The complete vintage compact collection to date

Sher gave me the brilliant idea of detailing a full post on my blog regarding my complete compact collection - I say complete and later remembered i'd forgotten to photograph and mention two more compacts - one being a plastic purple flowered compact and another the powder I use everyday - a Per Una simple compact. A year and a half ago I started collecting compacts after finding one ... then four more random old compacts when we were clearing out my grans house. I took them to clean them up merely because I thought they were too nice to through away, this was their first every picture and mention on my blog;

The five inherited compacts originally blogged about on 21st September 2009

These were the ones that started it all off, and despite the two i've missed on this occasion (the purple one can be seen in the image above) this is a collection which varies in countries of origin, size, shape and cost. To make it easier to photograph and therefore for you to view, I've divided my collection into five "themes" with each compact briefly described underneath.

Stratton compacts 

During the 1950s up to 50% of all the compacts in the United Kingdom were made by Stratton, the market was dominated by them and to a point - still is. I don't have too many Stratton's I will be honest - I prefer lesser known brands. 

Back row 1952/3 Pantoon style compact with micraclean mirror cleaner (present from the parents), front row L-R first compact I found/owned gold toned flower engraved compact (inherited from my gran), white enamelled rose and butterfly two mirrored compact (from Joe), blue large compact possibly originally sold as a set with matching lipstick (ebay)

Vintage American powder compacts

All these compacts have been gorgeous gifts from my boy all sourced in America in random vintage shops in suburban Detroit or Ebay; I love American powder compacts - they seem a lot more daring, colourful with much more shape and content variety then their English cousins. 

Back row - Elgin 1940s chameleon two toned compact, unmarked Pennsylvania state map rectangular compact, middle row - the French Pegi of Paris plain square unused compact, Columbia of 5th Avenue powder and blusher compact, unused Marhill mother of pearl topped butterfly compact, first row - 1940s  American Beauty car boot shaped Greek key edged compact, small Elgina powder and rogue compact possibly from the 1930s when compacts went tiny and often were combinations of rouge, lipstick and or powder.

Branded English compacts 

Gathered from a various source of places and eras, showing the best of British between the 1940s to the late 1950s when compacts were at their height; showcasing British craftsmanship and engineering.

Unmarked British compacts

A lot of the compacts you might come across (away from Ebay) most probably will be unbranded, only marked by a "made in" and or patent number. Sometimes these were merely sold as cheaper alternatives, made by lesser known companies wanting in on the hay day or as souvenirs. 

Miscellaneous compacts - old and new

Just what I call my random compacts - brands that are unknown or compacts that are the contemporary version.  

So there you have it, a year and a half and 24 compacts down, here's hoping for a total of 48 in another 18 months. You can find more individual compact information, a more detailed reasoning why I started collecting them and some hopefully useful hints and tips on my compacts blogger page here.

A flamingo and a mirror ... some more vintage compacts

Those of you who are regular readers will know this girl is a vintage powder compact lover. Yet the more vintage powder compacts a girl gets the more picky she gets about the ones she likes or the ones she'll buy. Its the pitfall of getting knowledgeable about something you collect. You sadly don't want any old compact. It's a shame to an extent. Half my problems are solved when Joe buys my presents, he has this most amazing taste about compacts regards of knowing what company they are or their age or history. He just knows. It's that kind of knowledge that irreplaceable and very handy to have. I think I must have had a big grumble about all the "gold" toned compacts out there in the world, at one points that was all I could see; so to give me a surprise and so add a little colour, JJ came up with this little stunner!

In one part it's a step away from the normal powder compact in as much as it's just a mirrored compact rather then one to hold any kind of make-up. This in a point makes it harder to date - seeing it's without  powder it's therefore missing it's traditional Stratton stamp that a collector would use to age its dating. Regardless its still gorgeous and still Stratton in make. The white enamelled top is delicately designed with a blue butterfly and pink roses. I really should be more girlie and buy a proper handbag for work and keep and use this gorgeous compact everyday. Sometimes I just don't want to use and spoil it.

Because compacts aren't the easiest to objects to find in and around where I live, any visit to a new place is always an opportunity to hunt out compacts. Mine and Joe's holiday to Edinburgh became the perfect hunting ground especially with an antique shop within a five minute walk away from the flat we were renting. The only down side was that those we found, weren't cheap.

That was until we stumbled upon this Flamingo oval shaped compact. As a company Flamingo, established by Fulemn Engineering Ltd, were only in production during the early 1950s their limited impact seems to be due to the company's inability to break through a market already full of  compacts by Stratton, Mascott and Kigu to name but three. Therefore run of Flamingo compacts were short and today are very uncommon.

As a large oval shape the edging is gold toned with a topping of  white and red fuchsias with black and gold leaves. Flamingo compacts are sturdy well designed; the company's name alongside "made in England" is stamped under the hinge to the back of the compact. While it does not contain a powder lid, any powder is kept in by a thick puff of which mine still has its original. The puffs thickness and tight fitting acting as a thorough stopper with an additional felt gasket keeping everything in place. 

I slightly feel in love with it instantly until I saw the price. At £35 I was rather shocked a compact could command a price that high but all the ones i'd pulled out to potentially buy were around the £30-£40 mark. But then again I was on holiday so that was the only justification I needed!