Flower Shop Finds - Head Vases

One of the most important lessons I have learned so far in the world of going to flea markets was all thanks to a head vase.

Head vases are easy to spot – they are of a woman’s physique from the shoulders up and were popular in the 1950s and 1960s with florist shops, though some were made as early as the 1930s with production continuing through the 1970s. The vases were made in both America and Japan and used widely for floral arrangements in flower shops, thus making their ways into the homes in the States.

Some vases are marked while others are not. Markings include Napco, Enesco, Lefton, Napcoware, and others can be marked with a foil sticker. Markings make a piece easier to identify age and manufacturer, but even if a piece is not marked, it can still hold value.

Head vases are unique and each lady has her own personality. Some don hats and luxurious minks, others have earrings, necklaces, and freshly painted nails. Head vases were also made to mimic celebrities such as Lucille Ball and Marilyn Monroe, while others are of just regular ladies and even teenage faces. Varying in size, vases range from small to others that are able to hold a good sized bouquet.

Photo via www.headvasecollector.com

Looking at the vases without a flower bouquet, it is hard to imagine why anyone would choose this type of vase to display flowers in. The stems, depending on the vase size, would have to be cut extremely short to fit into the vase. The delicateness of the vase also makes for an increase in paint chips and breakage. But, finding pictures of these vases complete with bouquets of flowers makes it easy to see the allure that they held during their time.

My first encounter with a head vase was at a flea market that I frequent every summer. I have my routine of looking at this market – start off in the very first row away from the parking area, work my way down a row, head over to the antique section, etc. I always start at the very first booth in the first row. This vendor has been setting up in this spot for years and every once in a while I have come across a few neat things. They have changed their method of selling, now largely sectioning off tables where on one table everything is $1, another table everything is $5, etc.

I stopped at this booth and walked through. Entering the last row of tables, I came across a large collection of the head vases. I hadn’t seen (or maybe just hadn’t noticed) these types of vases before. The woman at the booth had at least 20 vases – ranging in size from small to the average vase size. I found them so interesting and so pretty, each having their own style and uniqueness. If I recall, I think I may have looked at the internet on my phone just to see what these were exactly. At that time, the smart phones that we all have today were just coming out on the market and I still had a flip phone. I did have internet access on my phone, but had to pay for each minute of access. So, out in the middle of the boonies, I managed to scrounge up about 2 minutes of internet time on my phone just to identify this collection as head vases.

I asked the woman her price for a regular size vase and, if my memory serves me well, she quoted the regular sized at $4 and the smaller sized at $2. Some had cracks, some had paint chips, but many were in good condition. I picked up one that caught my eye – a lady with blonde hair, blue frock, and paid the $4 for her. She had a small crack going down the back of her, but that was not an issue with me. I placed her gently in my bag and finished going through the rest of the flea.

Upon my arrival home, I powered up my laptop and did a simple Google search and then an Ebay search. I then proceeded to sit and hypothetically kick myself because of the big blunder that I made. Google & Ebay showed me that I had unknowingly walked away from a collection that could have brought in a good amount of money. I had stumbled upon a 20some piece collection of head vases and had only purchased ONE – one!! I had spent $4 when I should have offered the woman a bundle price for the whole lot. Clearly, the vendor did not know the worth of the vases and thus had the extremely low price.

I tried to console myself by saying that even if I had purchased all of the vases, it wasn’t a sure thing that I could have sold all of them. While this might have been true, I’m sure that I could have sold the majority of them. Even selling them at the price of $20 a piece (a bargain in the world of head vases), I still would have made a great profit. Plus, who knows if in her collection there was a rare vase that could have brought in hundreds?? I went back to the flea the next Sunday, hoping that there would be a few of the head vases left. Gone, all gone. A lesson learned.

My floral shop lady sits on my shelf at home, next to some of my other favorite pieces that I have collected through the years. Every time I look at her, I do think of how unique the piece is and how I’m glad that I chose her from the many that were available. But, I always end up thinking of the many that were available and the big blunder that I committed by not stopping to do more research and finding out the market on the items.

 

~ Flea Fact ~

While I think we definitely have too much technology at times, utilizing the internet on a cell phone while out at the flea market definitely has its’ advantages. Look on Google and check out Ebay to see what is out there and the market for the item. Find recent pricing/sales and use that as a measuring device on whether or not to make a purchase. Don’t venture home to do research and expect that item to be there the following week. One’s man trash is another man’s treasure – if you don’t buy it, someone else will.