Cire Perdue

Cire Perdue

The Lost Wax Method (Cire Perdue)
Many Early Glass pieces pieces were manufactured by the Lost Wax Method.
Lost Wax is a cheap and fairly easy method of making single pieces.
This method of casting a small number of pieces in Glas (or metal) has been used since Roman times.
How It Works -
A Sculptor carves his sculpture in wax - this cam be intricate or simple.
It is very easy to carve wax quickly and with simple tools.
Also it is easy to repair mistakes.
A Mould is poured around the finished sculpture.
This is usually made of Plaster of Paris.
Each Mould will usually only be used a few times.
The mould is heated and the wax melts and is poured out through holes left for that purpose.
Molten Glass is carefully poured into the mould.
It is left to cool down naturally.
Before 1905 this was the main method of making Glass ornaments and figurines.
Collectors love early pieces using this method as they are all slightly different.
The trouble with the Lost Wax Method was that it was unsuitable for long run production.
Industrialised methods came into being and only rarely was the Lost Wax method used by manufacturers for any major project
The method is still used by some Glass Artists for low run and individual Pieces of Art Glass
This was the method used by Oalique,Galle and Daum (and other glassmakers) until the beginning of the 20th Century.

Lalique Car Mascots

Victoire Car Mascot

Victoire Car Mascot

Lalique became famous for his Car Hood Mascots

Car Mascots were designed by Rene lalique in both the Art Nouveau and Art Deco Styles.
The most famous is the Victoire but there are Czech Copies of this car mascot from the original moulds around.The originals are much crisper and have engraved signatures.
The copies are with acid etched signatures.

These were either of Glass or a mixture of Bronze and Glass.

Some have been copied by other manufacturers so please ensure the Lalique Signature is on the piece.

Especially popular with collectors are the range of semi-draped or nude ladies and the Eagle Head mascots.

The VICTOIRE ( a ladies head with Flying hair streaming back) is the most sought after car mascot.

Things to look out for - chips and scratches on the glass are not unusual and are a sign sometimes of authenticity as it shows the piece probably was used on a car.

Some pieces have the bronze base removed and have been used as rather classy paperweights - they are more valuable with the base.

Some earlier models were actually also produced as paperweights too.
One of the earliest Car Mascots was Grand Libellule (a dragonfly).

Some but not all were also fitted with a light bulb in the base to make them glow at night. These look gorgeous.
Car mascots in coloured glass are fairly rare.

Many Manufacturers in the 20s and 30s ordered Lalique car mascots for their automobiles as they added a certain touch of luxury to their models.

Many were actually produced as paperweights and bookends.

There is More information about Lalique Car Mascots at Lalique Art Nouveau

Amazing Lalique Guides

Amazing Lalique Guides

 
 
Lalique glass and jewelry are very collectible.
They are also widely faked.
Here you will find links to guides on how to tell the difference between Real and Fake Lalique.
There are also guides to lalique art deco and lalique art nouveau jewelry guides.
 
Here are some interesting links to eBay guides on Lalique related collectibles.
If you are seriously considering buying Lalique Car Mascots then you should really read the Automobilia Buying Guide.
There is currently a problem with several vendors selling FAKE LALIQUE GLASS.
In some cases these have been etched to include forged Lalique signatures.
Please read the guides on Lalique Fakes and Forgeries.
Just CLICK on the title to see the guide.
Each Guide will open in a new window.
 
 
 
 



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New Lalique Museum Announced

Filed under: Uncategorized — Tags: , , , — Keith @ 6:47 am
  • Lalique has announced their planned Museum of Jewellery and Glass by Rene Lalique.

    This will be the first Lalique Museum in France and will be in Alsace.

    Full details can be found on our sister site Here :
    LaliqueArtNouveau.com

  • Collectable Paperweights

    Glass Paperweights were originally designed to stop papers blowing away off desks.
    In former times papers just blew away in the wind or were blown away by room or desk fans.
    Manufacturers rapidly saw the potential in attractive Glass Paperweights and produced elegant
    and lovely ones for sale as decorative items or as gifts.
    These are still made today but the modern trend is towards acrylic paperweights which usually look pretty awful when placed beside a real glass paperweight.

    Paperweights usually have a flat base to stop them from rolling off your desk and many have faceted tops to display the contents more easily.
    Domed tops are still however the favourites.

    While Baccarat was the best known French Paperweight maker (and still is), Clichy and St Louis were the other two main manufacturers in France in the 19th Century.All of these glassmakers paperweights are avidly collected.
    Pantin also made a smaller range of beautiful paperweights.

    In Britain a company called Bacchus produced paperweights of high quality and so did the New England Glass Company in the USA.
    Paperweights from these companies are also very collectable.

    St Louis is also still an active paperweight maker.

    Paperweights are often thought of as just the Millefiori (from the Italian for 1000 flowers)
    and these are indeed quite collectable (the ones to look for are the Baccarat ones which have the letter b in the middle of one of the glass rods)
    Millefiori paperweights are composed of dozens or hundreds of glass rods which usually have pretty designs or flower patterns inside them and they are grouped together within a clear glass dome.

    There are also a group of paperweights called Lampwork and these have a glass figure within them shaped within them by a glassmaker using glass tubes and a gas torch.

