Hi Everyone and welcome to the Blog today. I found something really exciting yesterday that I want to share with you.
Glassware is a tricky thing to figure out when you are thrifting. Some of the higher end crystal will identify their brand by putting their names on the stem at the bottom of the glass. In those cases it’s easy to tell if something is Waterford, Lenox, Vera Wang, and Mikasa or other good crystal.
However, many good brands do not put their names on the crystal so it makes it more difficult to identify. Often you can tell good crystal because it just looks beautiful and will sound with a ring if you tap it. The clear ring of good crystal is distinctive and recognizable with some practice. If you look at the picture, you can see that this water goblet is pretty spectacular. The stem is very long and beautifully crafted. The bowl is fluted and has both cut and etched glass in a very elaborate pattern. In fact, it is particularly wonderful. So, even without markings on the glass that identify it specifically as made by a particular company, you can surmise that this is a good piece.
I found six glasses all in perfect condition although they were quite grimy and when you touched them they felt greasy. I know I’ve said this before but……don’t pass up a find just because the item is dirty. You can wash it and as you see here they sparkle after a good cleaning.
It didn’t take long to identify the pattern as we found it easily on replacements.com
It turns out that this crystal is Pairpoint, the oldest glass making company in America. The pattern is Wickham from 1937. It is pretty rare and quite expensive and I found 6 beautiful water goblets in this pattern. In fact, when I saw the asking price on some sites my jaw dropped.
All I can say is ….WOW….was I ever lucky. Here’s a case in point where depending on your skill at identifying quality crystal was really important. Sometimes, if you can’t identify the maker or the pattern, you have to take a chance, purchase the item and trust that you have good instincts. That’s what happened in this case and I brought home a real find.
Good luck treasure hunting this week and have fun.