Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Potion Bottles

blue and green wheaton Bitter bottles
Bitter bottles
The 'treasure' (or more accurately trinkets) I am sharing today are a collection of small bottles I have accumulated over the past several years at various rummage sales.  I love the sparkle of colored glass, and I don't resist buying a pretty bottle when I run across one.  
Yellow Wheaton Bitter bottles
Yellow Bitter bottles
I decided to make this post in honor of the last Harry Potter movie (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2)  which was released this month.  These little bottles would make great 'potion' containers. 


Purple Wheaton Bitter bottles
Purple bitter bottle bottles
A purple bottle with a bird claw grabbing it - a Harry Potter potion seems to be the appropriate contents.

Blue ink and Wheaton Bitter bottles
Blue bottles for ink and bitters
The real purpose of many of these bottles were bitters, (whatever they are), or in the case of the squarish blue bottle above, ink.  (For Harry Potter, magic ink.)  The bottle to the left of the ink has a horseshoe shape surrounding a horse head.  A lucky potion, perhaps?  Or will it make you as fast as a horse? 
Green Wheaton Bitter bottles
Green bitter bottles
Many of these bottles were reproduced, and probably most of the bottles I own are reproductions.  I really haven't been inspired to research bitter bottles much.  Sometimes you just want to enjoy an item without knowing all about it.  I enjoy finding bottles here and there and adding them to my window sill collection.  
Jenny Lind and Cape May red bitter bottles
Jenny Lind and Cape May red bitter bottles
The bitter bottles in particular have fun and different designs - faces of people and presidents, horses and grapes and fish appear pressed into the bottles designs.  Maybe the red Jenny Lind potion makes you sing well, and the lighthouse potion makes you see well at night.

Tree of Life bitter bottle
Tree of Life Bitter Bottle

The little green bottle above has "The Tree of Life" on it, and is probably one of my favorite bottles. It is 3.25 inches tall (about 8.3cm).  A long life potion, I'm guessing. 

Orange chicken candy dish
I don't own any orange bottles, so when I saw this little chicken container in intense orange shades, I bought it to make a better rainbow of glass.  Perhaps herbology herbs stored in this container made the chickens lay golden eggs.  

Bitter bottles wheaton
Half of my window sill collection
I didn't take any photos to show the scale of the bottles, but all of these bottles are under 4 inches (10 cm) tall.  Most of the bottles are 3 inches tall.  

Bitter bottles wheaton
The other half of my collection
  
Bitter bottles wheaton
I love the different shades of glass
I am still looking for a pink bottle.  I know pink bitter bottles exist, (on Ebay), but I prefer the rummage sale prices.


Some comments have been left asking me how I clean these small bottles.  I soak them (w/ detergent) and rinse them, sometimes for days.  Sometimes I use vinegar, and/or salt.  A bottle brush can be used on some bottles.  A baby store sometimes has baby bottle brushes, and there is a tiny brush for cleaning the rubber baby bottle nipples.  (Ouch, I hate to say it here, but there is a baby nipple brush.  That sounds bad.),  Pipe cleaners might also work.  You can also take a strip of cloth, or paper towel, push one end into the bottle, and twist more of the strip into the bottle.  (Does that make sense to anyone besides me?)  Eventually you have a wad of material pushing on the inside of the bottle with each twist.  Be careful to untwist the material to remove it.  Ending up with a wad of paper towel in a bottle is a pain, then you need tweezers to extract the paper towel...  Cloth is easier in some ways, because it won't tear.  However, if the bottle is acid etched (after a time, you will begin to know what that is), and or scratched, the above won't help as much. 

OMG, it is so funny that I am writing in a post how to clean anything.  Cleaning is really not a favorite task...   But the results are worth it.  


Click on an image to see it larger.



