Fostoria Coronet Elegant Glass

Fostoria's Coronet is one of their less-well known patterns, which is hard to understand since it is far more classy and elegant than some of their best known patterns. Coronet has the three wavy lines that you can see in our ice bucket and many of the pieces have scalloped rims.

Fostoria made Coronet from 1939 to 1960 and it was used for a few etchings, notably Mayflower. The handles on pieces like creamers and sugars look like rams' horns, all twisty and neat.

If you are looking for a very attractive set of vintage crystal you may want to consider Coronet. You'll be glad you did!

Guarantee and Return / Refund Policies on eBay

I buy glass on eBay and so far have had mixed results. Some pieces have been far more worn than described, some have had big chips or came broken due to poor packing. And some have been wonderful purchases, just as described, shipped quickly and carefully.

I only started buying glass in 2007 and it gave me a new appreciation for a good refund / return policy and careful descriptions. Now when I find appealing glass I email the seller to confirm condition. Sellers respond almost always, although a few don't bother, and most of the time they report everything is fine. About 1 in 4 comes back with a damage report. It's interesting to see whether they update their listings - some do and some do not.

Even with the extra checking there have been some unpleasant surprises. Since those experiences I have liberalized my guarantee policy and now offer full refund on return, including shipping both ways, if the piece does not match the description. A few pieces with damage that is described in the listing are specifically restricted to item price only with shipping not refunded. That's in case someone doesn't read the description (yes, it happens) or doesn't realize how something looks in person. Buyers do have a responsibility but sellers need to be reasonable and accurate.

Despite this liberal guarantee a recent buyer left me a neutral due to a scratch. I checked the piece over before shipping and didn't see anything wrong, but he must have been disappointed. He didn't contact me to complain or ask for a refund. That puzzles me since I always complain if pieces are not as described, but we're all different.

So sellers, if you want to see why buyers are fussy, go be a buyer yourself.

Fire King Mugs - Retro Fun

Fire King was Anchor Hocking's line of oven proof dinnerware and bake ware. One of their successful lines was mugs. Fire King made a huge variety of mugs - several sizes, a zillion decorations, many colors and themes - and these are collected today for obvious reasons. Mugs are fun, relatively inexpensive, useful and neat.

The one shown here is part of the Game birds series, this one featuring two Canadian geese flying over a pond on a fall day. You can find humorous mugs, cartoon character mugs, like Snoopy, plain colored mugs. There are some hideous ones too, including some rather ghastly avocado green or mustard and brown combinations. Of course there are people who like those colors. There truly is a mug for everyone!

Fortune Pink Depression Glass

Fortune - isn't that a great name for a glass pattern? It evokes visions of fancy stemware and gorgeous glass. Actually Fortune was a small depression glass pattern made by Hocking Glass from 1937 to 1938. It is a simple pattern with alternating wide and narrow vertical ribs.

Most of Hocking's patterns came in quite a few pieces - think of Cameo or Block Optic with their huge array of shapes and sizes - but Fortune was an anomaly. Hocking made a small lunch set of cup, saucer, lunch and sherbet plates, two tumblers, several bowls and a covered candy dish. There is no creamer, sugar, shakers or dinner plates.

Sometimes people confuse Fortune with Old Cafe, which is another small Hocking depression pattern. Fortune has one wide and one narrow rib. Old Cafe had two narrow ribs between one wide rib.

Fostoria Heirloom White Opalescent Candle Vase - Art Glass

Looks high end contemporary art glass, doesn't it. This is Heirloom by Fostoria, made from 1959 to 1970, thus once again proving that styles come around. This is a particularly nice design with a white opalescent glass that has a lot of fire, giving it a blueish tint in some lighting. The design is completely simple, with ribbing and classic shapes.

This is called a candle vase because the inside has a candle holder so you could use it for candles, and it would look great with flowers. If you wanted to use both flowers and a candle at the same time you would need a tall taper!

We have this listed on eBay this week and on our online TIAS store.

