Many people assume that jewelry  must be precious metal or gem stones in order to be valuable.  This is not true.  Many types of antique and collectible jewelry are made from  plastics and are worth a lot of money.

Several years ago a friend’s mother wanted me to look through her jewelry box to see if she had anything that could be sold for quick cash.  She selected a few costume pieces thinking they had potential because they were marked sterling and 14K gold.  She was right, her things did have value, but the true treasure lay in the bottom of the box.

As I  reached for a small, dark colored oval locket, she said, “Oh that’s not worth anything — it’s just an old piece of junk that belonged to my mother.”  Little did she know that it was a late Victorian Era mourning locket molded in Vulcanite, a type of hardened black rubber.  It was decorated with Lily of the Valley, a once popular symbol of grief.  She was stunned and delighted when I explained that, conservatively, the locket was worth about $325.

Mourning jewelry from the late 1800s was not always carved from jet (a type of coal).  When natural jet supplies began to dwindle during the 1870s, dark moldable materials like dyed horn, shellac, hardened rubber and celluloid replaced it.  Look for lockets, brooches, pendants and crosses that are decorated with symbols of grief.  Floral sprays, wreaths, anchors, hearts and draped urns were all popular motifs.

Celluloid, the first man made plastic, was used to make jewelry and fashion accessories as early as 1875.  It was called “the great imitator” for its ability to mimic natural luxury materials that were  in short supply and therefore very costly.  Celluloid gave middle class women the opportunity to enjoy beautiful, authentic looking baubles at an affordable price.  

Made in convincing imitations of elephant ivory, amber, coral, jet and tortoise shell, celluloid quickly replaced  genuine luxury substances in brooches, buttons, pendants and fancy hair ornaments until the outbreak of World War I. 

During the Roaring Twenties color became all the rage and celluloid jewelry took on a new look.  It was laminated in two tone layers of amber with black, cream or green,  painted with silhouettes,  studded with colored rhinestones and made to resemble mother of pearl.  Glitz was in vogue then and still is today: collectors will pay anywhere from $35 to $150 for quality brooches, bracelets and pendants made from this material.

Bakelite is perhaps the most widely recognized type of collectible plastic used in jewelry.  It was invented in 1907 but did not find its way into personal use until the Great Depression.  Originally Bakelite was a very dark, durable molding compound used in industrial and electrical applications.  In 1927 the American Catalin Company developed a purified form of Bakelite plastic in 20 different colors.  This was a major breakthrough for jewelry manufacturers.

By  the middle of the 1930s, nearly two thirds of all the costume jewelry made in the United States was fashioned from Catalin and Bakelite.   Bangle bracelets, brooches, dress clips, rings, pendants and buttons were all made from this material.  They can be found in translucent, opaque, swirled and mottled shades of amber, green, blue, red and orange.  Novelty themes often featured Scottie dogs,  horses or whimsical dangling fruits.

Bakelite and Catalin jewelry is clunky, chunky and often heavily carved.  Since it was very time-consuming and expensive to make,  the heyday of jewelry manufacture lasted only about a decade.    Today Bakelite and Catalin is becoming increasingly scarce and expensive.  Ornately carved bracelets or brooches with dangling components can sell for as much as $275 to the right collector.

Acrylic, also called Lucite, is the newest plastic material gaining  the attention of collectors today. It was first introduced commercially in 1936, but didn’t find its way into mass produced jewelry until after World War II.  The pure, translucent quality of this material made it suitable for multi layer casting and creating jewelry with tiny objects suspended inside.  Bugs, flowers, stones, mother of pearl and tiny sea shells were all natural materials combined with  acrylic to make fashionable accessories in the 1950s. 

Lucite was also studded with rhinestones and reverse carved for special effects.   One of the most collectible acrylic jewelry forms is the Jelly Belly.  These are brooches or pendants that have outer frames of metal crafted in the shape of birds, fish or animals, with the center — or belly — made of translucent plastic.  Turtles are the most commonly found Jelly Bellies and can be had for about $35.

Of course there are many types of modern plastics that have found their way into jewelry since the 1950s, so not all plastic jewelry is super valuable.  Look for vintage pieces that reflect a certain time period, design style or art form. 

These tips will help the novice in identification:  To determine if a piece of jewelry is celluloid, use your sense of sight and smell.  Natural materials were carved while celluloid was molded, so there may be evidence of telltale mold lines.  Celluloid also gives off a distinctive menthol odor of camphor if it is exposed briefly to hot water.  Do not wet areas that have rhinestones, painted surfaces or other decorative elements that may be damaged by moisture.  NEVER expose celluloid to flame or high temperatures because it is dangerously inflammable! 

Bakelite and Catalin jewelry is resistant to heat and flame, but will give off the odor of carbolic acid when exposed to hot water.  Some refer to it as “the hot electrical smell.”  Sometimes the jewelry may be drab shades of green, butterscotch and maroon.  The jewelry was once vibrant, but ultra violet light caused a chemical reaction in the plastic that darkened the appearance.

Acrylic plastic had one great virtue — it was beautifully translucent and could be made in an array of pastel gem tones, as well as opaque, swirled and frosted colors.   It was sometimes cast in colorful layers, giving jewelry objects a multi-dimensional effect.  Acrylic lent itself well to faceted, prism shaped beads and pendants.   Often items are trademarked or bear a tag with the words “Genuine Lucite.” 

Julie Pelletier Robinson is a plastics historian who lives in Upper Jay, NY.  She is an advisor for Warman’s Antique Price Guides and is the author of two books on Celluloid, including the newly published Celluloid Dolls, Toys and Playthings.