized Hopalong Cassidy on a lunch box! The first ones were just decals attached to the side of the box. The popularity of this single lunch kit gave Aladdin the finances to purchase a new factory. Over 600,000 Hopalong Cassidy lunch kits were sold in the first year alone and they were priced at $2.39!

Vintage Elvis Lunch Box

In 1954, Aladdin manufactured two full color lunch box kits, Tom Corbett Space Cadet and another version of Hopalong Cassidy. Several other companies wanted in on the success of metal lunch boxes and Universal came out with the Superman lunch box that same year. The Superman lunch box is considered to be the most coveted lunch boxes of all time, one collector paid over $10,000 for one that was in mint condition!

In 1956, Aladdin made a deal with Disney and began producing the ever popular Disney metal lunch box kits. And, in 1962, Aladdin began producing the first 3D lunch kits. Both the front and back had embossed images that made the lunch boxes much more attractive.

The basic design of metal lunch boxes didn’t change much, the thermos’ however evolved over the years.Almost every popular television character during the 50’s and 60’s has been on a metal lunch box. There was even a Miss USA lunch kit produced in 1972.

In 1985, the metal lunch box became a thing of the past! The final kit was produced by the Thermos Company and depicted Rambo. While there are many rumors that the end of the metal lunch box came after some mother’s in Florida decided they were dangerous weapons took their complaints to the legislature, it’s not been proven.

Vintage Fonz Lunch Box

The simple truth is more likely that it just  became much cheaper to manufacture lunch boxes from thinner plastic materials. Progression and technology has after all been the reason for the disappearance of many of the items that are so collectable today!

Since metal lunch boxes were truly cherished by school children everywhere, boxes that are in mint condition are a rare find. Many children carried crayons, small toys and other items around in their prized lunch box even when they weren’t at school! And, many proudly wrote their names on them so no one else could claim them!

Anyone that grew up during that time knows that metal lunch boxes were much more than just a way to carry your lunch to school. Much like T-shirts later became, metal lunch boxes were a way of letting everyone know who your favorite television hero was. Whether it was a real person or a cartoon, lunch boxes were the way to promote your pick!
 
Like with so many other collectable’s, metal lunch boxes carry a lot of memories from a milder more care free time. It’s one more collectable item that allows you to take a step back and be in another world for just awhile! Their popularity is voiced in the 120 million kits that were sold in the 50’s and 60’s!

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

Vintage CocaCola

Vintage items just have an attraction that modern day products can’t match. Whether it’s for the memories or the old world style, vintage items just have a whole different personality than new ones produced today. And, vintage signs are no different than vintage glass, toys or other collectables.

Vintage signs carry a piece of history from a much simpler life time. They were made of tin or metal and were either stamped or painted to promote products that ranged from drinks and food to car oil and gasoline. The advertising was plain and simple and generally only one line slogans that caught on and became synonymous to each specific product.

Vintage CocaCola Sign

Many of the vintage signs don’t have any slogans at all, some just depict the product itself and some just simply have the name of the product on them. Of course, back then, manufacturers didn’t have the fierce competition that they do now. There was no need for catchy jingles and pushy promotions.

Advertising signs made of metal provided a way for companies to have their advertising posted on the outside of businesses. Many of them are faded from the sun and elements because they literally hung outside for decades. Another problem with vintage signs is that since they were made of metal, the ones that were used outdoors eventually began to rust.

Vintage Fender Metal Sign

While many manufacturers used metal and tin signs for their advertising campaigns, the most popular are beer, soft drinks and gas and oil company signs. The most popular soft drink signs are Coca-Cola and Pepsi, these signs were posted in restaurants across the country.

Other very popular vintage signs include farm signs such as John Deere, car signs like Corvette and even tobacco signs are popular with collectors. Some people have large collections that consist of nothing but vintage road signs. The possibilities are endless when it comes to vintage signs since it was the main way of advertising any product years ago.

Vintage signs range in value, but some are worth thousands of dollars. And, with the popularity these signs have seen in recent years, there’s also been a wide selection of reproductions hitting the market. If you’re just getting into this area of collecting, before paying a huge amount for any sign, do your homework and make sure that you’re actually getting a vintage sign.

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

1901 $10 Bison

While coin collecting has been a widely popular hobby for decades, until recently paper money wasn’t quite as popular. There still aren’t near as many collectors of paper money as their is of coins, but it is becoming more popular every year.

Most collectors fit into one of two categories, either they collect only U.S. currency or they collect paper money from around the world. Some collectors concentrate on specific time periods such as World War II or the Civil War era. While other collectors search for specific designs such as animals and political figures.