Sharon Cabbage Rose Depression Glass

Sharon, or Cabbage Rose, is one of the most popular depression glass patterns from Federal Glass. It has a mold-etched design of large open roses in an asymmetric spray on the center and more roses on the rim. Rose designs are always popular and this one is nice. The asymmetric design gives it a bit more punch than many patterns.

Sharon comes in pink, green and amber mostly and we have all three colors. Plates, like the dinner plate shown here, are thicker than many depression patterns.

Like several other patterns that are highly collected, Sharon has been reproduced. I worried about telling the repros apart but it really is pretty easy. The ugly, misshapen creamer shown next is a repro. I got carried away one evening on eBay and the photo was awful and I thought it might be Mayfair. The green Mayfair creamer is quite valuable so I took a chance like a dummy. You can tell that this is a bad repro by the strange color, lumpy shape, and poorly molded pattern.

Central Glass Thistle Etch Stems

I'm really excited about these stems. They are Thistle etch by Central Glass. Central went out of business towards the end of the depression, 1939, and Imperial Glass acquired some of their molds. Central is best known for their Morgan etch, which has a fairy on a swing, Harding etch, which has two griffins, Balda etch and Frances pressed pattern. They made many other etches besides these.

The etch shown here is Thistle which is intricate. This is a plate etching, where the glass was coated with wax, the design applied by tracing through the wax and then the piece was immersed in acid. The acid dissolved the glass where the design had been applied through the wax. It is called a plate etching because the design was on sheets of paper that were carefully laid onto the surface. It took skill and hand work to position these just right.

There are other Thistle patterns by makers such as Tiffin. Central's is distinctive with the thistle in the center pointing down. Our stem here is the 4 inch tall cocktail and will be listed later this week.

Fostoria Contour and Raleigh - Less Known Elegant Glass

Almost everyone who enjoys glass has heard of Fostoria - makers of fine elegant glass they had many gorgeous etchings on colored and crystal glass. Here are two of their less known plain designs, Contour and Raleigh.

Fostoria's Contour has the space-age lines of the early 1950s, perfectly fitting the mid century mode and style preferences. Contour is line number 2666 and you are able to buy a full line of stylish serving pieces. There is no plain dinner or lunch plate although there are canape and snack plates that have an interesting upwards twist, and a plain lunch sized plate that is cupped. Fostoria used Contour for several of their most popular decorations, notably Holly and Nosegay cuttings.

You can find this same shape in a heavier glass that was introduced a couple years earlier; the heavier pieces are not as readily found nor are they available in a full line of dinnerware. This heavier line is number 2638.

The second pattern we'll show is Raleigh, which is very different from Contour, with its squared shapes and log handles. Fostoria made Raleigh from 1939 to 1965 and used it for many of their Colonial styled etchings, such as Sampler and Colonial Mirror. You can tell Raleigh easily by the rounded facets and the little log shaped handles.

We have pieces of both these patterns in our store, which is linked below. Recently we bought some of the sherbets in Contour which have really neat stems, but we'll show them another day.

Depression Glass Candy Jars - Doric Pink and Others

Isn't this pretty? This is the footed candy jar in Jeannette's pink depression glass Doric pattern. This is a traditional look for a candy jar - footed, round, with a tall lid topped off with a finial. The Doric pattern alternates plain squares with squares that have a stylized design in the corners. Even the finial has the little squares, making it just the perfect touch.

Jeannette Glass made Doric from 1935 to 1938, primarily in pink but you can find green and some pieces in delphite opaque blue. We've had mostly pink here in mid-Michigan.

One interesting piece that is far more common is the 3-part flat candy that is shaped like a pansy blossom. It surprises me that this is considered part of the Doric line instead of part of the similar Doric and Pansy, but that's what it is. You may find this in pink, ultramarine and delphite blue, but by far the most common is an iridescent carnival like color. Jeannette remade the flat candy in iridescent glass during the 1970s. We show the delphite blue candy.

Petalware - Pretty Depression Glass with Fanciful Decorations

Petalware is one of MacBeth Evans popular depression glass patterns and it comes in pink, cremax, monax, Ivrene, plus a few pieces in crystal or other colors. Monax is a soft white, translucent glass; cremax and Ivrene are tradenames for a darker shade of cream. MacBeth Evans eventually became part of Corning but was independent during the depression. Petalware dates to the 1930s but was made into the 1940s as well.

