In search of the Fire King

    On Saturday my two favorite guys took a ride with me to the Putnam Antique Center here in Connecticut to do some treasure hunting.  Four floors of  all kinds of "stuff"  can be found here in this old building in the center of an old mill town.  A previous post on this area can be found HERE and HERE.   My mission on Saturday was to find more Fire King Jadeite for Stella, our little cottage on the cove. 

   This is not my collection or photo.  After having done some research, this collection is most likely a mix of vintage and new.  An example of what's obviously new - on the middle shelf, the large bowl with handle/spout in the center on the bottom has a swirl pattern. With vintage pieces, the swirl is much softer, the swirl edges not so rigid.  I bet if that were turned over, it would be discovered as a new piece.  Fire King originals had a very smooth simple quality.

      More info: Fire King Jadeite, made by Anchor Hocking, was popular in the 1940's and manufactured up until the 1970's.  It's  a type of glass tableware made of jade green opaque milk glass. It was very durable, so much so that some restaurants/diners used the plain but pretty dishware and cups, etc. to serve their customers.   So popular was it,  that the company still produces a reproduction line with minor variations so that collectors can tell the difference between original pieces and the new line.  China has also come out with a line of it's own, and some knockoffs can be found in Target and Cracker Barrel. 

    So.. we cruised around the antique mall and I did find several groupings of Jadeite - all original, but some very pricey and some in scratchy chippy condition. 

 Then I spied a creamer and sugar bowl in perfect condition with a price tag that was reasonable. 

 I turned them over and indeed, they are authentic.  Not that it matters to me so much that they are authentic, but I'm not paying $20 for a $2. target item.  Some people have gotten caught in that trap on ebay, etc. 

 Score! 

I also found this depression era juicer and loved the vibrant spring green hue. Their simple design and sturdy thick glass work  really well when making lemon-orange aid, one of our favorite thirst quenchers 'round here in summer.   

 According to Wikipedia - Depression glass is clear or colored translucent machine made glassware that was distributed free, or at low cost, in the United States and Canada around the time of the Great Depression. Much depression glass is uranium glass. The Quaker Oats Company and other food manufacturers and distributors, put a piece of glassware in boxes of food, as an incentive to purchase. Movie theaters and businesses would hand out a piece simply for coming in the door.

Most of this glassware was made in the Ohio River Valley of the United States, where access to raw materials and power made manufacturing inexpensive in the first half of the twentieth century. More than twenty manufacturers made more than 100 patterns, and entire dinner sets were made in some patterns. Common colors are clear (crystal), pink, pale blue, green, and amber. Less common colors include yellow (canary), ultramarine, jadeite (opaque pale green), delphite (opaque pale blue), cobalt blue, red (ruby & royal ruby), black, amethyst, monax, and white (milk glass).

Although of marginal quality, Depression glass has been highly collectible since the 1960s. Due to its popularity as a collectible.  Depression glass is becoming more scarce on the open market. Rare pieces may sell for several hundred dollars. Some manufacturers continued to make popular patterns after World War II, or introduced similar patterns, which are also collectible. Popular and expensive patterns and pieces have been reproduced, and reproductions are still being made.

 Below is a photo I found online of someone's pink depression glass collection - 

    There was so much to look at and prices were fair.  We are tempted several times over but the truth is we don't need more "stuff"...  and the looking is half the fun. 

 An old coal stove, ornamental now due to a crack in the back

 "No trouble to show goods"

Beautifully crafted leather purses

   

💖 This stove! 

   After I made my purchases, we stopped in Victoria's Station Bakery and ooh,  if I could only share the heavenly smell of good coffee and pastry with you here...  Notice all the cozy seating areas with newspapers, magazines, a nice way to relax on a chilly afternoon.  

... a lovelier cupcake cannot be found in all the land.

       

 Till soon, friends -