Bakelite was also fashioned into buttons in the shape of objects, animals, even lips; into rings and belt buckles; and into pins of favorite animals, clusters of fruits or characters.

Early colors were limited, but experimentation soon produced a glorious array of colors as well as translucent and transparent Bakelite.

Bakelite colors holds up well, although white turns to butterscotch over time and blue goes to nearly black. These patina changes are highly prized by collectors.

Bakelite colors mellow with age. Pieces that are vibrantly bright probably are fakes. Also, if the color is only on the surface, it’s not the real thing. Weigh the piece in your hand.

Bakelite is the seminal precursor of modern-day plastics, developed in the early 1900s by a Belgian chemist named Leo Baekeland. It includes natural wood flour and heat-set phenol formaldehyde ...