Hattie Carnegie Dynel flower pins rank amongst the most unique and expensive costume flower pins in existence.
Although the vast majority of her jewelry is made from metal and stones, I find the Dynel pieces particularly fascinating.
Therefore this blog post focuses on them exclusively. I am writing a separate blog post that features her metal jewelry.
Why Hattie Used Dynel
So far, I have not found any documentation explaining why the company introduced this material. Perhaps it was just for fun.
To my knowledge, there is no other jewelry company that used Dynel in their designs. But it was used for other purposes explained below.
WHAT IS DYNEL?
"Dynel is a trademarked synthetic fiber made from vinyl chloride and acrylonitrile:
Properties
Dynel is known for being resistant to burning, abrasion, and chemicals. It's also strong, dries quickly, and is easily dyed.
Uses
Dynel was used in many applications, including:
Textiles: Dynel was used to make knitted and woven fabrics for clothing and home furnishings.
Wigs and fake fur: Dynel was used to make wigs, doll hair, and fake fur.
Marine applications: Dynel was used in fiber reinforced plastic composite materials, especially for marine applications.
History of Dynel
Dynel was first introduced in 1951 by the Union Carbide corporation. Its production has since been discontinued." Google
Hattie Carnegie's history is fascinating.
First of all, she was born Henrietta Kanengeiser in Austria changing her name to Hattie Carnegie when she came to the United States.
This link, Hattie Carnegie History, connects to Exquisite Vintage Jewels. Her biography can be found there.