I'm A Collector of Many Things.... What Do You Collect? Part Two

I received my first piece of American Brilliant Period Cut Glass from my mother (The Brown Recluse) as a wedding present. She had been given the piece by a sister of her mother's. At 25, I wasn't impressed. I felt as if she hadn't even given us anything and I was fairly pissed off about it. However, moving on down the road, at age 45 I rediscovered the beauty of ABP (as those of us in the trade call it) when I inherited a large number of pieces from my mother-in-law, and I've been collecting it ever since.


When my mother-in-law was finally taken by the cancer that was raging throughout her body, it was left to me to get everything in order after the death of my beloved in-laws. In the beginning I couldn't last even 15 minutes before I started bawling again and would have to leave their house. Needless to say, it took me months to achieve my task. During that time I began a torrid love affair with glass. I was especially enamored with the ABP pieces. Having raised three boys (all 3 years apart), my mother-in-law wisely chose to hide the most exquisite pieces in every nook and cranny that couldn't be easily accessed by young boys.


As I discovered these pieces and carefully washed them, I was falling in love with not just the glass, but the lost art of cutting the glass as well. When I was drying each piece of cut glass, I noticed that the towel was literally being destroyed by the sharp cuts... and that fascinated me.


ABP was made between 1875 and 1915 and was highly popular among the wealthy, as it wasn't something the common man could afford. ABP was hand blown and hand cut, but toward the end of this era, labor saving steps and the onset of WWII resulted in the death of this incredible art. Baby-Boomers have rediscovered cut glass with the ultimate realization that not only is it part of our own parents heritage, but it could never be made in these times at the prices we pay for these exquisite pieces of art.


Since our parents' generation is slowly leaving us, it seems we are striving to preserve some of the beauty produced during their - and their parents' lifetimes. The cost to make cut glass comparable to ABP would be astronomical in this day and age. The hundreds of patterns made were intricately detailed with the finest craftsmanship available and a high content of lead, unlike pieces made today. It only takes a quick turn of an ABP piece under a light or in the sun, to experience the bedazzling qualities each piece possesses. The American Brilliant Period is a moment in our history that can never be repeated, only appreciated by collectors, new and old. Unfortunately, most people cannot tell the difference between cheap pattern glass and ABP cut glass without a fair amount of study. Personally, I collect specific pieces to only two different patterns. So, when I come across pieces in other patterns I offer them to my customers at reasonable and affordable prices. Often, it takes months of research to finally determine a pattern, while other patterns are quickly identified. If you want to know more about collecting ABP cut glass, then you'll need to do your homework. In my opinion, 'Evers' Standard Cut Glass Guide', Warman's 'American Cut Glass', and 'Collecting American Brilliant Cut Glass' by Bill and Louise Boggess are several of the best guides, because they have precise, clear drawings of various patterns shown in numerous different pieces, as well as detailed explanations about how it was made. However, there are dozens of other very good guides as well. So, happy collecting!





On a final note, I'd just like to say that anyone who doesn't like this stuff when holding it in the sunlight... is just plainly nuts. Antique Glass has proven itself time and again, to be a sound investment. Even during times when the economy has spiraled downward, antiques (if you know what you're doing) investments seldom fail to produce revenue.

Glass is just one of the many things I collect. What do you collect?