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I am linking to these parties:
Brambleberry Cottage: Time Travel Thur 54 (Entry 20 of 51). 
Col Lady: Vintage Thingies Thur (Entry 8 of 29).  
Bloggeritaville: Thrifty Thur 123, (Entry 20 of 83). 
Shabby Chic: Transformation Thur, (Entry 130 of 358.) 
Strut your Stuff (Entry 164 of 536.)
Charm of Home: Home Sweet Home 24 (Entry 2 of 74.)
French Inspiration (Entry 5 of 12).
Thrifty Grove: Thrifty Things Fri 17 (Entry 3 of 38).
French Country: Feather Nest Fri (Entry 1 of 216).
* Common Ground: Vint Inspiration 47 (Entry 5 of 126.)
* Romantic Home: Show and Tell (Entry 104 of 308.)
Chic: Flaunt it Friday 63 (Entry 160 of 254.)  
Shabby Nest: Frugal Friday (Entry 106 of 437.)
Picket Fence: Inspiration Fri 24 (Entry 38 of 214.) 
Tatertots: Weekend Wrap Up (Entry 449 of 738.)
Addicted to Decorating 15 (Entry 43 of 64.) 
Be Diff: Show and Tell Sat (Entry 18 of 304.)
Pink Postcard: Transform and Treasure (Entry 44 of 47.)
The Tablescaper: Seasonal Sunday 59 (Entry 3 of 40.)
I Heart Naptime: Sundae Scoop (Entry 55 of 439.)
Mod Vintage: Mod Mix Mon 9 (Entry 13 of 31.)
Roses: Show off your Cottage Mon (2 d)
Boogie Board: Masterpiece Mon 30 (Entry 16 of 103.)
Dittle Dattle: Amaze Me Mon 34 (Entry 14 of 273.)
Running with Glitter Mon 19 (Entry 5 of 189.)
BNOTP: Metamorphis Monday (Entry 56 of 254.)
Making the World Cuter (Entry 173 of 312.)
Southern Hosp: Thrifty Treasures (Entry 61 of 77.)
* Stroll Life: Table Top Tues (Entry 31 of 93.) 
* House of Grace: Twice Owned Tues (Entry 7 of 85.) 
Saasy Sites: Trash to Treasure Tues (Entry 39 of 59.) 
Diamond: Time to Shine Tues 28 (Entry 53 of 82.) 
Family: Once Upon a Weekend 2 (Entry 26 of 29.)
Lines: Cure for Common Mon 1 (Entry 29 of 50.)
Type A: Anything Goes 27 (Entry 44 of 102.)
Ginger: Wow Me Wednesday 9 (Entry 249 of 252.) 
Savvy Style: Wow Us Wed (Entry 79 of 247.)
Trendy Tree: Creative Share Wed (Entry 6 of 178.)
Beach Cottage: Good Life Wed (Entry 39 of 143.)
Very Merry Vint: Share the Love Wed (Entry 6 of 39.) 
32729

60 comments:

GardenOfDaisies said...

Your glass bottles are gorgeous all lined up together like a rainbow!! My mom collects vintage blue and green bottles and sets them in her kitchen window.

Jocelyn said...

What an amazing bottle collection. Such pretty colors.

Jocelyn @
http://justalittlesouthernhospitality.blogspot.com/

LV said...

What a wonderful bottle collection you have. They are all so pretty and unique. With the light behind them, truly awesome sight

The Charm of Home said...

WOW! I love these bottles. I would have them as reproductions I wouldn't care. Very pretty and unique each one. Thanks for linking it up at HSH!
Sherry

Becky said...

I am IN LOVE with these bottles!! I'm sure that I have seen them among my searching for treasures, but I never paid attention before! NOW, I will! They are so beautiful! Thank you for sharing! ;)

Diann said...

OMG! You have a gorgeous collection of colored glass bottles! They are wonderful. thank you for joining TTF and have a fun day!

Ceekay-THINKIN of HOME said...

You have quite a nice collection. I have some, but no where near as many as you have...beautiful!

Korrie@RedHenHome said...

Your bottles are GORGEOUS! They look amazing in their respective color groups. I am wondering...do you have any tips for cleaning old bottles out? I have some clear ones I picked up at a garage sale, but they're pretty grungy inside!

bj said...

This is a darling collection..
I wish someone would host a
SHOW OFF YOUR COLLECTIONS meme...wouldn't that be so fun. I could post forever because I am the COLLECTING QUEEN. :)))
XO bj

Ido said...

Your collection is gorgeous! How long have you been collecting? I love green, so you can guess which ones are my favorites, but I like them all! I'm with Korrie, how do you clean them inside, usually the old ones are very dirty and just soap and water doesn't do.
Have a fantastic weekend!
XXX Ido

Ellie said...

There is nothing prettier than brightly colored glass. Love your assortment. When I was girl in the early 50s it was common practice to have glass shelves attached to the other window frames. Bottles similar to yours would be displayed. They would shimmer with hues of the rainbow in the sunlight. I was intrigued then, and am still today.

