# So where do I find a guide for Art Deco Soda bottles?



## Lbrewer42 (Jan 29, 2022)

I am interested in picking up a few of the fancier decorative art deco soda bottles, but cannot find a list of examples/names/etc.  I see pictures online of collections, but many too small to see a name.  I assume there are a lot more than what show up on ebay, but have no source for them.  Do art deco soda collectors just get theirs at shows?

I saw the book by Brian Wade, but also see its hard to find a copy of that.  Is this branch of bottle collecting not as large popular I thought it might be?

Thanks for any help.


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## new2bottles (Jan 29, 2022)

Lbrewer42 said:


> I am interested in picking up a few of the fancier decorative art deco soda bottles, but cannot find a list of examples/names/etc.  I see pictures online of collections, but many too small to see a name.  I assume there are a lot more than what show up on ebay, but have no source for them.  Do art deco soda collectors just get theirs at shows?
> 
> I saw the book by Brian Wade, but also see its hard to find a copy of that.  Is this branch of bottle collecting not as large popular I thought it might be?
> 
> Thanks for any help.


So you know about Brian’s book.  I’ve been looking for years.  Not many are collecting Art Decos.  I certainly am.  Good ones used to show up more often on eBay.  Shows?  I wouldn’t know.  I have some nice duplicates if you want to contact me.  Here are some of mine (have hundreds).


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## bottle-o-pop (Jan 29, 2022)

In addition to Brian Wade's book, there are a few specialty books:

Dr. Pepper Collectible bottles Identification & Values 2nd Edition by Ray H. Duncan

The Evolution of a Soda Pop Bottle from Krinkly to Mae West by Michael Rosman 3rd edition

Pepsi : Cola Bottles Collectors Guide by James C Ayers
Pepsi : Cola Bottles & More Collectors Guide Vol. 2 by James C Ayers
(These two Pepsi books are not the same book; Vol. 2 is in addition to the first book.)

Handbook of Embossed Soda Bottles For Collectors & Antique Dealers by Paul, Karen, & Tom Bates

Coke Bottle Checklist 5th edition by Bill Porter


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## Lbrewer42 (Jan 29, 2022)

Wow - that is some beautiful glass!  I don't understand why these are not a lot more popular.

I admit I am in the baby stages of finding info out about these.  I do not know pricing or even many names of various ones.  I just want to get a couple oddball shapes and maybe a couple colored ones if they are not too expensive.  

I would really like to collect like you do, but already have shelves and cabinets full of glass insulators (around 1,000-1200 on display!

In one window though I have some cobalt Citro soda bottles, a couple styles of Pepsi, and a green Squirt.  I am figuring a couple of other art deco bottles would look good with these.  

I clicked on your avatar trying to find a contact info.  Maybe I missed it?


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## Lbrewer42 (Jan 29, 2022)

@bottle-o-pop - thanks for this info


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## Jstorm (Jan 31, 2022)

new2bottles said:


> So you know about Brian’s book.  I’ve been looking for years.  Not many are collecting Art Decos.  I certainly am.  Good ones used to show up more often on eBay.  Shows?  I wouldn’t know.  I have some nice duplicates if you want to contact me.  Here are some of mine (have hundreds).


Unbelievable collection. Awesome!


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## kolawars (Feb 2, 2022)

Pics of bottles and company histories are pictured in these books.

www.kolawars.com


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## MSZ (Feb 2, 2022)

new2bottles said:


> So you know about Brian’s book.  I’ve been looking for years.  Not many are collecting Art Decos.  I certainly am.  Good ones used to show up more often on eBay.  Shows?  I wouldn’t know.  I have some nice duplicates if you want to contact me.  Here are some of mine (have hundreds).


Great Collection!


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## Lbrewer42 (Mar 11, 2022)

An official thank you to new2bottles!  

My art deco collection is small, but this is all I have room for.  I wasted a purple (SCA), green, and at least one funky shape to offset my lineup of Citro bottles in the window.

new2bottles sold me the purple, a funky shaped clear (Orange Quench), and threw in a very decorative clear one (Calder) for free.

