User:Brasslady/International Perfume Bottle Association

INTERNATIONAL PERFUME BOTTLE ASSOCIATION (IPBA)
The International Perfume Bottle Association (IPBA) is an organization of collectors of perfume bottles and related fragrance items covering all time periods from antiquity to the present. It is a 501c3 nonprofit corporation. It is run by an elected Board of Directors, who are all volunteers. The purpose of the IPBA is to provide information about all aspects of this collecting field including identification, use s, history, and manufacture, and to promote fellowship among members. The IPBA represents education, collecting and camaraderie.

History
The International Perfume Bottle Association was established as the Perfume and Scent Bottle Collectors in July 1988 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Long-time perfume bottle collector, Fran Peters, was attending a convention, held every four years, of the Organization of Historic Bottle Clubs. At that convention, specialty meetings were held. Fran placed a notice on the bulletin board asking people who were interested in perfume bottles to attend a specialty session. Seventeen people responded and all agreed that they wanted to unite and "collect" other perfume and scent bottle collectors.

Two charter members, Jeane Parris and Joyce Geeser, began the process of organizing. Perfume bottle dealer Jean Sloan notified all of her customers of the club's formation. Joyce Geeser began disseminating information through antique dealers and articles in antique publications. She started publishing a newsletter, Perfume and Scent Bottle News, and by the end of the first year, membership had grown to nearly 375. Jeane Parris began keeping membership and financial records.

The first annual convention of the Perfume Bottle Scent Collectors (PBSC) was held in 1989 in Dearborn, Michigan. Officers were elected to serve the Association. The 1990 Convention was held in San Francisco, California and in 1991 in Chicago, Illinois. The 1992 Convention was held in Atlanta, Georgia and in 1993 in Dallas, Texas. Workshops grew in number and quality. In 1993, the by-laws were revised and voted on by the members. One of the many changes included voting on having the Convention Chair an official Board position. The Association committed itself to running the highest quality annual convention it could run with formal and informal displays. In response to the Association's goals, both membership and convention attendance numbers have remained robust. The Association officially became the International Perfume Bottle Association at the annual convention in Reston, Virginia, in 1994.

The Board selects members who have distinguished themselves for their contributions to perfume bottle collecting and to the Association. Thisvery special recognition is called The Honors of the Association. Recipients of the Honors have been: Madeleine France (1994); Joyce Geeser and Jeane Parris (1995); Christie Mayer Lefkowith (1996); Helen Farnsworth (1997); Donna Sims and Mary Lou and Glenn Utt (1998); Fran Peters (1999); Ken Leach (2000); Frank Creech (2001); Randall B. Monsen (2002); Jean-Marie Martin-Hattemberg (2003); Ruthie Rosenfeld and Lenore Worth Hiers (2004); and Elizabeth Creech, Marti DeGraaf and Toby Mack (2005), Joan Walter (2008), and Bonnie Salzman (2009). On those years when a selection is made, Honors of the Association is awarded at the Annual Meeting during convention.

Education
Education is promoted through well researched articles in the Perfume Bottle Quarterly (PBQ), through its extensive Lending Library, features in the IPBA annual Directory and programs presented during the annual Convention. The Perfume Bottle Quarterly evolved from a high-quality, ten-page Association Newsletter into a 24 page magazine printed in full four-color format. IPBA members—both collectors and dealers, write articles for publication. Many experts within the Association share their knowledge with one another through the PBQ. The convention features a keynote speaker, workshops by perfume-bottle experts, numerous roundtable sessions facilitated by collectors, an identification session, an all¬perfume-bottle auction and an exhibition featuring thousands of bottles to see and to buy. The IPBA Annual Directory generally includes the IPBA history, Code of Ethics, Contact information for officers and for local chapter contacts, information on the Website and the Library as well as an alphabetical and geographical listing of all IPBA members.

Comaraderie
The IPBA Annual Directory promotes camaraderie. Members' names are listed along with their collecting specialties. If you are traveling or would like to meet members in your geographic area, or have an interest in forming a local chapter, consult the Geographical Membership Directory. Becoming acquainted with other members who live close by or with other members who collect the same types of bottles enhances the enjoyment of the hobby, facilitates the exchange of information and encourages friendships among IPBA members.

In 1995, the IPBA became an approved 501C3 not-for-profit association. The Association is administered by an elected all-volunteer Board of Directors made up of members. Membership in the IPBA has grown every year and has stabilized around 1200 members in over twenty countries. Long-term goals for the Association include a Virtual Museum with connectivity through the IPBA website where both members and the general public can view the innumerable perfume and scent bottles that have been created throughout history. In summary, the IPBA is a service organization for collectors of perfume and scent bottles. In the decade since its inception, it has developed into the largest international association for collectors of perfume bottles. It is a member-driven Association in which each member is extremely important to the organization. All new members—whether beginners or experienced collectors—are greatly welcome.

Charter Members of the IPBA, then called the Perfume and Scent Bottle Association: Fran Peters, Jean Sloan, Joyce Geeser, Jeane Parris, James Conley, Hazel Martin, Sheila DeVarso, Leslie Fronczak, Betty Jordan, Cay Bettinghaus, Dick Pardini, Jody Speer, Bob Puterbaugh, Louise Beaton, Patricia Francois, Helen Sherwood, Luella Newman, Jeannette