Author Archive
I recently discovered these mid-century West German vases and I am hooked. The colors are so bright and bold, the designs so modern — I feel like it’s something so rarely see in pottery your grandmother could have owned.
The West German ceramics you’ll find today on eBay and Etsy are mainly vases, but occasionally you’ll find something cool, like an uber-modern pitcher or a teapot.
On my own blog, I talk frequently about how important it is to know the keywords you’re looking for when performing a search for objects you desire. Looking for West German ceramics is no exception. Here are a few keywords to help you find great pieces of West German pottery:
- Keramik (see eBay results here)
- Fat Lava (see eBay results here)
- Jopeko (see eBay results here)
- 60s German ceramic (see eBay results here)
… and of course to that you can always add keywords like vase, pitcher, teapot, or dish.
Happy collecting!
I remember when the greeting card company American Greetings started a penpal service — American Greetings to the World. I signed up for it and eventually was writing to other students in Australia and England. We exchanged pictures and stickers and cute stationary and I always greeted the mail delivery with anticipation. So here’s to bringing back a little of that vintage pen pal spirit — back when the mailbox brought more than just a flood of bills and super savings coupons.
Remember geeky experiments in science class? Turns out all those test tubes and glass bottles make pretty sweet home decor. (And in my opinion, gross-out anatomical displays do, too.)
I totally had this model set when I was a kid! Oh, if only I’d realized how cool it was instead of selling it in a garage sale.
But if that creeps you out a little too much, check out how pretty labware can be with a little greenery:
Go geek out your home!
I’ve been feeling overworked for the past few months and am therefore entertaining escapist fantasies, one of which is a lifestyle on West Egg where I have nothing better to do at the crack of noon but ding the neck of a decanter against the rim of a rocks glass and apply another layer of bright red lipstick. (You know, before all the horrible accidents take place.) So if we can’t take an actual vacation to the time between the wars, we can at least take an aesthetic one.
Of course, there was the drawback of not being able to legally drink…
… but that never stopped, my grandma so it certainly won’t stop me!
Back when getting from Sarasota to San Diego in just a few hours was still a novelty, this was one of the coolest jobs in the world. Was it the travel alone that made being a mid century flight attendant so fabulous? I think not.
Not only were the outfits and accessories classy, the beverage service was, too.
Bon voyage!
I never had much interest in amassing a china collection and storing it away in some hulking cabinet. I’m a fan of dark, bold prints and heavy-duty ceramics, so hand-painted, delicate china cups in pastel colors don’t really do it for me. A few years ago, however, I was house-sitting for a woman who had lots of mismatched china, and she used it every day. And all of it had patterns that looked like photocopies.
This type of pattern is called transferware. The name comes from the technique ceramics makers used to transfer an engraved design onto the ceramic surface using tissue paper. This saved them the agony of hand-painting everything (and if I may be frank, saved us the agony of those horrid hand-painted designs). Despite being made predominantly in the 19th and early 20th centuries, because of their their bold colors and realistic scenes, many of these transferware patterns look strikingly modern.
And some transferware manufacturers are modern. One of my favorite companies that made the jump from antique to vintage transferware is Johnson Brothers:
Spode also made an excellent transition to modern times:
Other cool patterns, some of which are not too expensive:
Happy hunting!
It was 80 degrees in Chicago yesterday, which means the final end of winter and the beginning of summer. (We have no spring here as it’s always apt to snow in April. Once 40-degree weather ends, 80-degree weather begins.)
And this Memorial Day, what better way to show up in style to a barbeque than with a vintage Coleman cooler? Everyone will be jealous.
But I can hear you squirming now — whatever will you do with the hulking piece of metal come wintertime? Well gather ’round to hear my Martha Stewart solution — it’s real simple.
Use it to store your hats, gloves, mittens, scarves, ice scrapers, lock de-icer, dog booties, sidewalk salt and whatever other winter unsightlies create that post-November clutter in your mud room, porch or entryway. Or you can use it for an emergency kit storage in the trunk of your car. Flashlight, rope, kitty litter, first aid kit, blanket, batteries, astronaut ice cream, motor oil — all of it snuggly and out-of-sight in your sleek, retro, genius storage system.
Maybe you should buy two?