Paper currency can be traced back to the 13th century, China realized that it was cheaper to produce more money made of paper than it was to make coins. The first European banknotes were issued in the 1600’s by  France. And, by the 20th century almost every country in the world was issuing paper money along with their coins.

Unlike coins, the dates that appear on bank notes can be very confusing, especially to new collectors. The dates on coins were changed with each years minting, but the dates on paper money refer to the date that the design was first issued. So, the date don’t always reflect the year the bank note was printed.

Grafton Bank Ten Dollar Bill

Just like with any other collectable, the value depends a lot on the condition of the item. There is a general grading system for bank notes, however the description may differ between dealers. What one dealer sees as a good bill, might be considered fair by another.

The problem that arises with the lack of an exact grading system can literally mean thousands of dollars difference in the bank notes value. Even a slight increase or decrease in a notes grade can either raise or lower the value by one third or even as much as half.

While some collectors only purchase bank notes that are in un-circulated condition, this is unrealistic for most collectors. Un-circulated bills are of course, the most expensive and many collectors enjoy bank notes more as a hobby and not an investment. Although, the rarity of the bank note also adds much to the ultimate value.

Confederate bank notes are very sought after forms of paper currency. In April of 1861, the first notes from the Confederate States of America was issued and continued to be printed throughout 1864. These bills generally have rough edges since they were actually cut out of sheets with scissors. Another interesting fact about Confederate money is that it was numbered and signed by hand!

Fifty Dollar Confederate Banknote

It’s interesting to note that counterfeit bills was a big problem with  Confederate money. And, that the majority of counterfeit bills came from the North as a ploy to increase inflation! Some of the original Confederate bank notes are worth tens of thousands of dollars today!

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

Vintage Avon Bottle

At 16, David H. McConnel was a door to door salesman that sold books. He wasn’t seeing much success in sales and began handing out samples of perfume he’d created as a way to entice women into purchasing books. The perfume became so popular, that many of the women didn’t want to use any other kind. In 1886, he founded the California Perfume Company and began manufacturing his perfume in a 500 square foot office.

The company quickly grew and by 1897, he’d built a 3000 square foot laboratory and by 1928, yearly sales had totaled $2 million! The company became Avon Products Inc. in October of 1939 and in 1954, yearly sales topped out at $55 million. Today, Avon is sold worldwide with sales averaging $8 billion!

Most Avon bottle collections probably began with an empty bottle that was just too pretty to throw away! Avon has had so many bottle designs like wildlife, figures, cars and much more that even collectors that specialize in one design can find many items for their collections.

California Perfume Charisma

For many people, collecting Avon bottles and decanters is just a much loved hobby. While for others it’s considered an investment. The best reason to collect them is just simply because you love the many beautiful designs that they were manufactured in.

The really old Avon bottles featured porcelain heads and are very highly sought after by serious collectors. The bottles that had porcelain heads weren’t mass manufactured and are rare. The original label and packaging are also a big bonus for any bottle if you’re collecting them more for an investment than for enjoyment.  

The date the bottle was produced is of course, very important. As a general rule any Avon bottle that was made before 1975 is said to be valuable. However, general rules only apply when there’s not thousands of an item readily available. The most valuable bottles are the ones that were produced  earlier than 1935.

Vintage Avon Bottle

According to Avon the most highly collectable bottles are the bottles with porcelain heads, Mrs. Albee, the Cape Cod collection, figurines, steins and decanters. Anything that came in sets is also very collectable, pieces sometimes get lost, broken or separated and it’s hard to find complete sets.

Items that have the CPC mark for California Perfume Company are of course generally the most valuable. Since Avon bottles are just one of those things you can’t seem to throw away once they’re empty, they’re still thousands of each design around today. This is why that the only ones that have real monetary value are the antique bottles.

Value is in the eye of the beholder, or in this case the collector! Any collectable has the potential to be valuable if there’s someone that wants it bad enough. But, the plain truth is that most Avon bottles aren’t valuable enough to be considered an actual investment. So, anyone that does collect them or is interested in collecting them should do for themselves!

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

There are other types of glass that is iridized, some date back for thousands of years. Many of these old pieces were merely iridized from chemicals found in the soil in which they were buried for centuries. But, the manufacturing process of carnival glass didn’t start until Fenton began producing the pieces in 1907.

Not only was Fenton the first to introduce carnival glass, they also were the ones to introduce the most popular color, red! Fenton didn’t manufacturer any carnival glass from the early 30’s through to the 70’s. They continue to make pieces in carnival glass today, the company uses original molds, new molds and molds purchased from other companies.

