Crazy4Me - The Modern Bombshell Lifestyle by: Yasmina Greco

Vintage Fashion, Mid-Century Modern, Collectibles, and Everything in Between

Kitschy-Cute Vintage Collectibles

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Vintage Lefton Bluebirds Collection
Vintage Lefton Bluebirds Collection

Find out what kitschy-cute vintage collectibles are and why they’re so popular and sell for so much money these days. Also, learn about the history of the merchandise and some tips for buying them!

My heart gets so happy looking at these adorable little faces with those big eyes, long eyelashes, and sweet expressions…… welcome to the kitschy-cute world of today’s vintage collectibles.

Vintage Pixieware Kitschy-Cute Menschik Goldman Dolly Girl Collection Set
Vintage Pixieware Kitschy-Cute Menschik Goldman Dolly Girl Collection Set

Kitsch is a term that’s been around for quite some time. It can be described as art or items that are considered to be in poor taste, corny, or overly sentimental. For many people, kitsch has become an insult with negative connotations, and they avoid it at all costs. But there are some who enjoy the warmth and nostalgia of kitschy things from their childhoods. These vintage collectors know what they’re looking for when browsing through flea markets and antique malls. Kitschy collectibles and prices for these items has even spurred a new term in the market referred to as “kitschy-cute”!!

Vintage Kitschy-Cute Enesco Lil Bear Collection Set
Vintage Kitschy-Cute Enesco Lil Bear Collection Set

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My Auction Item Arrived Broken

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I was on one of the well-known online charity auction websites recently and won this vintage 1958 Holt Howard Noel Elf Girls Pixieware Candle Holder set and I was sooooo thrilled!  I was the high bidder and let me say that it was not an inexpensive win. This set is very rare and so fragile and I have won items in the past from this charity auction website that when arrived were not quite as described and had lots more damage and I vowed not to shop on the site anymore but, a few months later and bam – I got sucked into another auction. The little faces on these girls were simply irresistible; they have big eyes and long eyelashes. So I paid the fee and shipping too was so high on these girls but they were going to be for my private collection so no worries. Well, they were shipped quickly and arrived quickly and as I was unpacking them I could already tell they were not securely packaged so as I was un wrapping the girls the majority were wrapped in paper towels (I am serious and not joking that they were actually wrapped in paper towels) the “N” survived, the “O” survived, the “E” survived and the final one I unwrapped the “L” had her little head broken off….. I was sooooooooo heart broken! My husband looked at me and shook his head, he felt bad for me and when he found out how much I paid agreed with me to never ever ever buy from that charity auction website again. 






























Many of you already know that we are eBay Power Sellers and sell on many online places and we specialize in vintage and antique collectibles and hold ourselves to the highest standards when it comes to our items, item descriptions, item packaging and customer service and immediately handle fairly any customer issues that might arise as we do the right thing, but, I have sent emails and left messages for this charity auction website and no one is even getting back to me. One of the main differences of shopping online vs. buying in person is that you can see the item first hand, touch it and hold it and look it over really well to make a decision if you want to purchase it or not and when buying online it is super important for sellers to be honest about the items, the item description and to make sure the item arrives safely to the buyer but, it appears not all online sellers hold themselves to our standards. Now, I guess I will have to search for ‘L” figurine.




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Feel Good Friday Finds


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It is a lovely Spring day here in North Texas and the sun is shining and a light breeze is blowing and it is Friday so, I was a little naughty and stopped by at an Estate sale on my way to work! 














The Estate sale was in an older section of Fort Worth and it was early enough that dew was still on the street and the sun was just starting to poke out. Not too many people around….I had arrived just in time. The house was so dark and dilapidated inside that photos were not turning out. I don’t know why the curtains and blinds were not opened. I actually think the sale was put on by the relatives of the decedent and not a professional Estate sale company. Things were not well organized and or even setup.





















