THE NOTEBOOK
PAGE FOUR
A marvelous find at a small antique shop nestled in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains! Way in the back of the shop I discovered an almost mint box of early Premo Brand figural lights, complete with the original cord. I was thrilled, of course. This box is almost impossible to find, as the set was made for only one year: 1925. Before that time, the manufacturer went by the name The Interstate Electric Novelty Company, Franco and then Yale. After changing their name to Premo in 1925, the company joined the National Outfit Manufacturer's Association (NOMA) and by 1927 had officially merged with NOMA Electric.
The box lid is most unusual in that the paper covering it is actually in two pieces. The entire lid is first covered in traditional holly patterned paper, but then a second piece bands the middle, and has the manufacturer's name on it. It is almost as if the Premo brand name addition was an afterthought, or perhaps this was a more economical way to use the same box for many different brands of lights by simply applying the proper banding around the middle. Also, the ends of the box which normally would carry the manufacturer's name, style number and operating voltages are unmarked. There is no label on either end, nor is there evidence that there ever was one.
Here's a close up of the inner flap, which allows me to know that the cord in the set is original, as it matches the picture perfectly. Most of the lamps are also perfect matches to the ones in the picture; I have only to find the two candle lamps and a standing Santa with the screw-in base at the bottom to have all of the lamps pictured. Here's a close up of the inner flap:
The light bulbs pictured in the string are (in order): a purple pine cone, a white bird, a red smooth cone C-6 lamp, a yellow candle with a white stem, a clear pine cone, Santa, a green smooth cone C-6 lamp and finally a red candle with a white stem.
Here is a generic set by the name of Everlite. It came to me in very good condition, except that it did not have the original lamps and there was a scar on the box top from a price tag removal. The insert is in great shape, and ironed out well for reshaping. I had plenty of the proper XL type shunted lamps to go in the box, and touching up the area damaged by the tag removal was made easy with a watercolor pen and a little Aileen's white acid free glue. I keep a huge stock of the pens so as to be able to match artwork colors as closely as possible. After filling in the areas that were damaged, I took a little bit of white glue on a Q-Tip and spread it over the filled in area. This helped to spread out the water soluble ink more evenly for a better color match and in addition, the glue, when dry, also matches the original sheen of the box top. The result is an almost invisible repair.
Before repair After repair Inside view
CLICK HERE to see a new NOMA twinkling outfit just added to the collection.
Once in a very great while comes the "find of a lifetime," or in this case, the gift of a lifetime. Chris Cuff, a friend, fellow collector and very frequent contributor to this website, surprised me with a mysterious package in the mail. I was told not to open it until we were talking on the phone together, and although it arrived on 6/10/2002, I could not peek inside until our schedules permitted the phone call on the 13th. Chris told me the package was a birthday present, and when I was finally allowed to open it, what I saw caused me to lose my breath. It was a fabulous Touch The Button Christmas outfit! Extremely rare, there are only four of these sets known to be in the hands of collectors. I was absolutely stunned. Of course, I'll never be able to thank Chris properly, and my wife was a bit distressed that she could not come close to matching that wonderful surprise. To think that Chris and I have never met in person makes the gift all that more special.
Of course, I spent most of the night playing with my new toy, researching, looking, and planning the needed restoration work. I was up until 3 A.M. with that set of lights, unable to even feel tired for all of the excitement. I loved the feel of the dry old wood that made up the box. The musty smell of the silk covered wiring was a close second, and the ancient glazed porcelain sockets made a wonderful tinkling sound as I handled the festoons, the same sound they must have made almost 100 years ago as someone decorated their tree. I was in heaven! By the way, here is a picture of my new treasure:
CLICK HERE for more views and information about this outfit!
CLICK HERE to see more about this hard to find NOMA star set.
Another exciting find-a rental outfit from Macy's department Store in New York City. CLICK HERE to see all the pictures and read about this most unusual set.
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