Northwood followed Fenton with their own line of iridized glass pieces in 1908. Their pieces known as Golden Iris were all done in a color that is now referred to as marigold. However, the company soon added green, cobalt blue and amethyst to the line.

Carnival Glass Pitcher

Northwood’s aqua was probably their most popular color. Aqua was added around 1912 when the company also added a pastel line. The company is best known for their highly popular grape and cable design, the pieces were so popular that the company produced the design in over 60 shapes and many colors. Pieces are recognizable by the underlined “N”, but not all pieces were marked. Harry Northwood died in 1918 and the company shut down in the early 20’s.

Considered some of the best quality carnival glass, Millersburg was only in production for two years. The company was owned by John Fenton, president of Fenton Glass! He wanted his own glass facility and opened the factory in 1909 in Millersburg, Ohio. Although, John Fenton was good at promoting products, his business sense was lacking and the company filed bankruptcy in 1911 and closed for good in 1912.

Carnival Glass Pitcher

While Millersburg glass became renown for their radium colored pieces, Imperial is best known for their amazing purple, their smoke color and their Helios which is a light or medium green glass with a silver iridescence.

Imperial produced pieces until 1972 when Lenox bought the company. Imperial’s logo was an “IG” mark, Lenox added and “L” to the logo when they purchased the company. The company was then sold to Arthur Lorch in 1981 and an “A” was then added to the LIG marking. The company was resold a year later, then went out of business the following year.

Carnival glass pieces are highly sought after pieces today. One rare plate in Northwood’s ice blue color sold for over $16,000 on an online auction site! One private collector bought a full collection $6.5 million dollars! Some smaller less rare pieces are generally worth several hundreds of dollars, but larger pieces normally go for thousands.

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

Vintage Christmas Ornaments

Vintage Christmas Ornaments: A Collection of Christmas Past

Even if you don’t consider yourself a collector, you probably have a collection of Christmas ornaments! Anyone that celebrates the Christmas season generally has several boxes of their favorite ornaments that they’ve had for years.

From a baby’s first ornament to an ornament you received as a gift, most ornaments hold some type of sentimental value. And, if you love Christmas and love decorating for the holiday season, collecting vintage Christmas ornaments would be a great hobby for you!

Vintage Christmas ornaments make such a great collectable because unlike many other items that are for display only, they can actually be used during the holiday season. The history and nostalgia of vintage pieces can add so much to the beauty of the tree and the traditions of the season.

Vintage Christmas Ornaments

There are many different types of ornament collectors, some will choose ornaments based on shape, some on manufacturer and some by time periods. There are also an endless number of figural ornaments such as reindeer and Santa’s that are very popular among collectors.

Many collectors just love decorating their home with ornaments that have a long history. And, they will just collect any ornament they like instead of sticking with certain types, if it’s a beautiful, vintage ornament it can find a home in someone’s collection!

Some collectors have amassed such huge collections that each Christmas they will decorate their homes with several trees just to get to display their collection! And, almost all collectors are constantly searching for more pieces throughout the entire year, not just during the Christmas season.   

The two main collectable time periods are the Victorian era and the middle century more modern ornaments. The Shiny Brite Co. made ornaments from the 40’s until the 60’s that are highly sought after today. But, Vintage ornaments date all the way back to the early or mid 1800’s, so there’s unlimited options when choosing your ornaments.

Box of Vintage Christmas Ornaments

Some of the most cherished vintage Christmas ornaments are made from cotton, cardboard and glass. Ornaments made from these three materials are some of the highest priced ornaments available. Some of the glass ornaments will cost between $100 and $1,000, depending on how rare the piece is and how bad someone wants to add it to their collection.

Cotton ornaments are usually always figural, they will have a primitive look and can range from $400 up to $600. The cardboard ornaments are Dresden Ornaments, made in Germany they’re made from embossed cardboard that was painted in a way to resemble delicate glass. Dresden ornaments were usually give out as party favors and can range from $800 up to $2,000! Some Dresden ornaments have even brought as much as $15,000!

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

Vintage Postcard

Collecting Vintage Postcards Is The Third Largest Hobby!

Collecting vintage postcards is a much loved hobby enjoyed by people around the world. Postcards rank as the third largest collectable items in the world, only being surpassed by stamp and coin collecting! The proper name for postcard collecting is actually deltiolgy.

For years it was thought that postcards were first offered for sale at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois in May of 1893. These postcards depicted views of the Exposition and the surrounding buildings. They were sold as both advertisements and souvenirs.

Through extensive studies, it is now known that there were much earlier postcards that were also directed toward advertising. The earliest postcard known has a postmark of December, 1848. And, as studies dig deeper into history many more postcards are sure to turn up.

