Here is a very pretty vintage powder compact from the 1950s/60s. A circular compact from the Melissa brand, with a couple of pinky-red carved Lucite roses on the lid, under a small central clear celluloid bevelled disc, & a very fine & delicate engine-turned spiral design skirting round the centre. This compact measures 8.7cms in diameter & only 1cm thick in the centre where the raised disc is. (that’s 3 3/8 x 3/8ths thick) & has intact hinges & clasps on the exterior & the interior, which are all in good working order. The larger diameter & thinness of these compacts earned them the nickname ‘Flapjack’, & were very popular. I love this for its gorgeous 1950s central reverse-carved Lucite roses design - so typical of that era - pink roses & green leaves, with an extra spiky stem of purple flowers in the background. This has a brand new sifter & puff with no traces of powder anywhere, so i think this is unused. There is a Melissa motif with the crown symbol in the centre of the felt pouch that this comes in. I do have another of these beautiful Melissa compacts with the reverse carved flowers in the centre - this one has one pink rose & other flowers around the edge, but no accoutrements, & so is a bit cheaper - the link is here:- https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/663421681/melissa-vintage-1950s-large-flapjack CONDITION:- This compact is in pretty good condition- probably due to the fact that it has its original felt cover. Save from a few age spots, pits & scratches, especially on the reverse, this is a nice collector’s item. Please see my photos !! The inner retaining ring around the mirror is loose & comes away if you actually pick it out. However, this doesn’t drop out of its own accord & can be glued back in. This is in really great condition otherwise - no wear to the interior as far as I can see. Someone has taken reasonable good care of this, so it’s a bit of a collector’s item. MELISSA The Melissa company, according to the British Compact Collectors’ Society, was a British brand made by Searchlight Products (Melissa) Ltd. & dates from around the 1950s-70s. Says one researcher: Melissa is thought to have been based in Acton, London W3 from the early 1950s, but I found that by 1962 the company had premises in Arundel Road, Uxbridge, Middlesex. in 1970, the company was still listed at this address in a telephone directory, but by 1972 another company occupied the site. A local trade directory of 1976 listed Searchlight Products, so possibly the firm was still trading at this later date, but I have been unable to find out at what date it ceased manufacturing compacts. That’s all we know about this company - any forthcoming info will be added to this listing. Melissa Lacquered Brass Flapjack Powder Compact With Pinky-Red Lucite Carved Roses Under Central Clear Celluloid Disc, Vintage 1950S