Jeanne said...

To Ido and Red Hen - I added a paragraph in my post on how to clean the bottles. To recap...

Some comments have been left asking me how I clean these small bottles. I soak them (w/ detergent) and rinse them, sometimes for days. Sometimes I use vinegar, and/or salt. A bottle brush can be used on some bottles. A baby store sometimes has baby bottle brushes, and there is a tiny brush for cleaning the rubber baby bottle nipples. (Ouch, I hate to say it here, but there is a baby nipple brush. That sounds bad.), Pipe cleaners might also work. You can also take a strip of cloth, or paper towel, push one end into the bottle, and twist more of the strip into the bottle. (Does that make sense to anyone besides me?) Eventually you have a wad of material pushing on the inside of the bottle with each twist. Be careful to untwist the material to remove it. Ending up with a wad of paper towel in a bottle is a pain, then you need tweezers to extract the paper towel... Cloth is easier in some ways, because it won't tear. However, if the bottle is acid etched (after a time, you will begin to know what that is), and or scratched, the above won't help as much.

OMG, it is so funny that I am writing in a post how to clean anything. Cleaning is really not a favorite task... But the results are worth it.

http://jeanneselep.blogspot.com/2011/07/potion-bottles.html

Rosemary@villabarnes said...

Beautiful colors. The look like stained glass with the sun shining through.

Korrie@RedHenHome said...

Thanks for posting the cleaning tips!

jeanne said...

Hello Jeanne, we have the same name. I am pretty sure we visited each other before today. Smile!

Your bottle collection is so amazing. I love the colors very much. I hope you find yourself a pink bitter's bottle soon. The fun is in the hunt.

Happy VTT,
Hugs, Jeanne

Honey at 2805 said...

You have a beautiful collection of vintage treasures. Such great color!

Anonymous said...

Your bottle collection is wonderful! I love that they are tiny, too. You certainly have a way with photography; I really enjoyed your photos - so crisp and clear!

Betty said...

Your bottles are gorgeous. My Mom has had good results cleaning many things, including bottles, by soaking them in a strong solution of boiling water and automatic dishwasher soap for 10-15 minutes.

Darla said...

Very nice collection. The Tree of Life bottle is my favorite too.

Debra@CommonGround said...

What a fabulous collection! the colors and detail are amazing. Light shining thru these could only make you happy! thanks for linking up with VIF! xo Debra

Tanya Anurag said...

You have a collection that left me feeling jealous!! Ohhh... I want those!!

Ana said...

What a pretty collection of bottles Jeanne...I bet when the sun hits them they give a spectacular show, like a stained glass window.

Hugs and Smiles,
♥Ana

Sanghamitra Bhattacherjee(Mukherjee) said...

Great collection! Love those colours and details! Each single piece is gorgeous. Thanks for sharing. You got a beautiful space here.
Hope to see you on my blog:)

Kathie said...

I love it. I wanted to collect some bottles to put in front of my kitchen window, but I don't have a ledge to put them on and the mini blinds would be in the way :-(

The French Hutch said...

Great collection, beautiful colors. I love the chicken candy dish, amazing color. I'm visiting over from Seasonal Sundays.

~Emily
The French Hutch

Marlis said...

Love love your bottles. I have resisted.. only because I really have no place to show them off. Seeing your with the light coming through them is spectacular. Thanks for sharing, xo marlis

Courtney ~ French Country Cottage said...

Really beautiful bottles~ I love all the different pretty colors in your collection! Thanks for sharing at FNF! :)

Just Jaime said...

Very pretty collection!

Cathy said...

Lovely bottles, great cleaning advice and my favourite has to be the chicken candy dish!

Cathy said...

Lovely bottles, great cleaning advice and my favourite has to be the chicken candy dish!

Snap said...

Aren't the colors wonderful?!!!! I can see why you collect them so lovingly!

Rae - Say It Aint So said...

what a beautiful collection! i love that one with the claw foot especially!

Barbara F. said...

This is a beautiful collection of bottles! I love the hen, she fits in perfectly. The colors of these bottles are like jewel tones. Great photos with the light shining through. Visiting from Seasonal Sundays. xo,

SixBalloons said...

Gorgeous collection! I love the writing on them - such beautiful texts and fonts. My faves are the blues and greens.

Shelly @Crafty Creative Studio said...

