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
This past weekend we took a drive to Sacramento to one of our favorite antique malls ‘Midway Antique Mall’. This is the mall that has such amazing mid-century modern rooms….yes, actually rooms that have been styled just like they were in the 50s/60s. You have a few kitchens, living rooms, lounges, waiting rooms from the 50s/60s and more. It is so cool! Nice to see a lot of the rooms had been ‘sold’ and new ones were being setup.
I was hoping to find some great vintage Christmas but there wasn’t much on this trip so, either it already all sold, or, there just wasn’t much put out. There was one booth that was full of vintage yard ornaments blow molds and some decorative ornaments too.
My favorite find was this cart! It was my husband that pointed it out. I have been hunting for a blue vintage 50s/60s cart for a long time. Also found some vintage Christmas towels, a lovely Napco umbrella girl, a light-up vintage Christmas tree topper, an adorable vintage Christmas reindeer ashtray, and a teal clock. The cart is by far my favorite find and it is already getting much use housing our printers!!
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.
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.
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.
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.
Summer is in full swing and hot too! Lots of yard sales and flea markets happening this time of year. Finding good buys is always a challenge and that is what makes it fun. We went out for a bit this morning and wound up at a estate sale. The sale was just a couple miles from our house and when we pulled up the there were hardly any cars. The sale started Thursday so we really didn’t expect much and honestly, I was curious to see what the house looked like as the neighborhood is all “vintage cottages” with white picket fences…really cute. We walked inside and a couple ladies greeted us. We walked around and looked in each room. Lots and lots of books! Everywhere were bookshelves stuffed with books. There still quite a bit of stuff for sale. I could see the house needed a complete re-model from top to bottom! Any way, we ended finding some cute needlepoint lampshades, a vintage Napco Turkey Thanksgiving set and some vintage 1950s Mermaids made by Freeman McFarlin. Freeman McFarlin is one of the original “California Potters” and had the factory in Elmonte, California. What kind if sales and great finds are you all finding this summer?