It is a very pretty pattern in any color, but my favorite is the white monax with the Florette red flower design pictured on a salad plate. These were hand painted and should be hand washed to preserve the design.

If you like this pattern, you may want to seek out various other designs. There is an Iverene decorated with pastel bands that is popular and chic, and several flower-bedecked cheerful designs on monax. Find your favorite, or mix and match. You'll be glad you chose fresh happy Petalware!

Plate shown is available in these two sites:

http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

http://stores.ebay.com/Vintage-Elegant-Depression-Glass

Block Optic Depression Glass Creamers and Sugars

Block Optic is a neat depression glass pattern from Hocking Glass that has an art deco style. It combines rounded shapes with square blocks and has a lot of looks. Hocking made Block Optic for only 4 years, from 1929 to 1933, although it comes in a wide range of shapes and pieces. It is one of the most popular depression glass patterns because of its looks, the fact that is is moderately available and moderately priced and the huge collecting appeal.

One point to be aware of is there are Five different creamers and sugars! There are three basic shapes, cone shaped as with the green creamer, rounded, as the yellow sugar bowl and a flat squarish shape that I've not seen. Then there are three different handle shapes, plain, which the creamer has, fancy scroll as on the sugar, and pointed. You can find the angled and plain handles on the cone shaped pieces, and the plain and fancy handles on the round pieces. Now that is a lot of collecting opportunity!

Plus Block Optic came in green, pink and yellow, plus some was satinized and decorated, and you can find clear pieces, too. Wow! That is a lot of pieces for the depression glass lover!

Fostoria Eilene Needle Etched Champagne

Isn't this pretty? The pattern is Eilene, etch number 82, by Fostoria. This is a needle etch; each line is traced continuously. Needle etches were perfected earlier than plate etches and this champagne dates to about 1930. It's a little more elaborate needle etch than some.

The 5082 stem is also quite nice. In fact this is so distinctive that I was able to pick up a plain amber one without worrying about identifying it. The stem is rounded as you can see, but what doesn't show well in the photo is that it is hexagonal, six sided. There is a flat round wafer at the top and the bowl is cupped. Very very nice!

I like most shades of green and Fostoria's green glass is gorgeous, emerald in tint but not quite as dark as emerald, and it has a lot of life. You can see this on my TIAS store and it will start on eBay auction on December 9.

Olive, Line 134, Depression Glass from Imperial Glass

Maybe you can tell I have my box of Imperial Glass out to list. This is another pattern from Imperial that is usually classified as depression glass - it was mass produced - and yet is fairly nice quality glass. The pattern is Olive, or line number 134, and Imperial produced it during the late 1930s. According to my reference books, you can find Olive in red, light blue, emerald green and pink, but we have seen only blue and only this particular piece, the footed fruit bowl. This is one of my favorites, partly because the color is a soft rich blue, and partly because the design is just plain cute. The elongated oval thumbprints are simple but go well with the scalloped rim and raised ribbed foot.

If I get time I want to list this on eBay as it is a super nice piece of glass. It is in my TIAS store already.

http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

Customer Service

This has not been a good week for our customer service and that is a problem since we try to differentiate ourselves by accurate descriptions, clear photos, careful wrapping and fast shipping. We (I actually) made several listing mistakes.

Somehow I had 8 plates, sold 4 and figured we had 6 left. The buyer who wanted 6 is not happy to only get 4. Sure we can make it right on the financial end, but it's still disappointing. These are the plates in question, Wayside by Syracuse.

Another lady bought a cup and saucer. When I listed the cup I took pains to describe a flaw and totally missed the chip in the rim. This happened the same day I found the plate mistake. Not a good day.

To top it off, someone has an offer for stems that I am just not seeing in my inventory boxes. These stems have not sold (we just got them so I definitely know that!) but where are they?? OK, that's it. Tomorrow better go better than this!

Bartlett Collins Golden Ivy Beverage Pitcher

Bartlett Collins made lots of tumblers during the golden age of decorated tumblers, the 1940s-1970s. They had all sorts of cute designs, including hand painted fruits, silk screened poodles, flowers and more.