What a wonderful collection!! It reminds me of the bottle collecting my grandfather used to do. He used to go on the weekends with a few friends and dig in old dump sites (I think.) He used to come home with mainly the dark blue variety, and occasionally an amber bottle or 2. Thanks for sharing all of your beautiful colors.

Leah said...

I love your collection, thanks for sharing!

Anonymous said...

What pretty bottles and they d look so pretty in your window sill!
Thank you for following my blog and I'm now following yours too.
I checked out your hutch! I loved your 4th of July display!
Be a sweetie,
Shelia ;)

Rachel (Linesacrossmyface) said...

These are so beautiful. You must have had a lot of fun collecting them one by one. I especially LOVE the blue ones. I would love it if you would come link up this post to the crafty linky party I just started at http://linesacrossmyface.blogspot.com
:) Rachel

Queenie's Vintage Finds said...

What a beautiful bottle collection you have...it really shines on that window sill too...it's perfect :)

The Tablescaper said...

What an amazing collection! They are so impressive when grouped together. Just wonderful. Thanks for brining this wonderful collection to Seasonal Sundays.

- The Tablescaper

Jacqueline~Cabin and Cottage said...

This is a beautiful collection! I've never seen another quite like it. Fascinating! Good tips on cleaning!

Nayana said...

wow..beautiful collection. simply fabulous.

Cindy said...

You have a fabulous collection there! I love how colorful and attractive it is.
CIndy

Noble Vintage said...

Really pretty collection. Such interesting and fun styles! Thanks so much for linking up to Transformations and Treasures!

Erin of HomeSavvyAtoZ.com said...

These are beautiful! I have a whole new appreciation for colored glass! I collect clear bottles but am going to start looking for colors. Thanks for the inspiration! I hope you will stop by my HomeMade Monday blog party at HomeSavvyAtoZ.com next week to share!

Erin of HomeSavvyAtoZ.com said...

P.s. I am a new stalker... I mean follower. :)

Marty@A Stroll Thru Life said...

Your bottle collection is stunning. Such gorgeous colors and they are so beautiful displayed together. Fabulous. Thanks so much for joining TTT. Hugs, Marty

Bri-Anne said...

I ♥ bottles! I have a collection so large that I had to box some of my less favorites up and put them away. I have all sizes though, not just small ones. My favorites are a small blue-green 12 sided ink well and 2 cobalt blue poison bottles ♥

Ginger@gingersnapcrafts.com said...

Gorgeous collection. I have a green chicken like yours from my grandmother. Following from I Heart Naptime link party. Would love to have you link this up to my {wow me} wednesday link party going on right now over on my blog {if you haven‘t already!}. Hope to see you there.

Ginger
gingersnapcrafts.blogspot.com

a quiet life said...

what a beautiful collection~

Tammy @ Type A said...

love love love! the colors are goregous! just like a rainbow. thanks for partying with me!

abeachcottage said...

What a lovely collection! Thanks for sharing it at Beach Cottage Good Life Wednesdays

suzieQ said...

Lovely collection and such vivid colors, thank you for sharing! I am writing because I hate to clean UNLESS it is a new treasure I have bought. I smile sometimes, because the usual, mundane housework chores can be piled up to the ceiling and I can be putting off tackling them, but oh, isn't it so easy to focus on cleaning a new bit of our collection? Plus, it can be dirty, dirty but we don't mind, it is a wonderful challenge to clean something we love. So funny and so true, huh?

Nita Stacy said...

I love colored bottles sparkling in the sunlight. What a great collection you have...like stain glass. Thanks for linking up at Mod Mix Monday this week!

Ginger@gingersnapcrafts.com said...

Featuring YOU over on my blog today. Love this. Come by & grab a button. :)

Ginger

The Single Nester said...

I will never look at a bottle the same way again. My eyes are opened!

Design Dork said...

Your bottles are so pretty. I especially love the purple ones

Anonymous said...

I collect bottles like these too...and I clean with denture cleaning tablets! Just drop one in and add water...they work wonders.
Beautiful photos!

Jaybird said...

BEAUTIFUL glass collection!! I just love colored glass in a window! To clean your bottles, just fill with hot water and a broken up denture cleaning tablet...available in any $$ store! Let sit overnight and rinse clean...presto!!
Blessings,
J

Jeanne said...

to mainelylocal and Jaybird: I will be trying this tip!