Vintage Lady Liberty Postcard

Postcards that were made before 1898 were only allowed to be marked as “Postcard” if it was government issued. Private postcards were marked either “Souvenir Card”, “Mail Card” or “Correspondence Card” on the back. Government issued postcards will also have the postage imprinted on the card.

While it only cost one cent to mail a government postcard, private postcards required two cents postage! By 1898, the government allowed private publishers to mark their postcards as “Private Mailing Card” and photo postcards began appearing just a few years later. And, by 1901, the government relaxed the laws and allowed printer to sell post cards that were actually marked “Postcard”.

The first known postcard that was issued a copyright was in 1861 and the U.S. government began issuing postcards in 1873. Although, it is known that plain postcards had already been used much earlier. The more decorative picture postcards began appearing in Europe in 1870.

Before 1907, it was actually illegal to write any messages on the side of a postcard that had the address. For this reason earlier postcards used before 1907 will have messages written on the front. And, most during that time may only have the address filled out with no writing on the picture side.

Vintage Postcard St Petersburg Florida

The introduction of a small Kodak camera in 1906 opened up the way to create postcards much like we know today. The camera provided the way for individuals to take pictures and have them printed directly onto paper that had postcard backings.

In 1908, collecting picture postcards became the largest hobby the world had ever known. In that year the U.S. Post Office reported that almost 700,000,000 postcards had been mailed. The number is astonishing considering that at that time the total population in the U.S. was only around 89,000,000! 

Many collectors concentrate on post cards from certain eras or certain publishers. While others concentrate on post cards of a specific theme, such as animals, architecture and travel based post cards. But, whatever type you decide to collect, you’ll have a limitless supply of choices.

With the long history behind collecting vintage postcards, it’s plain to see that it’s a hobby that’s never going to go away. If you’re looking for a new hobby, you may want to join the millions of other people around the world in collecting vintage postcards. 

It’s a fairly inexpensive hobby to have and requires very little space for storage. And, while postcards that were never used are a rare find, most collectors that just love vintage postcards feel that the messages and addresses just add to the cards history and personality.

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

Antique Firearm

Guns have had a pretty extensive and sorted history. They’ve saved lives and taken lives as new frontiers were settled. They’ve won wars and fed families on daily hunts. They’ve made their mark forever in history and have been around for centuries.

At one time there were few families that didn’t have at least one gun, survival literally depended on it. Today, guns have became much loved and sought after collectors items. And, with many guns being valued at thousands of dollars, they’re also being purchased as investments.

Gunpowder has been used in battles since the mid 1200’s and by the early 1300’s canons had came along. But, while some crude types of guns were seen much earlier, the first reliable proof of hand guns is in a 1326 decree by the Council of Florence.

Antique Marston 3 Barrel Handgun

Some people differentiate between a gun “collector” and a gun “accumulator”. Supposedly the “real” collectors are the ones that specialize in certain era’s, brands or types of guns. While a gun accumulator just adds any gun that catches their eye to their collection.

The true value of many collections is in the heart of the collector. And, while it would be nice and often more profitable to own complete sets of items, a real collector just knows what they like. A person that collects all brands is no less an avid collector than someone that has an entire set of Colts.  

However, there are many people that do concentrate on creating certain types of collections. Whether for financial reasons, a lack of adequate space or just the love of a certain gun, some people limit their collections to brands or categories.

The great thing about gun collecting is even if you do limit your purchases to certain brands or categories, you can still have a diverse collection. Each manufacturer has produced both hand guns and rifles and they all come in different styles and sizes.

Antique Black Powder Musket

There are just so many choices when it comes to collecting guns. It’s a hobby that can be lot’s of fun, rewarding and very profitable. It’s also very addictive as any avid collector can tell you.

Whether good or bad, antique guns hold an important part of history. Guns have been much loved items ever since they were invented. You can literally see the love for guns in the amazing craftsmanship that can be found in most models.

If you’ve always had an interest and love for antique guns, you will love collecting them. And, remember, it only takes one to start a collection. Many collections have grown from a single antique gun that has gotten handed down through generations.

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

Vinyl 33 1/3 LP Record

Technology may keep advancing and cassettes might get replaced with CDs, but the old vinyl LP’s won’t ever go out of style! For many people the sound of the old records just can’t be matched by anything else!

Collecting vintage and classic LP’s started for many when they were still teenagers. From buying the newest release when they first came out, to scouring yard sales, flea markets and thrift stores, those collections have continued to grow through the years!

Elvis Presley Vinyl

For those that love LP’s there’s just nothing that compares to dropping the needle down on a record and listening to music the way it was meant to be! LP’s were big in a time when there was very little else to do, our minds hadn’t gotten taken over by video games and high tech toys!

