A lot of people wonder where Glo-Mesh handbags come from; and why they are so hard to find after being so popular for such a short period of time. I've done some digging around and found a few little-known facts about this very collectible, must-have for every woman.
As it was mostly produced in the 70s and 80s, but not exclusively – silver mesh had a bit of a following in the 60s with companies like the US-based Whiting and Davis that were producing mesh well before this.
The mesh came in a range of basic colours, along with some less common and more collectable ones.
However, the term ‘Glomesh’ is the official trademark of the company you asked about (Glo International Australia). If it isn’t labelled ‘Glomesh’ then the item should be referred to as simply ‘mesh’ or ‘alumesh'.
‘Glomesh’ was manufactured in Australia and so, many Glomesh designs have a four digit design number somewhere on the label of the bag. This can be of assistance in dating the item. However, if you've bought your bag at a charity or second-hand store, the tag may have been cut or worn out.
If you’re lucky enough to find a swing tag attached to the item, this will help in dating it. 60s bags have swing tags/sticker labels with a sort of rounded triangular shape, like a plectrum; later ones have a square tag with a gold ‘G’ on it.
If the original box comes with the item, this too can help you date it – older boxes have printed off-white cardboard that’s designed to look like glomesh; later boxes are grey with thin diagonal pink stripes and white lettering.
Cheaper mesh, which mostly seems to come from Hong Kong or China, will tarnish easily and is generally not worth your while (unless it’s an amazing shape or colour or something).
There are three most reputable brands of mesh:
Australia – Glomesh (Glo International Australia) and Park Lane
USA – Gold Crest and Whiting and Davis (USA)
Germany – Oroton
That’s about all it I found find about Glo-Mesh (alu-mesh). Never underestimate the value of talking to the older generation. Even ladies (and some gents) who don’t take an interest seem to know the difference between Oroton and ‘Made in Hong Kong’.
If you go into an antiques shop/fair/market where people seem to be selling loads of mesh, they will probably be wonderful founts of wisdom. You can also check fashion magazines from the 70s and 80s, which will probably assist you in identifying designs and trends of the period.
I got all this information from a wonderful website from Google. All of this information was gleaned from a blog site; as I couldn't find anything about these particular types of bags. I've been obtaining a lot of my history from my parents and other people who used to own Glo-mesh or other mesh bags.
On Wednesday, I was at Life Line and found nothing to really catch my eye. So, I went to the glass cabinet next to the register; sometimes there's something in there that may be interesting enough for me to buy, sometimes not and I end up walking out of there empty-handed.
On this day, I found two Glo-Mesh purses. There was a red one on it's own and there was another that was white and had a key-chain attachment to match; and the second one was boxed up! Now, when you find them in a box, they've either never been used or they've been used once or twice and put back. In any case, the boxed one was well-cared for and I immediately said I'd take it. I also took the red one too.
