22 Bakelite Buttons!! Date help pretty please??

[thevintagebungalow]

I've had this dress for the longest time. Finally got it dry cleaned and besides a smudge on the front it is in wonderful condition. It has 22 buttons..I believe they are bakelite...down the front and cute hip pockets. It also has light shoulder pads. I'm having a hard time dating this one. I am thinking very very late 40s or early 50s. What do you think??

TIA!

 

[MyVintageCocktail]

Carrie, I love the color of that dress, and the buttons are really cool.

I''m thinking your dating sounds pretty good! Tough (for me, anyway) to say whether it falls solidly into either the 40s or the 50s. Cusper?

 

[Linn]

Carrie -

I agree with the dating I'm wondering if the buttons might be lucite. Do you do a close-up of them. If they are Bakelite you can test them by rubbing the surface with your finger until it gets warm and it should give off the chemical Bakelite smell. Lucite has no smell. They almost look like "moonglow" in your photo but that could be a reflection from the flash.

Great dress!

Aloha,

Linn

 

[thevintagebungalow]

Thanks Anne! I'm going to wait for a few more opinions but I think that it probably is a cusper.

Hi Linn! When I rubbed the buttons they definitely have that chemical smell, so I'm pretty sure they are bakelite but I will do one more test to be sure.

 

[MyVintageCocktail]

Have you tried the 409 test? I've found that to be the most distinctive confirmation, or not, of Bakelite.

 

[cmpollack]

Since potential cuspers tend to stump me, too, I'll abstain from any wild guessing and just echo Anne on how lovely the dress color is.

The way the buttons continue up the collar is nifty, too!

 

[The Vintage Merchant]

also agree w/cusper

looks like a gabardine??

 

[Circa Vintage Clothing]

Another vote for cusper, great colour, love the buttons, wish it fit (what size is it anyway?)

Nicole

 

[thevintagebungalow]

Thanks! I think it is rayon gabardine. The color is not solid but has some darker threads woven in. Here are the measurements laid flat and doubled: Bust 41" Waist 29 1/2" Hips 41" Drop to Waist 15 3/4" .

 

[claireshaeffer]

What is "cusper"?

 

[thevintagebungalow]

It describes something that falls right on the line between decades. Like very late 40s to very early 50s. It is on the "cusper" of the new decade.