Bakelite Watch, 1930s

    This watch was made in the 1930s or 40s, possibly in USA. It was found in perfect working condition.

    Comments and faves

    1. Miss Retro Modern (76 months ago | reply)

      This is beautiful! Great find!

    2. Retro Attic (76 months ago | reply)

      Cool watch!

    3. *Katch* (76 months ago | reply)

      that 's a treasure !!! is it bakelit or plastic ? wonderful shot as usual.

    4. galessa's plastics (76 months ago | reply)

      hi kti13! bakelite is just a kind of plastic, like so many others. as you may have noticed this stream is all about plastics design. a weird obsession, I would agree...

    5. *Katch* (76 months ago | reply)

      i agree it was a stupid question, at this time the bakelite was the first form of plastic, ;-)

    6. whiteoakart (76 months ago | reply)

      sure looks like Bakelite from here. I love Bakelite. And no turtles had to die in the making of this watch.

    7. ★

      TinTrunk added this photo to their favorites. (75 months ago)

    8. * Eartha Kitsch * (73 months ago | reply)

      That is beautiful. I have never seen one like it. So cool that it still works too!

    9. MarianaRamogida (72 months ago | reply)

      !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    10. ★

      phoenix autumn added this photo to their favorites. (72 months ago)

    11. nursdurkin (61 months ago | reply)

      so perfect!

    12. ★

      juliensart, Anouckina, and mr_new_folder added this photo to their favorites.

    13. earlybirdEES (46 months ago | reply)

      If I Owned the Collection of Plastic You Have
      . . Every morning I would be so excited to accessorize. I would blast one of my amazingly brightly colored radios, comb my hair with my tortoiseshell comb, and use fun plates from the 60's to eat my breakfast on. I must ask, does your collection bring you a lot of joy, or does it just become things taking up space? I imagine it could be a bit of both but I can't help but think it must feel pretty neat to have such a unique collection of history. Sorry to carry on. . . . design gets me jazzed up.

    14. galessa's plastics (46 months ago | reply)

      It is a pleasure. I mean, having all these objects (and hunting them and caring for them) but it also a nuisance (what the hell do I think I am, the MoMA?) and full of guilty (I should be saving this money instead!). Oh, well.
      Comments like yours are inspiring! And yes, space was over a long time ago.

    15. ★

      Iro {Ivy style33} added this photo to her favorites. (45 months ago)

    16. Rishi_Lakhani (43 months ago | reply)

      Hi, I'm an admin for a group called Designer Watches, and we'd love to have this added to the group!

    17. ★

      Love Letters in the Sand, ANEE CHEN, and jamu98765 added this photo to their favorites.

    18. claude_kitty (28 months ago | reply)

      Love the watch, but would suggest that it dates from the 1960s to 70s (most pre 50s ladies watches would have had a 15 jewel movement). And it's probably European in origin (Most US watch companies went out of business after WWII). I've had a few of these watches and they all had French movements. Which isn;t to say that the movement was made in Europe and cased in the US, but the Europeans were more likely to be using bakelite to make accessories into the latter half of the 20th century than the Americans

      Also the style of the watch face (typography, brushed dial, baton hands, etc.) are more in keeping with the 60s/70s style.

    19. galessa's plastics (28 months ago | reply)

      Claude_kitty: Thank you for you interesting contribution. There are very little information on these objects, so all we can do is guess. Although cast bakelite could be possibly made in later dates, it was not very common. Of course vintage stock material are still used today to make jewelry in new designs. So this could have been made later, the way you imply. Concerning style, we step into a swampy area. There are plenty of 1930s designs that look surprisingly 1970s and there's a good reason for that: the 1930s were all the rage in the 1970s. But, considering your point, I've seen (and got one) watches made in a similar style made of injected thermoplastics like acrylic or polystyrene in obvious later dates, probably in the 60s or early 70s. So your opinion is really worth considering. I wish someday I can find positive evidence to all the guessing I am forced to make around here. Thank you for contributing!

    20. ★

      luna87 and resperanza added this photo to their favorites.

    keyboard shortcuts: ← previous photo → next photo L view in light box F favorite < scroll film strip left > scroll film strip right ? show all shortcuts