Finally, we come to it. An area of glass collecting with something for everyone. Collecting bottles can become all consuming, and there are so many types, one must specialize. Let’s look at the possibilities.
Soda-pop and soft drink bottles: Usually made from sturdy glass in order to survive transhipment, soft drink bottles were also painted with the company and drink name, making them collectibles where the presence or absence of a paper label is usually not a consideration. Also, the use of many colors make these bottles attractive on their own, with or without contents. Signature shapes, like the Coca-Cola bottles, also bring interest to this area of bottle collecting. Bottle cap collecting can be an adjunct collection for this collectible.
Bitters bottles: When the taxation of alcohol began, many formulas became bitters, “medicinal” tonics to cure whatever ailed you, and give you a kick in the pants in the process. Bitters were so popular that different brands had signature bottles and frequently had the name impressed on the bottle at the time of manufacture. These bottles also come in various colors, including cobalt and brown. Having the paper labels increases the value, as the labels were often soaked off so the bottles could be reused in the home once the original contents were gone.
Milk bottles: Back when the milk came to you, it was delivered in milk and cream bottles. The creamery painted their name on the bottles, in hopes of returns as well as advertising inside the home. Collecting these bottles can be a lesson in geography, as each town had one or more milk processing plants, and you can expand your area of collection as broadly as desired. Bottle cap collecting can be an adjunct collection in this area as well.
Beer bottles: Like soda-pop bottles, but usually colored green or brown, beer bottles (with caps, corks or other closures) brings painted labels, paper labels and fancy, signature shapes to the table. Even starting a collection of today’s beers, whether you drink the contents or not, can bring pleasure to the collecting heart. Look at the supermarket for those easily acquired, then you can start looking at beers at bars, restaurants, and import stores. An easy collection to start, and you can quit whenever you want.
Household bottles: These collectibles were used to hold corrosive and other dangerous household fluids in generations past. Like Poison bottles, they make our plastic society seem safer, somehow, in that such sturdy containers are not needed for household cleaning solutions anymore.
Poison bottles: Bottles made specifically to be identified as containing something that would kill you, these bottles are macabre now. We like to think such are unnecessary, but our society just hides the dangerous away instead of making it perfectly obvious that the contents are dangerous. A collection of poison bottles will certainly set the tone of your decor.
Medicine bottles: Similar to poison and bitters bottles, medicine bottles can either amuse or horrify, depending on whether the paper labels are still intact. Collecting these may be a little more difficult, but reading about the contents while you search will provide plenty of amusement at the afflictions suffered in previous times.
Cosmetic bottles: Most cosmetics used to be brought home in glass containers of various sizes and many shapes. There are many, many possibilities in this area, depending on whether you want to collect by size or color of glass container, company or product. The paper labels maybe of interest, or you may want to collect only those without labels.
Wine and whiskey bottles: In wine bottles, the beauty of the glass containers is in the shape, as the colors are pretty mundane, dark green, brown and the light-green of unperfected soda-lime glass formulas. If you add liquor bottles, then you get the clear glass bottles, some with imprinted or etched designs, as well as a wider array of shapes and sizes. Again, you can collect empty or full bottles, as you see fit, and include labels or not, as seems most pleasing to you.
Baby bottles: With the advent of the bottles used with disposable liners and bags, the baby bottles of today are plastic. But older baby bottles were made of glass so they could be sterilized before use. Many were broken over time, but there are still some of these relics left. Labels are a moot point, as brand name and measurements were impressed and sometimes painted on these bottles. Fairly plain and in only a few sizes, this collection becomes a hunt for brands and condition.
As one can see, there are number of major areas in collecting bottles. Even if only considering the color of the glass and shape, a nice collection awaits at your liquor store. If you get interested in the bottles of the past, there are clubs, magazines, shows and other pleasures awaiting you. Pick a place to start, and see where you end up.
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