Tag Archives: lefton

Vintage Finds: Mermaid Figurine, Perfume Bottles, Lefton Bluebirds

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 Hertwig and Company Merboy Figurine

Antiquing has been challenging recently as it seems the ‘good’ stuff is really hard to come by but, that usually is the case anyway. I can’t believe I came upon these vintage treasures!! I have never seen this Lefton Bluebird child’s set of a mug and bowl nor the ‘Dev’ perfume bottle of a pink Poodle dog and pretty little lady. But, the most exquisite of my treasures has to be this small bisque porcelain ‘Merboy’ figurine made in Germany by Hertwig and Company that was probably an aquarium figurine back in the early 1900s. Are you finding anything amazing lately, let me know!!

Visit us at: Ebay Crazy4Me

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Vintage Collectibles for the New Year

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$_12Many of you have been asking what I brought back from Portland when I recently visited. Right before catching that horrible flu bug I did manage to get out to two antique malls. My BEST finds came from ‘Old Glory‘ in Vancouver, WA. I didn’t really think I found that many items but the medium sized UHaul box I shipped myself proved other wise. Here are some pics of a few of these vintage goodies that I just listed in our eBay and Etsy stores. Some of these items include vintage Lefton Toodles jam jars, a vintage Rubens Valentine girl planter, an adorable pair of vintage Lefton Norcrest bluebird salt and pepper shakers, a vintage Art Deco ‘Bathing Beauty’ Flapper figurine made in Germany and many many more goodies!!

Visit our stores to see these vintage items and more – Ebay, Vintage Cameras

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Vintage Christmas Candy Cane Figurine Collectibles 1950s

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I am really into vintage Christmas candy cane collectibles this year. Decorations by Holt Howard, Lefton, Napco, Tilso, Ucagco, Inarco, Norcrest and more! These vintage Christmas cuties have so much vintage charm…..you just don’t find that in today’s mass produced items. Many of these items can be found at our Ebay and Etsy stores

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Collecting Vintage Halloween Planters from 1950

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With Halloween nearly upon us and all those seasonal costume shops that open up, I have been looking for some vintage Halloween decorations and not finding very many at my local antiques & collectibles shops. Occasionally I see the antique/vintage German made paper mache Halloween candy container and those tend to fetch top dollar and rightfully so as they are rare and very desirable and not many have survived over the years. However online shopping is proving to be a great resource for finding the rare and collectible (eBay, Etsy, Rubylane, Tias) and there are actually a few darling vintage 1950s planters in the forms of Pumpkins, Witches, and Ghosts that were made by the famous companies of yester-year like Lefton, Relpo, Napco, and Rubens Originals. Here a few pictures of ones that are online and I think they would make super cute centerpieces and perfect Halloween decorations without being too scary. 

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Shopping the Petaluma Fall Antique Faire 2013

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Today we went to the Petaluma Fall Antique Faire. The show is all outdoors and there are over 180+ dealer booths all setup in the historic downtown. We first went to this show in the Spring /Summer time and it was so hot outside but today it was breezy, warm and by the time we were leaving it almost looked like rain. Perfect weather for the time we were there! Lots of dealers from all over the country selling all sorts of things from furniture, jewelry, Bakelite, linens, kitchenware, collectibles, toys, books and magazines, art work, paintings, repurposed and up-cycled items to chandeliers, clothing, rugs, bikes, tools, etc…. something for everyone.

We got to the show about 2hours after it opened and there was a good amount of shoppers. Dealers were not yet quite ready to bargain or negotiate very much, if at all. They pretty much all said the same thing ‘come back in a couple hours and if it isn’t sold maybe we can come down on the price’. I totally understand, but, me too, being a buyer to re-sell, I have to at least give bargaining a try and I think I am pretty reasonable and certainly not trying to insult the dealer.

We did find some cute items like this really rare 1950s Lefton blue spaghetti poodle dog set of mom and pups chained. This blue poodle set is rare because you usually do not find it with the hats/roses and rhinestones. I also found the 1950s pink spaghetti poodle dog with her tam on her head and all these adorable Napco angels for March – St. Patrick’s Day, February – Valentines Day, and November – Thanksgiving. I couldn’t believe it when I found this darling little Lefton Christmas candy cane boy figurine and the pretty vintage blue stenciled ornament, a pair of vintage 1950s plastic turquoise salt and pepper shakers and this tiny yellow vintage Ceramicraft fish wall plaque.

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I did find a pair of vintage kissing angel figurines with one hiding a comic book behind his back and the other hiding a puppy dog but, it turned out that even I didn’t follow one of my rules and that is – no matter what, each item needs to be fully inspected and I even brought my magnifying glass but thought since the show was outdoors, there was plenty of light to ‘see’ any damage so I didn’t take it out of my bag. When I unpacked the angels, part of the halo was broken in the wrapping paper….when I looked at the other angel’s halo I saw two spots where it was re-glued….bummer!! But, it was my fault. I came prepared and didn’t follow my own rules.  I am really happy though with the items I did find today!!

You can find all these items and more in our Ebay, Etsy and Rubylane stores.

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Vintage 1950s Kitschy Kitchen Collectibles

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When talking about vintage ceramic kitchen collectibles from the 1950s-1960s, a popular theme is ‘Anthropomorphic’ and it refers to ‘uniquely human characteristics and expressions’ and these ceramic are usually very colorful and animated – kind of like cartoon characters with big eyes and smiles.  These vintage ceramics were mostly imports from Japan and made by the eras top manufacturers Holt Howard, PY, Miyao, Coronet, Napco, and Lefton.

You can find Anthropomorphic collectibles in the forms of: Condiment Jars, Salt and Pepper Shakers, Cruet Sets, Jam and Jelly Jars, Planters, Vases, Wall Pockets, Cake Stands, Dinner Ware Sets, Serving Bowls, Serving Trays, Butter Dishes, Teapots, Pitchers and more.


Today these kitschy anthropomorphic collectibles can be found online, on EBay, Etsy, Rubylane, and in antique and collectibles shops all over the country but in small quantities. Collectors tend to collect based on manufacturer or theme – say all red apple items or only the lemon heads. Be prepared however to pay top dollar on these items as they are very collectible today and can rage from $29.99  – $3,500 (for the rare Lefton Hot Dog Head condiment jar and Holt Howard Honey jar). I was at a flea market recently and spotted a pair of vintage 1950s anthropomorphic fruit head salt and pepper shakers in horrible condition with lots of crazing and paint wear and the seller was asking $40 for them and when I attempted to negotiate he just looked at me and said “Do you know what these are? They are from 50s and very collectible today” and he was not going to budge on price.

Collecting vintage anthropomorphic kitchen ceramics are a REALLY fun type of collectible as their bright colors and big smiles and expressive faces are so darn cute and charming so they appeal to lots of folks. Today, finding pieces to complete a set or add to a growing collection are getting more and more difficult and prices are climbing.  Do you collect vintage anthropomorphic kitchen ceramics? Send us a note and let us know about your collection.

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