Made in US of A ornament caps are shiny brite

[marshmutt1]

Glass ornaments Shiny Brite signed Made in U S of A

here is the truth behind ornaments with caps marked "Made in U.S. of A."

First --- they are NOT tributes for our troops nor were they sent to the troops overseas.  It is kind of a lame idea since the print is tiny  on caps that were typically ignored.  ALSO metal was not available during most of WWII for metal caps.

Caps marked "made in U.S. of A." are shiny brite ornaments made between 1938 to 1942.

In early 1942 they still used the caps but did not have silvering to silver their ornaments.   Some of these ornaments did have a piece of metal tinsel inside them since you could see through them.

late 1942 -- no more tinsel but still "made in U.S. of A." on shiny brite ornaments.

1943 -- no more metal for ornament caps, they used Cardboard caps glued onto the ornaments.  they still had wire so early paper caps have a metal hook on them but caps glued on.

Once the wire ran out the caps were paper and the hanger was string 

(some say yarn but I have never seen those) 

Some mfg other mfg used kraft paper as the hanger in strips or twisted.  Still some other mfg used a shaped paper hanger that stuck inside the ornament without any cap.)

post 1945 shiny brite had metal again for thier caps and came out with their fluted side metal caps marked "shiny brite made in U.S.A."

Shiny brite did do tribute to troops and patriotism on their boxes though using a graphic of a Christmas tree with Santa shaking hands with uncle sam.  the early boxes were plain cardboard with the graphic on green. later boxes used same basic graphic with up to 3 colors.  later still the same graphic with window boxes.

I hope this dispels some of the misinformation out there.

Hi. I found some clear glass ornaments. Some are marked and some are not. They were purchased in 1944, while in Germany. I can not find any info on clear ones and I don't know if someone has maybe taken the paint off of them or not. If they have, they have done a good job. Some of these are marked with Made in the US of A. I have never seen the word "of" in the made in USA before. Any information would be appreciated from you Shiny Brite collectors... Thank you so much...

[sonomabarn67]

You might consider doing a web page/blog about your findings so that info shows up in searches. Surprisingly, not that many people read these forums🤔. You could also add some examples like the Uncle Sam box; I've never seen one.

[argon38]

OP is attempting to contribute to a locked discussion thread from 2006, which is possibly something of a record (they quote the question at the end of their post):

https://community.ebay.com/t5/Archive-Decorative-Holiday/Glass-ornaments-Shiny-Brite-signed-Made-in-... 

[sonomabarn67]

Why is it still accepting replies?

[argon38]

---

@sonomabarn67 wrote:

Why is it still accepting replies?

---

It isn't - the OP has started a new thread here in order to add to the discussion. I'm not belittling their post in any way; I'm sure the information will prove useful for others. However, the seller who asked about the subject in 2006 may no longer be checking assiduously for responses.

[marshmutt1]

I have had several inquiries about Made In US of A caps.  I also see several ornaments for sale with the original US of A caps swapped for the Shiny Brite Crinkle Caps.  Typically done by those who do not know better.  So I was adding this thread to help both sellers and buyer a bit.  I will add a couple of pics of the Uncle Sam boxes as well.  The Plain Green Box was post 1945.  The multi-color Uncle Sam boxes are ca. early 1950s.  The plain red or green Tree on cardboard lid are pre-1946 (Pre war and war -time).  Note that in 1942 Shiny Brite still used these same boxes but added the Victory Recycle Logo at the bottom right.  The logo to encourage people to recycle these boxes means that both pre-war and war-time boxes are not common.  This also means that finding a set of  early US of A Shiny Brites in a plain green Uncle Sam box is quite common.

Ca. 1946-late 1940s

1st box is circa 1946-late 1940s (uncle Sam in red or green)

mid 1940s-1950

2nd box is mid 1940s-late 1940s (uncle Sam)

pre-wwii - 1941

3rd box is pre-WWII through 1941 (plain tree - red or green)

1942-1945

4rh box is 1942-1945 (victory logo)

late 1940s-early 1950s solid (rare) or with window

5th box very late 1940s - early 1950s and usually no window and typically green

1950s solid or with window

6th box is 1950s with or without window (without window is considered early 1950s)

I also see many premier ornaments with Shiny Brite caps.  I suspect sellers are changing the caps thinking they are increasing value and easing a sale.  Sadly the opposite is true since Premier ornaments are more rare than shiny brite and have great value.  Not all premier caps are marked, but most have a distinct appearance.

So yes I posted this for assistance and not for criticism.  That and I got tired of people quoting to me about some article they read about US of A caps being some sort of tribute to soldiers overseas and that they were sent overseas to their installations.  Most solders would be more happy with a warm pair of socks back then and the likelihood of all these ornaments (in the thousands) survived a war zone and made it back into the US.