I got a green VESS DRY last week at  local flea market for 10.00 

The pic shows the lineup.  

The Squirt on the left was dug by me many years ago as was the Pepsi 2nd form the right.  The rightmost is the bottle I made a post of here on this forum:
https://tinyurl.com/yau6m9va 

I (don't!) really want to limit this collection.  Lack of space dictates I have to.  Close to 1000 insulators displayed in this same room.


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## bottle-o-pop (Mar 12, 2022)

Have you ever shared some photos of your big insulator collection? I would like to see it.


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## Lbrewer42 (Mar 13, 2022)

Glad to oblige!
The large window in my current house is shown.  Then I posted a few eye candy pics where I too the time to arrange some in the window for photos.  The tall backlit case pictures are older ones also.  And some of the pieces in them are in the first window shot as well.  But this gives an idea of the number of them in my main room.  The last pic is form my ld house but shows the other display case.  Both that one and the one tall case are in my room with the main window and the lineup of art deco pop bottles.

I was one of the first ebay insulator sellers in the 90s and so was able to build a great collection b/c West coast collectors normally had little ability to get Eastern glass and vice versa until the internet.

Add to this I have a lot of large plastic totes that hold 4 dozen insulators each sitting in the attic and basement, and you can see why I grudgingly have to limit my adding anymore bottles anytime soon (except when I find a Brookfield made one due to my current vein of research for a book).  I need to do a lot of downsizing first.


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## bottle-o-pop (Mar 14, 2022)

Wow! That is the most beautiful display of antique glass that I have ever seen! The variety and depth of colors is amazing.


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## Lbrewer42 (Mar 14, 2022)

Thank you!  In the insulator hobby almost all collectors follow a saying made up at the start of the hobby:  "Color is King."

If its not clear glass, and not a shade of aqua, its typically worth more to a collector.

Of course there are rare exceptions where clear or aqua are rare for that specific profile.  Each profile is assigned a "CD number" for "Consolidated Design number,"  and the system was implemented b/c multiple companies very often made the same profile - hence an easier cataloging system for the price guide.

You can see a lot of aqua pieces (shades - green, blue at different intensities) b/c I research the specifics in an attempt to find more about the factories making them.  For example, i the first main picture of the window, the 3rd shelf (not pieces in front of the shelves), starting from the left has 9 different of the same shape in varying shades of blue, green, and shades of aqua.  This is a rare lineup of colors in these b/c almost ALL of this CD (CD 162.5) are a typical plain aqua (such as common med. bottles).  But the lineup also represents all the known molds know to make this CD.  So while not many WOW! colors, the molds represent a set of molds telling me about when they were made (b/c I also have extensive research into the machinery over the years Brookfield used to make insulators with).  Since this is long enough already, I will leave it as anecdotal, but I do have supportive data indicating these were likely first made in September 1906 using 8 different molds on a totally automated machine in Old Bridge, New jersey for the PRR railroad (they are marked P.R.R. on top). 

Other aqua piece in the display have similar historical research reasons for being there.  I keep them on hand (besides looking nice) so I can always have them to compare in case something new comes up (been a long time though).

Oh - those CD162.5s I mentioned.  Since mostly everyone "knows they only are ever aqua when you find them," the colored ones don't carry really high and valuable premiums (75.00 for true emerald, or true green, and 120 for teal blue if you can find someone who is looking for one!).  This makes it much easier for me to study and own LOL!


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## Yellow26 (Apr 30, 2022)

new2bottles said:


> So you know about Brian’s book.  I’ve been looking for years.  Not many are collecting Art Decos.  I certainly am.  Good ones used to show up more often on eBay.  Shows?  I wouldn’t know.  I have some nice duplicates if you want to contact me.  Here are some of mine (have hundreds).


I would love to have a few of those


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## new2bottles (May 3, 2022)

Yellow26 said:


> I would love to have a few of those


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## HouTxSoda (May 3, 2022)

Does anyone know anything about the "Gold Dot" in picture 5 ? I know it was a franchise, but that is about it.


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