There was a lot of furniture for sale and a lot of it was super nice; at least it looked nice in the dark old house. There was an entire dining room with a table that sat 8, gorgeous hutch and quite a few miscellaneous old wooden chairs, a couple needlepoint foot stools and oil paintings. The living room is where all the “good” stuff was or at least items that I am interested in. Prices were super duper high! I managed to sneak in between a pair of arguing boy friends and snatch up the goodies that were in their pile…they were arguing so loudly they didn’t seem to mind. I bought the two vintage 1950s anthropomorphic items (if you have been following my blog for a while then you know I am a SUCKER for anything anthropomorphic and will pay $$), considering the house was so darn dark I am feeling pretty good that I even spotted these anthro items and the fact that they were under a table in between arguing boyfriends. One is an anthropomorphic Green Apple Sting Holder made by PY of Japan and the other is also by PY of Japan and is a Celery man vase/planter.. wow! I also managed to spot some neat vintage salt and pepper shakers (I have never seen a pair of computer salt and pepper shakers, I am giving them to my husband) a pair of tropical fish salt and pepper shakers (there is a pretty big following for collecting vintage fish shakers) a couple Shumann Bavaria demitasse cups/saucers, and an adorable old windup toy of a knitting bear, an empty chintz Royal Albert box… I thought is was so pretty, and a little pixieware kitty cat creamer. I even found the old embroidered toaster cover with a rooster on it and I found it of all places in the bedroom closet mixed in with a bunch of old socks and stockings. It is in ok condition on the front but the back has a lot of issues…I still think it is adorable!

























All in all, I am feeling good with my Friday Finds! How about you all?? You finding anything good this Friday?




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Collecting Holt Howard Pixieware Condiment Jars


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If you have been following my blog or visit my Crazy4Me eBay and Crazy4Me Etsy stores you know how much I love vintage Anthropomorphic kitchenware and especially Holt Howard Pixieware. These lovelies from the 1950s are so fantastical and housewives during this era sure had their picking of condiment jars to decorate their kitchens with in those early days. 












Condiment jars were manufactured by many companies mostly in Japan but some in the USA and the most successful companies producing these items were Holt Howard, Lefton, DeForrest, Napco, and Betson.  Some of the very collectible condiment jars are for Onions, Garlic, Mustard, Ketchup, Relish, Jam and Jelly, Honey, Olives, Cocktail Olives, Cherries, these jars are so darn neat and cute with their theatrical faces and depictions of clothes pins over the nose of garlic condiment jars and the crying eyes of the condiment onion jar pixies. The most collectible and highly desired Pixieware condiment jars are made by Holt Howard. 


 


Spoons that go with the condiment jars are often times referred to as “Spoofy Spoons” and it is important when you are searching for vintage condiment jars that you check the items over for damage and be especially careful with the spoons and check these over with a fine tooth comb for damage as the spoon’s tops are the “face” of the condiment jar and usually the lid and the neck of the spoon’s are so very fragile that the heads break off and you want to check for this and if it has been re-attached. Also, it is difficult to find complete sets with their spoons, spoofy spoons, lids, and underplates. 


Values for these vintage Pixieware condiment jars are increasing and the desirabilityis also increasing so be prepared to pay top dollar for a “good condition” item and prices can be even higher for the rarer condiment jars and “mint condition” pixieware condiment jars. Current Valuations at the time writing this article:




    

  1. Lefton Hot Dog Faced Pixieware Mustard jars over $3,000
    2. 

  2.  Holt Howard Honey Condiment Pixieware Jar $1,000 and up
    3. 

  3.  Holt Howard Chili Sauce Pixieware Condiment Jar over $700.00
    4. 

  4.  Napco Mustard Condiment Jar $250.00 and up
    5. 

  5.  Holt Howard Jeeves Olives Condiment Pixieware Jar $350.00 and up
    6. 

  6.  Holt Howard Mustard Pixieware Condiment Jar $125.00 and up
    7. 

  7.  Holt Howard Ketchup Pixieware Condiment Jar $125.00 and up
    8. 

  8.  Holt Howard Liquor Decanters $600.00 and up
    9. 

  9.  Lefton Apple Head Pixieware Anthropomorphic Jam Jar $160.00
    10. 








Photos from Flickr, Antique Trader, About


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