Antique Baby Bootie, circa 1890 #027

This amber baby bootie is a piece of early pressed glass, manufactured between the years of 1888 and 1900. The maker of this shoe is unknown.

Most of the bootie has a very fine diamond pattern. The vamp is horizontally ribbed as is a 3/4″ vertical line at the center back. This shoe was made in amber, sea green (nearly a blue) and pale green and several other colors. It measures 4 1/8″ long, 2 1/2 ” high and 2″ wide.

On the sole, The toe (lower half in below photo) is hollow and the heel is solid. There are no identification markings or stampings on the sole of the shoe.

A close up of the two flowers, the ribbed pattern to the left (vamp) and the diamond pattern to the right.

This shoe is in excellent condition, showing only the expected minute scratches in glassware this age. It was an acquired shoe of the Lillian P Wood Memorial Collection and was purchased by BP in September of 2000 at Delafield Antique Center in Delafield, WI. Purchase price was $45.00.  Estimated value in 2007 is $100.

This shoe, in amber, is displayed on Plate 18, shoe 225 in Shoes of Glass 2 by Libby Yalom, published by The Glass Press, 1998 and is referenced in that book as well as in Collectible Glass Shoes by Earlene Wheatley, published by Schroeder Publishing, 2001 and Collector’s Guide to American Pressed Glass 1825-1915 by Kyle Husfloen, published by Krause Publications 1992. Information also from personal records.

Green Victorian-Style Pump #025

A Christmas Ornament Shoe. These ornaments are a popular gift to me from my children (JA, JE, AB 2004) and my tree sports maybe 20 shoe ornaments,

This little shoe, nearly the size in the photograph, is a resin shoe from China. It’s detail is nice, including a ruffled opening and a raised buckle with a golden disk in the center. These shoes are a part of the Collection, because all gifts are accepted, especially Christmas gifts from children. The collection does not routinely acquire resin-based shoes.

This curiosity was purchased at a department discount store for less than $5.00 and has little to no collector value.

Red Fru-Fru Christmas Ornament Shoe #023

I promised early on that nearly any ‘shoe’ was accepted (and proudly displayed) by the Lillian P Wood Memorial Collection.  This fancy red Christmas Ornament is no exception.  Suffice to say that it was a very adored Christmas present from an adored 4 year old to her adored mother.  (AB in 1992)

It is really quite something, and I am grateful for a photograph for I do not want to go into much detail – understandably.  It does rather creep into your Christmas-spirit-heart, though, if given half a chance.

It is a monster ornament, 4 1/2″ high (not counting feathers and beads) and 4″ long.  The material is a velveteen-sort glued over heavy cardboard 🙂 and is trimmed in gold  and red braid.  Also adorned with purple gathered flowers and tiny green leaf beads. The beads are actually quite cool.

I have absolutely no hard data on this curiosity, except as with all gifts from small children, it is not for sale.

Red Boots #022

These red ‘rubber’ boots are deceiving. They look about as heavy as fluff, but they are made of a very fine, but rather heavy, ceramic.  The detail and painting are excellent. Notice the spattering of snowflakes on each boot. There are also knit green socks in the boots which are full of bits of tiny bits of snow.

The boots are 2 1/2″ long and 1 15/16″ high, and 7/8″ wide. They are tied together with string and are literally thrown over a Christmas pine bough.

These were a gift to the Christmas Ornament Shoe Collection set of the Lillian P Wood Memorial Collection and were presented in ≈ 2000 by RM. I am told, but have no written record, that these ‘firefighter boots’ were originally purchased at the famed L. L. Bean Company  for ≈ $10.00.  I cannot find these boots in any of my online or off-line references.  If anyone knows anything more, please be sure and leave a comment and I’ll amend the information if necessary.  Thanks.

What Will You Find in this Shoe Collection?

The Lillian P Wood Memorial Collection of shoes is nearly as diverse and unusual as it can get. Diversity should be a part of the name of this collection. It is the rare shoe that does not ‘fit’ well into the collection. We have an open-door policy. And when we refer to this as a collection of shoes, we also mean sandals, boots, flippers, slippers, flip-flops – nearly any footwear. Nor does the the ‘shoe’ need to be an actual 3-D miniature – we have stickers of shoes, small note cards with hand-designed shoes affixed to them, a pinata in the shape of a pink slipper, a gold key chain with a ‘flat’ flat. Almost anything goes, especially when someone has been kind enough and observant enough to give any of us a shoe of any sort as a gift.  We do not, however routinely acquire resin-based collector shoes which have many current lines on the market.

We like unusual; We like real; We like old and original. We like perusing antique shops, looking for the missing link or for the deal of the month. One of my own daily amusements is checking out eBay’s listings, but caution is always urged there. You really need to know what is being offered in order to decide if it is legitimate and/or worth the price, especially when shipping is added. I think the sellers often make their profit on the shipping charges instead of the shoes. That is not a complaint. I understand business practices. It is merely an observation. I find a wide variety of shoes on eBay, I have purchased many, and I am seldom disappointed. Just today a box arrived from Minnesota with a pink art pottery baby shoe, just about the size you’d put on a one year old. It was a famous piece for the Metlox Co. in the 1940s, and was amusingly called a ‘cactus container’ in an early company catalog.