Vinyl records came in several sizes and were aptly named by the number of rotations they made each minute. The 78 rpm was 10″, the 33 1/3 rpm was 12″ and the 45 rpm’s were 7″ round. And, each one came in it’s own paper sleeve similar to an album cover!

Unless you’re an avid collector you might not even know that there was also a 33 1/3 rpm record that was 16″ round! These monstrous records were mostly used to record entire radio shows during the late 40’s. The whole show could be recorded on just one side of the LP!

Johnny Cash Record

Record plants were literally capable of producing any size LP. The smallest one ever commercially produced measured at just 2 1/2″ inches, it contains The Lord’s Prayer and is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records!

The first vinyl record that was widely available was the 78 rpm, 10″ size. They were introduced in the early 1900’s and were made from a really thick layer of shellac. The fast speed of the 78’s was a trade off, it was so fast that each side could only hold a couple of songs. They were also quite expensive and very bulky.

As more space was needed on the records, the 12″ 33 1/2 records began appearing in music stores in the late 40’s. There was also a 16 2/3 rpm record that was produced around the same time, these are very rare today!

About the same time that the 33 1/3 rpm’s became popular, the idea of combining commercial radio and music became popular! The 45″ came out in 1949 to meet the needs of a smaller, cheaper record that would be used for the hit of the day. It was actually even designed to be a disposable record!

Neil Young Vinyl Record

Much like the single CDs of today, there was only one song on each side of the 45 records. It gave people the choice of owning their favorite song from a band without having to buy the whole release. These 7″ vinyl records were still being produced up until 1990.

The very first record albums made from thick shellac that was brittle and heavy were generally 3 or 4 times thicker than the later vinyl records. They had to be sturdy to hold up to the steel needles that were under heavy pressure from the heads on early record players.

Once newer needles were developed with diamond tips, not only was the sound quality better, but vinyl became the material of choice in manufacturing records. The materials and the processes that were used in the 40’s to produce records hadn’t changed much at all.

While some records are worth hundreds of dollars, some collectors wouldn’t part with their vintage or classic LP’s for any amount of money. They may be old and vintage, but if they have been taken care of properly, vinyl records still sound as good today as they did when they were the only choice of music!

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com

McDonalds Happy Meal

Anyone can be a big collector of fast food toys, but the simple truth is that most avid collectors are grown ups! With every new movie, video game or comic book a new toy shows up in one of the fast food chains. And, each one quickly becomes a much loved collectable for someone. 

These cute little toys started out as a lure to get children to ask for the restaurants kid meals. But, adults are often seen buying these small portion meals just to get another toy to add to their collection! The small toys quickly became the biggest advertising gimmick in the world.

McDonald’s has got to be the king of fast food toys. Their first toys were introduced in 1979 and were merely items like stencils, puzzle books and erasers. Later that year, they introduced their first movie themed toys to promote the Star Trek movie.

Happy Meal Toy

With their addition of fast food toys McDonald’s has became largest toy distributor in the world! The company gives out or sells over 1.5 billion toys each year. Many of which have been grabbed up by collectors and never even opened!

They’ve also had some of the best and most popular fast food toys ever made through their alliance with Walt Disney. Although, Disney severed their ties with the food chain giant in 2006, the Walt Disney toys are one of the top collectable fast food toys.

There are literally millions of identical fast food toys given out each year. This makes them easily available and not really valuable on their own. However, since fast food toys are released in series, a collector that needs that one toy to finish their set might be willing to pay well for the toy.

The earliest fast food toys were actually added to the packaging rather than included in with the meal. During the 60’s Sonic began adding zoopicks to their cups, zoopicks were small animals made of plastic that just hung on the side of kid’s cups.

Fast food toys have came a long ways from just puzzle books and basic plastic figures. Now these tiny toys are almost identical to their larger versions sold in department stores. Manufacturers began to incorporate flashing lights, noises and even voices to many of the more modern toys.

Furby Happy Meal Toys

Although, most of the fast food toys can be bought unopened for less than $10, the value can differ greatly depending on demand. And, the highest monetary value of course is placed on completed sets of each hugely popular series. 

There are around 14 fast food restaurants that use toys as a part of their advertising. And, while all aren’t actually valuable, the biggest majority of them have became collectable for many people.

With fast food toys, the value can’t be measured in dollars. The value is in the eye of the collector! Whether it’s because the toy promotes a favorite movie, a much loved comic book hero or a popular television show, fast food toys are well loved, treasured collectables!

Written by Connie Corder, Copyright 2008 TLCollectables.com