Roselyn Gerson, affectionately referred to as "The Compact Lady" by compact collectors and dealers, is the founder of the Compact Collectors Club and editor and publisher of the newsletter, Powder Puff. The newsletter is published quarterly. There is also an annual convention where collectors gather to show and sell compacts, attend a compact auction and listen to a guest speaker!Lady A Antiques Home Page
The 18th annual compact collectors convention was held at the upscale Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino on Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas on July 11-13, 2008.
With the increasing popularity and interest in collecting compacts and vanity items, the convention was a great time as always! Collectors from all over the US, England and Australia attended the event, sharing their collections and information with everyone.
A Friday night auction with compactQT Debbie Matheney as auctioneer is always a convention delight. This year, over $3,000 was raised for Leukemia research.
On Saturday, a Sell, Swap and Shop day offered every compact of our dreams for purchase!! The Volupte hands, bracelets, fans, celluloid vanities and the best enamels ever seen were available to drool over and purchase!! Collectors and shoppers had a ball, adding to their collections and I heard the phrase "compact heaven" more than once!!
In addition, a great assortment of Estee Lauder solid perfumes and compacts were on display to view and add to collections.
A sit down dinner was held Saturday evening. The highlight of the convention this year had to be the guest speakers!! Noelle Soren, an archaeologist, now living in Arizona, educated us in the ornate silver compacts with hand painted enamel scenes of lovers, shepherds and people in a variety of settings. These Italian works of art were often taken from 18th and 19th century paintings. As an archaeological photographer, Noelle has done extensive research in identifying the scenes on the compacts and shared her vast knowledge about the history of these beauties. Please visit her website at: www.davidandnoelle.net for more information.
Michael Hetherington came all the way from Sydney Australia and shared his vast knowledge on the early history of compacts. His presentation included some of the early manufacturing processes and details on how and why companies decided to mass produce make-up and compacts in the late 1800s. He is writing a book on the history of compacts.
It was a real pleasure meeting both Noelle and Michael (and their spouses!) and we all loved learning more about the history of our compacts.
On Sunday, Estee Lauder hosted a brunch at their store at Caesars Palace Forum Shops. They introduced their 2008 solid perfumes and compacts. Collectors had the opportunity to view and purchase the new items before they hit the retail stores!
The convention was a wonderful event and it's always a pleasure to visit with our gracious hosts, Roz and Alvin Gerson.
To learn more about the convention or to join
the compact collectors club, contact Roz Gerson at: P.O. Box 40, Lynbrook,
NY 11563. Email: compactldy@aol.com
or click here to visit
their website at: http://www.compactcollectors.co.uk/
email : Sales@strattonofmayfair.com
website: http://www.strattonofmayfair.com/
The following books on compacts are a great reference for collectors and all have great photographs!
1) Ladies' Compacts of the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, by Roselyn Gerson (1989 from Collector Books)
2) Vintage Vanity Bags & Purses, by Roselyn Gerson (1994 from Collector Books)
3) Vintage Ladies' Compacts, by Roselyn Gerson (1996 from Collector Books)
4) Vintage & Contemporary Purse Accessories, by Roselyn Gerson (1997 from Collector Books)
5) Vintage Ladies' Compacts, Second Edition, by Roselyn Gerson (2001 from Collector Books)
6) The Estee Lauder Solid Perfume Compact Collection 1967-2001, by Roselyn Gerson (2002 From Collector Books)
7) Vintage Compacts & Beauty Accessories, by Lynell Schwartz (1997 from Schiffer Publishing)
8) Compacts and Smoking Accessories, by Roseann Ettinger (1991 from Schiffer Publishing)
9) Collector's Encyclopedia of Compacts Carryalls & Face Powder Boxes, by Laura M. Mueller (1994 from Collector Books)
10) Collector's Encyclopedia of Compacts Carryalls & Face Powder Boxes (Volume II), by Laura M. Mueller (1997 from Collector Books)
11) Compacts & Vanity Cases, by Laura M. Mueller (2008 from Collector Books)
12) Powder Compacts: A Collector's Guide (Miller's Collector's Guides, 2000), by Juliette Edwards
13) The Art of Allure: Powder Compacts of the 19th, 20th and 21st Centuries,
by Noelle Soren (2004)