So now, not only am I a shoe collector, I am a cactus container collector. (Say that 10 times fast!)

Hallmark Christmas Ornament #018

A Christmas ornament for the Shoe Collection. This little sailor girl mouse in her flower decorated boot is approximately the size of the photograph. Made by Hallmark Card Co., this was the Fashion Afoot Hallmark Ornament, the 2nd in the Fashion Afoot Serie

The ornament is made of resin and is very nicely detailed. It has a gold metal hinge and a red satin ribbon for hanging on the tree.

The ornament is a little ‘box.’

It is a Hallmark ornamnent and is dated 2001. The sole is marked as follows: © 2001 Hallmark Cards, Inc.

This was a 2001 addition to the Lillian P Wood Memorial Collection and was a Christmas gift to me from my children. (JE, JA, AB)

This ornament sells for $11.00 to $16.00 on the secondary market.

Opalescent Fenton Cat Slipper #013

This cat slipper is a new release from the Fenton Glass Company. Although this is similar in color to the Vaseline glass, it does not have uranium in it’s patent ingredients; it has magnesium.  This does flouresce, but very weakly.  Some Vaseline collectors include any flourecing item as collectible.  In this collection only the Vaseline with a make-up of 2% uranium sulphates is marked as Vaseline.

In 1970 the carnival cat slipper was introduced and all the shoes were marked with a label instead of a pressed sole logo. This is referred to in the Fenton catalog as “Carnival Cat Slipper #5290. This was the third design of the cat (or kitten) slipper to be made; the first was the daisy and button design and the second was the hobnail pattern, as seen on shoe # 012.

The two photos below show more detail of the cat. It’s head at the frot top of the shoe, curling forward and down, and its extended front paws.

Another close-up of the detail.

This is the black and silver Fenton paper label which was used beginning in 1970. It is unusual to have a paper sticker label remain on a gift shoe, and increases the value of the shoe (though not by much.)

This shoe was purchased as a gift acquisition for the collection and was not owned by Lillian P. Wood. It was purchased in Mineral Point, WI in 2004 by the current owner. Valued at $10.00; with label intact, $12.00 to $15.00.

Information from Fenton Glass: The Third Twenty-Five Years by William Heacock, published by The Glass Press, 1994.  Other sources were: personal records; Collectible Glass Shoes by Earlene Wheatley, published by Schroeder Publishing, 2001; and Shoes of Glass 2 by Libby Yalom, published by The Glass Press, 1998.

Fenton Cat Slipper in Vaseline #012

 

This shoe was manufactured by Fenton Glass Company. The slipper is a familiar design of this company called the ‘cat slipper.’ This specific shoe’s manufacturing number is TO #3995, the TO for Topaz Opalescent, the color’s name designated by Fenton. The shoe is a Vaseline glass piece and fluoresces distinctly under a U-V light. It was made from 1939 until 1948 and re-issued in 1962. For an in-depth explanation of Vaseline glass, see

http://theshoecabinet.com/2007/12/12/vaseline-glass-the-magic-glass/

The shoe features a cat on the front, it’s head curled over it’s front paws. It is very difficult to see the features of the cat in this photo due to the hobnail pattern, but a different cat shoe with a good close-up view will be posted soon.

The hobnail pattern refers to the distinctive raised, white ‘bumps,’ reminiscent of a type of nail head called the hobnail. This is a common style in Fenton glassware.

This shoe was an acquisition of the collection of Lillian P. Wood, and purchased at Ramblin’ Rose Antique Mall in Oshkosh, WI in March of 2001 for $24.

The first issue of this shoe is valued at $35.00 to $50.00. The re-issue’s estimated value is $30 to $35. An identical shoe of the collection is currently in storage. Its history is unknown.

Sources of the above information are Yellow Green Vaseline: A Guide to the Magic Glass, Revised Edition by Jay L. Glickman and Terry Fedosky, published by The Glass Press Inc, 1998 and Collectible Glass Shoes by Earlene Wheatley, published by Schroeder Publishing, 2001.

Vaseline Glass Slipper – Miniature #011

This is a piece of Vaseline glass, a highly specific type of glass and one that is very collectible. To find out about Vaseline glass check out the post at https://shoeboxes.wordpress.com/2007/12/12/vaseline-glass-the-magic-glass/ This is very similar to the slipper #010, but it is a re-production. The details are not as defined and clear, and the shoe is heavier and slightly larger than the original. The color is also a bit deeper than the original shoe.

This shoe features a daisy and button pattern, the buttons being the circles between the flowers. This can easily be seen in the detailed photo below.

This shoe is probably from the 1960s. Manufacturer is unknown. Value is estimated at $20.00. This was an aquisition to the Lillian P Wood Memorial Collection purchased in the late 1990s, unknown purchase price.

For a comparison of the original and re-production shoes, see  https://shoeboxes.wordpress.com/2007/12/12/vaseline-glass-comparison-of-original-vs-reproduction/

Information was gathered from personal records, Collectible Glass Shoes by Earlene Wheatley, published by Schroeder Publishing, 2001 and Shoes of Glass 2 by Libby Yalom, published by The Glass Press, 1998.