So I hope that I have been helpful.  I do not check these threads that often so I apologize for the late reply.

[marshmutt1]

I was going to add a tid-bit that goes in the face of all accepted expert and collector information on Shiny Brite caps.  It has to do with the crinklle caps (fluted sides and stamped Shiny Brite "Made in USA") and what came after the cardboard caps

I will start by simply pointing out that catalogs from 1946-1948 showing Shiny Brite ornaments all show smooth caps.  (I have yet to see an exception but still looking.)  The 1948 Sears catalog shows some floral stripes that are 100% Shiny Brite and have smooth caps -- those were made both pre-war and postwar in the same colors.    In fact the caps are the ones with the relief-cut Fold-over petals that are curved on the bottom.  While I have yet to see the tops we can assume that many are likely stamped "made in U.S.A."

Ok before someone gets too upset... another clue is right on the Shiny Brite boxes themselves.  The "1946" Uncle Sam box shows ornaments with smooth caps.  Yes the graphic is simple but the caps are definitely smooth.  Then we have the late 1940s multi-color Uncle Sam box and suddenly we have Crinkle Caps.  Hmmmmm.  Extrapolating the catalogs with the boxes it appears the crinkle cap boxes came out sometime between 1948 and 1949 and lasted only a couple of years.   Further extrapolation appears to confirm that immediately after the war, Shiny Brite made smooth sided metal caps with curved fold-over "petal" bottoms.  So finding Shiny Brite Caps with "made in the USA" smooth sided caps or unmarked does not necessarily mean they are the wrong caps.

Lets add one more tid-bit...  I have purchase (quite some years back and more than once) original boxes of 1940s Shiny Brite ornaments with smooth sided caps that were not US of A caps.  While caps do get lost and swapped, it is difficult to believe that all the caps were lost and replaced when purchased from the original owners.

Ok I expect a great deal of argument on this one and unfortunately it does not appear as though Max patented the crinkle cap.  Still trying to find that patent.

[buyselljack2016]

or pitching for sales

[marshmutt1]

how exactly is this pitching for sales????   I have NEVER gotten a sale from these threads EVER!!!

The fact is that if I were underhanded I could just buy stuff off of sellers who have no idea what it is they are selling -- and there are plenty-- and reselling it.  In fact,   I just helped a guy make 4 times what he had an item posted for (the first time he posted it, it failed to sell) I told him what he had and how to sell it.  he made close to $100 when before it did not sell for less than $30.    

[marshmutt1]

I thought about it and I will NEVER EVER EVER EVER post on one of these boards EVER again.  I tried to provide some useful information and there are always jerks out there who look for the opportunity to criticize, be derogatory, or add other totally  nonsensical snipes (like pitching for sales -- that makes no sense).

Thanks to those who have posted appreciation of this information but sadly I will never provide any ever again.  The frustration is not worth the misplaced criticism.  This is not the first time but it is the last.

[exit55]

Hope you are still checking back.  I really appreciate your discussion.  Will take me a while to digest, but have saved to separate word doc. Thank you very much

[buyselljack2016]

@marshmutt1 

Sorry that the post offended you, but...............................

Not an uncommon thing for sellers to post here to draw attention to their listings.

Nothing in your post to show otherwise.

If you did not sell "such items" I would not consider it to be a possibility that you were attempting to draw attention.

If you feel that my statement makes me a jerk, (or whatever word you were suggesting) then so be it.

[sonomabarn67]

You do realize you are on the internet on a public chat board right?  It's not the end of the world that you might have misunderstood the replies. Sorta sorry that I replied but I'll toss in one  last suggestion for you;  go on You Tube and binge watch kitty cat videos and I bet your mood brightens.😺 Happy New Year!

[marshmutt1]

I apologize if I was upset but here is the rub:

I expect some not so positive replies but when I take the time to post information that can be helpful to both sellers and buyers and someone else posts a reply that there is an ULTERIOR MOTIVE it is more than frustrating.  The most blaring and obvious sign that there was no ulterior motive is that it is counter productive to provide other sellers with information that can assist them with selling their items correctly.  I absolutely have no issue with helping other sellers (competitors).

I had no real issue with your post sonomabarn.

It could be said that I did have one additional ulterior motive and that is to assist in confirming a 3rd Shiny Brite ornament cap.  While I feel I may have fairly confirmed this as per catalogue Photographs and box graphics, it is not final.

The caps are:

The "Made in US of A" smooth sided cap ca. 1938-1942

the common crinkle cap marked Shiny Brite... USA with rounded bottom petals or straight bottom.

and the 1946-1947 smooth sided cap that likely says "USA"

If anyone can find a patent on the crinkle cap then it would help but thus far I have not found the patent.

--Thank you

[marshmutt1]

See above messafge