Perfume group announces lineup for 30th convo

The International Perfume Bottle Association (IPBA) announces its 30th annual convention. The perfume group event is April 26-29 at the Sheraton, Tysons Corner, Virginia.

This year’s theme “United We Stand.... For Scents” serves as a reminder that not only are we meeting in a place rich with US history, we are also an international group, coming together in our collecting interests to include not only perfume bottles, but also a variety of dresser items, purses, lipsticks, and compacts.

For the convention keynote, Linda Primeau will showcase the House of Guerlain, Paris, 1828 (think Jicky, Mitsouko, Shalimar). Since starting her career with Guerlain in 1995, Linda has accumulated a Guerlain collection of her own. Her interest in the company led her to explore its three generations of “noses,” the stunning variety and styles of the bottle designs and the heritage of developing the scents that appealed universally from ingenues to royalty. A “keeper of the stories and romance,” for more than 10 years she has been the editor of the Monseur Guerlain website.

Seminars for IPBA members and guests include: Elizabeth Arden’s Dressing Table, Ephemera, and Art, given by Terri Chappell-Boyd; Origins, Elements, and Impact of Art Deco Design, by Howard W. Melton and Michael A. Mont; and France Has a Word for Beauty – Lancome, by Antoine Poujol.

The IPBA Convention is the venue for the International Perfume Bottle Auction [www.perfumebottlesauction.com] organized and conducted since 2009, by author, collector, and renowned expert, Ken Leach. An Antiques Roadshow celebrity, Nicholas Dawes is this year’s auctioneer. Bids range from $100 to thousands with conventioneers, telephone and internet bidders competing for desirable items. This event, open to the public, opens with the preview at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, April 27, with the auction beginning at 5 p.m.

Also open to the public from 9:30-11 a.m. on Saturday, April 28 is the Collector’s Flea Market.

Browse, enjoy lunch on your own and then return at 1:30 p.m. for Collecting Vanity Items 101 – an educational presentation with goodies and great information – and a ticket for free entry to the Perfume Bottle and Vanity Show and Sale. This well-lit room glitters with nothing but the treasures of the vanity table. Furthermore, the Showroom is open to the public on Saturday, April 28 from 1:30- 5:30 p.m.

The convention marks the culmination of the Third Annual Perfume Bottle Design Contest, which is open to all creative persons. The top 10 design entries will be on display; the winner will be announced on April 28. [Official rules can be found at www.perfumebottles.org.]

In addition, the IPBA convention features a wide variety of events for members, but also many events to which the public is welcome.

For more details, contact Verna Kocken (541) 736-5180 or vicepresident@perfumebottles.org.