Kodak Vanity Kodak Ensemble, Model B (1928–1929)
The Vanity Kodak Ensemble is an odd Kodak side-project from the late 1920s. It was a camera sold as part of a coordinated vanity set, produced only from 1928 until 1929 at an original price of $20. It used 127 format film, which suits its compact, feminine positioning. It was meant to live on a dressing table, not in a gadget bag.
Surviving documentation is thin, and nearly everything known comes from dealer listings rather than period literature. The "Ensemble" appears to have included the camera plus accessories meant to suggest a woman's vanity kit. One surviving unit is described as coming "with case, compact (missing the lipstick), instruction book and worn box." So the set included a compact and lipstick alongside the camera, though exactly what else rode in the box isn't recorded. The "Model B" designation suggests there were other variants, but no relationship to other Kodak "Vanity" models has been documented.
What little there is on condition comes from the same dealer sources. One Pacific Rim Camera listing describes a beige example with a working shutter but notes the "original bellows are worn through at the corners." That is a common fate for folding cameras of this era, where the bellows crease and eventually tear at the pivot points. Another Pacific Rim listing, this one for a gray unit, calls it "complete and boxed." The color difference between listings (beige vs. gray) may simply reflect different production runs or different surviving units rather than a factual conflict.
No owner reviews, no magazine coverage, and no independent corroboration of any of the above have surfaced.
Known Specs
- Producer: Kodak
- Production: 1928–1929
- Original price: $20
- Film format: 127
- Variants: Model B; beige and gray finishes documented
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