The Best Tips for Collecting Vintage 1950s Spaghetti Poodles

Yasmina Greco Spaghetti Poodle Collection 1950sToday I am thrilled to share one of my passions with you all – collecting vintage Spaghetti Poodles! These little guys are positively precious, and they add a wonderful sense of cuteness while perfectly fitting into my mid-century modern aesthetic.

My favorite pieces from the collection have got to be the 1950’s Norcrest poodle trio in glasses & bows on the tray plus Lipper & Mann’s ‘NOEL’ set for Christmas time. Also included in this beloved assortment is an array of delightful lipstick holders, planters, vases – it just can’t get any better than that!

UPDATE: You can ready about my collections on a recently published piece in the Antique Trader

Norcrest Napco Lefton Spaghetti Poodle Collection 1950sTake a step back in time and revel in the kitschy cuteness of 1950s poodles! Back then, these furry four-legged friends were everywhere – from classic Poodle skirts to intricate spaghetti art ware figurines. Ceramic artists crafted unique pieces using a special technique that mimicked the pup’s fur and sparked an excitement for all things “spaghetti” poodle!

Spaghetti art wear is made from clay, porcelain, and ceramic which is applied as “fur” to form various textures of a poodle’s hairdo. To accomplish the spaghetti look, ceramicists and designers would have different techniques like using tea strainers to push the material through to form strands that were then attached to the poodle giving it a pom-pom look or they would swirl it onto to the poodle for a curly look. The spaghetti is very fragile and tends to break or chip over the years.

Norcrest Napco Lefton Spaghetti Poodle Collection 1950s Yasmina Greco

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Vintage Christmas Tips: Collecting Figurines & Candleholders

Thrifting Vintage Christmas Noel Sets
Thrifting Vintage Christmas Noel Sets

Vintage Christmas tips: collecting figurines & candleholders. Learn the tips about manufactures like Holt-Howard, Napco, Lefton, Norcrest, and more. For many, the holiday season is filled with love, warmth, and cherished memories. It’s also a time to appreciate and celebrate traditions, both old and new. One such tradition is the fascination with vintage Christmas noel figurines and candle holders from the 1950s, made in Japan. These collectibles not only add a nostalgic touch to your holiday decorations but also carry with them the rich history and craftsmanship of Japanese artisans.

Today’s post in our 2021 Vintage Christmas Collecting Series features some of my favorite vintage Noel sets that date to the 1950s-1960s and feature candle holders, bells, and figurines. Some of these sets were featured in last year’s Vintage Christmas Collecting Series of 2020 but have been updated with current pricing and colorways. When it comes to vintage Noel collectibles there are so many varieties and themes from Santa Claus, Elves, Poodles, Snowmen, Angels, Candy Canes, and even Pixies that there really is something for everyone and you can easily have a theme each year for your holiday decorating too!!

Note: Blog post has a lot of photos and pricing source is recent Ebay, Etsy, Worthpoint, and my own personal sales data.

One sure way to any collector’s heart is items that come with their original boxes. For me, the box can also be used as part of your vintage holiday decor as they usually have timeless graphics that add so much charm to your displays. Since these vintage items are usually 70 yrs old, if you do find an original box it will probably have some wear and tear or even water damage from being stored in basements and attics and that is completely okay and in my opinion, adds that much more to the story and history of the item. 

Here are some of my very favorite Noel sets from my personal collection and I think they are just dynamite. Each set is so unique and has loads and loads of vintage Christmas charm. I actually have them up year-round in my cabinet and they always make me smile when I stop and admire them. 

Stacked Santa’s NOEL Totem Pole Candle Holders

Vintage Christmas NOEL Santa Candleholders Napco Brinns
Vintage Christmas NOEL Santa Candleholders Napco Brinns

Near-and-dear to my heart are these vintage Santa Claus stacked NOEL totem pole candle holders.  These have such fun, witty, retro charm. Pictured are two matching pair made by Tilso in Japan in the 1950s. The Santa’s have  gold little curly-q’s in their beards, have expressive eyes, and each hold a letter to spell NOEL. Tilso sets (sometimes referred to as Brinns) tend to fetch $225-$300 each, having the original box really can impact the price.

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Christmas Holiday Top in Winter Pine Green

Crazy4Me Style Christmas Holiday Top in Winter Pine Green
Crazy4Me Style Christmas Holiday Top in Winter Pine Green

This year’s holiday top by Crazy4Me Style features our customer favorite design of a lovely lady decorating her vintage-style Christmas tree with her faithful fluffy puppy dog that’s screen printed onto a bright pine green tee, available in sizes Small-3XL. Perfect for the holiday season.

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Kitschy 1950s Poodle T-Shirt

Vintage Spaghetti Poodle T-Shirt
Vintage Spaghetti Poodle T-Shirt

Our newest design for Crazy4Me Style has debuted and it is the Amazing Kitschy Poodle T-Shirt. This t-shirt is reminiscent of the vintage 1950s spaghetti poodle dog figurines that were made in Japan by Lefton, Napco, Norcrest, Holt Howard, Kreiss, Artmark, Relco, Relpo, and more . Our Poodles are kitschtsastic with their cateye glasses, the fabulous pink and turquoise colors of the era and atomic starbursts.

Vintage Spaghetti Poodle Kitschy T-Shirt
Vintage Spaghetti Poodle Kitschy T-Shirt

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Eloquii Petal Pusher Wrap Dress Review

Eloquii Petal Pusher Wrap Dress Review Yasmina Greco Crazy4me

Being a “wrap dress” expert, today I am introducing you to a brand new brand here at Crazy4Me and they are called Eloquii. As most of my longtime readers know my favorite dress style is the wrap. I love wrap style dresses because they are a curvy and busty gals best friend. They enhance your waist and flatter your figure. Today I am going to tell you all about the Petal Pusher Wrap Dress with Layered Skirt from Eloquii.

Eloquii is a brand that carries stylish clothing in sizes 14-28. Having seen a beautiful polka dot dress on social media I went to the Eloquii website and that is when I started to see so many wonderful prints and colors and styles of clothing. Everything from dresses, skirts, blazers, slacks, tops, casual, business wear and more was on this site. I then saw this glorious shade of green and it turned out to be a wrap dress and the print is Petal Pusher. The dress has a layered skirt with ruffled sleeves and skirt. The style looked so feminine and vibrant and I knew I needed it to start Spring with.

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My Ultimate 5 Tips for Collecting Spaghetti Poodle Dogs

Vintage spaghetti poodle dogs have so much charm and character. They come in a variety of colors and styles and can be found highly decorated with rhinestones, bows, glasses, hats, playing sports, chain leash with puppies, depicted as fireman, graduating students, band musicians, reading the daily newspaper, snooty, high fashion, smoking, brides and more!

5 Tips for Collecting Vintage Spaghetti Poodle Figurines
5 Tips for Collecting Vintage Spaghetti Poodle Figurines by Yasmina Greco

Spaghetti Poodles are vintage ceramic, porcelain and clay figurines whose signature hairdo was created through an intricate process. Craftspeople would use tea strainers to push material like clays or glazes through the holes to form delicate strands that could be affixed for a pom-pom look, swirled onto the figure for bouncy curls, or incorporated into other creative designs. These one-of-a kind decorations were often also spruced up with rhinestones as eyes or sparkly accessories on their hats and collars; pearls and floral motifs added further charm! Despite being incredibly fragile though years of handling can cause them breakage in some areas – making these collectibles even more special.

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