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Recolored Bottles
Recently on the EBAY there have been a number of recoloured (also called "painted") bottles up for sale from a location in the county of KENT ENGLAND. Although these are very decorative in bathrooms and kitchens, they spell trouble for the unwary bottle collector.
First seen in England some 6 years back in the form of SELTZER BOTTLES, these turned up all over the place and in some parts of the STATES in cobalt blue, yellow, red and other colours. All were originally clear glass.

You can find the one table at large antique fairs like ARDINGLEY and others in England, selling aqua and clearglass old bottles painted or dipped in a variety of colours. These are sold cheaply at up to $5 apiece. They are described rightly as recoloured old bottles. The problem is they fall into the hands of unscrupulous dealers, or even the experienced collector who thinks it's a new colour for that type of bottle.

The modern paints used to recolour baths etc which I believe are used on these coloured bottles have such a hard finish that they are practically scratch proof and one of the only ways to tell if they are painted is the face test. Take any bottle and it will feel cold against your cheek, the painted ones will feel slightly warm. Colours are many shades of blue, greens, yellow , red, deep amethyst/violet. There may well be other colours not listed here.

Advice: only buy from reputable collectors or dealers and do not buy recoloured bottles to start with on EBAY, or sooner or later some poor unsuspecting collector is going to pay out good money for a new colour and eventually find that its a FAKE!

This info provided courtesy of Rob Goodacre.

The paint on recolored bottles will come off with nail polish remover (a sure way to tell a fake).

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