The design on this juice pitcher is Golden Ivy, and the white ivy leaves are formed by raised speckles of textured material. This is similar to Coraline and gives a sparkly retro look. Bartlett Collins made a whole series in similar styles, using grapes, fruits, flowers and the like.

Of course you would wash this by hand, but wouldn't it be a great way to serve your morning OJ?

Heisey Empress Etched Sahara Tall Champagne / Sherbet

This is even more beautiful in person than in the photo. It is the Empress etch on Sahara Old Dominion tall champagne. Heisey Glass called their light yellow Sahara and it is simply stunning in this piece.

This is one of the pieces I bought on eBay. Someone offered this with some other stemware and the picture suggested that it might be etched. Yes it was, the seller sent me a photo of the etch, and that was all it took to make this glass lover put in a bid!

We are listing this on Monday, picking the date to be one full week before the second Monday in December. That second Monday has been one of the best days each year for online sales. We shall see. While many people collect Empress and Sahara Heisey glass, a smaller number are in the market on any given day. My hope is that by combining a desirable item with a high traffic sales day we will make two people happy - the buyer and me!

http://stores.ebay.com/Vintage-Elegant-Depression-Glass

Tiffin Classic - Scarve Draped Dancer Etched Pink Beauty

Several etched glass patterns from the elegant depression era incorporate dancers, notably the Springtime by Monongah etch and Tiffin's Classic. When Hocking Glass bought out Monongah during the depression, they converted the lovely Springtime dancer plate etching to a mold etch which could be mass produced. That pattern became the beautiful Cameo depression glass.

The design shown here, with a dancer draped in flowing scarves surrounded by swags and scrolls, is Classic by Tiffin. We were fortunate to acquire a few pieces in the pink; this is scarce and quite valuable.

The piece shown here is the small footed juice tumbler. This footed cone shape was a classic depression-era tumbler, and to me embodies the vintage look of elegance and grace. The tumbler has a subtle vertical panel optic that enhances the beauty of the design.

One reference attributed the dancer to be Isadora Duncan an early modern dance pioneer. Whether the lady in our Classic by Tiffin is Isadora or not, this is a beautiful etch that is simply gorgeous in Tiffin's pink!

http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

http://stores.ebay.com/Vintage-Elegant-Depression-Glass

Candlewick Candleholders by Imperial Glass

Yesterday we showed depression glass by Imperial and today we're looking at a couple pieces of Imperial's Candlewick. Candlewick has beads - around the rim, on the handles, on the base - almost every piece has beads. It is one of the easiest patterns to identify and it also is one of the harder patterns.



Imperial made Candlewick for almost 50 years, from 1936 to 1984 when Imperial closed. It was their most extensive and popular line and no wonder. The simple beaded design is easy on the eyes and attractive.


This top candleholder is the three-light, beaded center oval candleholder 400/147 style. You may find other candleholders that are similar as Imperial made several styles. The one most alike has the same beaded oval center but is missing the top holder.





This next candleholder is the rolled rim style, meant to hold a single candle. To me it looks more colonial style. You can see why people like collecting Candlewick - they have a lot to choose among!

If you want to read more, these two candleholders are described in the store linked below. Many dealers offer extensive selections of Candlewick.

http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

Diamond Quilted - Pink Depression Glass from Imperial

Even though we think of Imperial Glass as making Candlewick or Cape Cod, they also made several patterns of true depression glass. These were mass-produced, made in colored glass, came in full tableware sets and had the usual little mold marks that give depression glass its charm. One pattern is Diamond Quilted, shown in the sherbet to the left.

Look at the stem. It is not the photo that is off kilter - the sherbet really does lean! The plates that we have had all had little wrinkles in the rim. Yes, this is depression glass!

Diamond Quilted came in pink and green primarily, and my book shows blue, amber, crystal and black as well. It is a pretty pattern with nice shapes. The glass is decent quality, pretty colors and good clarity. Yes, there are little mold marks but you won't find lots of sharp edged rims that chip easily and the designs are crisp. This is glass you can enjoy for a long time.