    These often have delightful figurines of animals or other nature subjects within them.

    Swirl Paperweights have a central millefiori floret from which lots of coloured opaque rods spiral around.
    Victorian Paperweights featuring people or scenes also exist and these were made from milk glass discs and incoprporated within the Dome.They were often made from photos of loved ones.
    These are quite rare and most of them are in museums.
    Sulfide Paperweights have 3-D portraits or portrait plaques within them - they are also quite rare.
    Other collectable paperweights include those with embroidered or woven images embedded.
    Rarer still are early paperweights that incorporate early Victorian Advertising slogans .
    Paperweights in PERFECT condition are what every collector desires.
    Factorslike colour casts, bubles within the dome,striations or scratches will reduce the value.

    A good PRICE Guide is essential if you are buying expensive Paperweights.
    Apart from Auctions,the best places to look for old paperweights are thrift shops,fleamarkets and antique stores.
    Beware of modern imitations of Victorian paperweights made in Hungary,Czech Repulic or Taiwan.
    Some of these are quite good copies and you should handle real paperweights before looking at these so that you can judge by weight - copies are usually much lighter in weight and have no signs of wear on the flat base.

    Modern Paperweights are also collectable and I have a separate article on those.
    The most widely collected paperweights are the Walt Disney range of Paperweights featuring Disney characters - some of their early paperweights are surprisingly expensive.

    More about Paperweights:
    Paperweights

    Lalique Paperweights

    Baccarat Paperweights

    Books on Baccarat (lots of paperweight information)

    Lalique Figurine Bargains

    Current Lalique Figurine Bargains from eBay




    My Personal Favourites

    Yes its Lalique !

    (you KNOW I love Lalique !)

    I came back from Paris with a Bird and a St Cloud Bowl from a Brocante

    Here are some of my other favourites :

    Frogs (I get silly over Lalique Frogs)

    Currently there is a limited edition Decanter available from Lalique specifically for fine wines in Crystal Glass.
    This is a delightful piece with dragonflies mounted on  the stopper.

    (I know what I would like for Christmas now !)

    A  Charming figurine of a Sitting Tiger

    The Thistle Crystal vase with stark contrasts in the design.

    (It does seem hard to get though)

    The Panther Paperweight - harking back to the style of the car mascots.
    A New Bacchantes Vase in Black looks very sensuous
    The Mossi Vase in black looks to be a new style icon .
    The Hommage vase is a traditional vase with delightful nudes in relief.
    Sparrows vase has some really cute sparrows and is definitely in the grand Lalique Tradition.
    Poseidon Vase is another iconic design with wondrous seahorse handle
    I was taken by the Abundance Bowl which had a very 18th century feel about it.
    The Champs ELysees Bowl in Green is a real stunner with a lovely green.
    A superb Nude Figurine and one of my favourites is Aphrodite.
    A kneeling nude called Venus in frosted glass has sold out so if you see one it would be a wise investment.
    Oceanide is a nude sea nymph rising from the waves and is quite delightful.
    The Lalique Trophy is a stunning and stark desin in black and sure to be a stylemaker.
    Lastly but not least is the Zeila Panther in amber - a magnificent panther in motion.

    Our Paperweight Sections :
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/baccarat/baccarat-paperweight
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/clichy-paperweights
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/crystal-paperweights
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/daum-Paperweights
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/french-paperweights
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/lalique-paperweight
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/millefiore-paperweight
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/pantin-paperweights
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/paperweight
    http://www.greatfrenchglass.com/Store/st-louis-paperweight

    Scottish Lady finds Lalique at Car Boot Sale !

    Filed under: Lalique — Tags: , , , , , — Keith @ 4:24 pm

    In Scotland a Lady visited a Car Boot Sale and came away with the best bargain of the year.
    She spent £1 and took home a 5 inch high Lalique Feuilles Fougeres Vase from 1929.
    I think she will be visiting the Dumfries car boot sale again.
    The vase sold for £32,450 at Christies Auction.

    I've been telling people for ages that you can find French Glass at car boot sales - looks like someone  is reading my blog !

    Art Nouveau Lamps

    Art Nouveau Lamps

    Art Nouveau Lamps

     

     by ALL Art Nouveau Glass artists.

     
    Rene Lalique made many beautiful lamps and so successful were these that at that time that many of his rival glassmakers copied them.
    Although most of these are equally beautiful,they are not usually as valuable as Lalique lamps.
     
    The other main maker of  Lamps was Daum Art Nouveau Lamps and their speciality was Pate de Verre Lamps.These sometimes contain pressed mouldings which were affixed at the time of manufacture.
    Both of these makers were widely copied at the time (and are still being copied to the present day)
    The Basic Designs show flowing rounded forms with elegant designs and mingling colours tastefully blended into each other.
     
    Because of the large number of glassmakers at the time it is easy to confuse smaller makers who actually did produce their own beautiful Lamps but usually did not sign them.
    Both Lalique and Daum signed their work .
     
    Please be aware that Fake Lalique Art Nouveau lamps do exist and are made currently in Czech Republic,Hungary and elsewhere .
     

    Always get a written assurance of Authenticity.

     



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