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How to Collect Antique Vanity Sets

Vanity will never go out of style, and neither will the hobby of collecting the beautiful trinkets that once adorned the dressing tables of beautiful ladies from days gone by. These trinkets include such things as brushes, combs, powder jars, perfume bottles, hair receivers and mirrors. Atlanta Antique Gallery tells us that, "Vintage and antique dresser accessories may be constructed of a variety of materials such as celluloid, catalin, glass, sea shells, sterling silver, thermoplastic, enamel, mother of pearl, wood, porcelain, bronze, tortoise, silver plate, bakelite, french ivory, and brass."

Those who search diligently can still find many coordinating vanity sets, but the condition of these sets are of paramount importance to the collector. In light of this, there are many good places to search out and find intact, collectible vanity items. Your local flea markets, as well as places like eBay are great places to find real treasures.

Things You'll Need

Illustrated Antique Collectors Guide

Instructions

- 1
  Decide on what vanity items, and what materials you're going to focus on. Because there are such a wide variety of vanity items as well as materials that they're made of, it's best to start out by focusing on a few items like mirror and brush sets made out of celluloid.
- 2
  Search flea markets as well as antique stores and places like eBay with your illustrated antique guide in hand to uncover and identify vanity pieces that you might like to add to your collection.
- 3
  Inspect the pieces you're interested in carefully for flaws such as cracks, wear and missing stones. If you're collecting glass items such as perfume bottles, be sure that all components such as atomizer bulbs, caps or lids are intact and in working order.
- 4
  Ask questions of the store proprietor or available salesperson. They are often avid collectors themselves and can be an invaluable resource for information that adds to the intrigue and desirability of the items you are interested in, such as the date the items were made, the manufacturer and the previous owner.

Antiques