Imperial's other well known depression glass pattern is Twisted Optic. Both patterns are sadly under-appreciated. Take a look at both patterns in our store, Cat Lady Kate's Elegant and Depression Glass, and see what we mean.

http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

http://stores.ebay.com/Vintage-Elegant-Depression-Glass

Cambridge Rosalie Etched Stemware - Beautiful Floral Etch

Cambridge Glass' Rosalie etched pattern is even more beautiful in person than in the photos. We found a few pieces this fall and have been listing them slowly. The odd thing about our pieces is that the blanks are not the usual Cambridge shapes that Rosalie is usually found etched. The blank is the basic glass without the etching and usually makers used more than one blank for their most popular etches. My books show Rosalie on six different stem shapes!

The goblet shown here is the number 3051 blank, quite plain with a nice shape bowl, slightly tapered stem and subtle optic. It is very pretty. My books show this in the cordial size yet we have the water goblet. Not surprising given Cambridge's range of stems, but interesting.

Rosalie has a flower and leaf scroll and swag etch but the easiest way to tell it from the myriad other flower and leaf etchings is by the squarish spiral. I don't know of any other pattern that has that motif.

We have this goblet and a matching flat tumbler listed in our store in the TIAS online collectible mall. http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

Metlox Poppytrail California Ivy Dinnerware - What a Difference 3 Years Make

In 2004 I bought a small set of Metlox Poppytrail California Ivy dinnerware that had no serving pieces and sold it all on eBay easily, fast and for a nice profit. About half of the pieces sold on auction and the rest in my store.

That first set had lunch plates and soup bowls, which turned out to be the most profitable items. Soup bowls are usually pricey and sell well but it's odd to have lunch plates be selling standouts. We were able to buy a second set in 2005 and of course were glad to do so, thinking it too would sell well.

Unfortunately that second set had no soup bowls or lunch plates. More, there were a lot of competing auctions on eBay. The serving pieces, like the vegetable bowl shown in the picture, were suddenly quite common. So far I have not even recouped my initial purchase price.

It's now late 2007; we still have most of the new set left and are trying once again to list it. Fall and winter have been my best times for china, so let's see how this goes. Several pieces are on auction and others will be in the store. Since eBay increased their store commissions store listings are less attractive financially but often buyers don't look for china every day and you need to have it listed when they wan to buy it. For me that means putting most pieces in the store and trickling something out on auction almost every week.

Wish me luck!

MacBeth Evans Monax - the Other White Glass

When is white glass not milk glass? Sometimes it is lovely monax depression glass from MacBeth Evans. MacBeth Evans was eventually bought out by Corning and you can recognize its legacy in the Corelle dinnerware. Monax is different.

The earlier monax white depression glass was thin, translucent with opalescent rims. MacBeth Evans used monax with its pure white to great effect with mold etched designs like American Sweetheart and Petalware. American Sweetheart is already quite ornate because the molded design is complex, but Petalware was a simple pattern that cried out to be decorated. And decorated it was!

We show two pieces, a salad plate with the red flower and green leaf spray handpainted design called Florette, and the saucer with a gold decal. Both are pretty and both look very different, hardly like the same pattern at all. Yet both are Petalware monax depression glass by MacBeth Evans!

Cat Lady Kate offers both of these in the TIAS store Cat Lady Kate's Elegant and Depression Glass, http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

Leaf and Laurel Cuttings - Depression and Elegant Glass

One design that stays popular year after year is the simple leaf spray or band. Some of these are laurel cutting; usually these are bands of leaves such as the cordial pictured. This is Fostoria's Laurel cutting, which is classic and elegant. This sort of design has a formal feel to me.

A cute design that is much less formal is a stylized leaf band cut that is shown here on the Boopie wine glass. This simple band is from Anchor Hocking, from the 1950s or 60s and the pattern is Swedish Modern. By the way, Boopie glasses are not Candlewick. They were mass produced and are ordinary table glass, perfectly nice, quite cute and meant to be used. Candlewick is fine crystal.

Anchor Hocking made several pieces with the Swedish Modern cut, so if you like this you can choose among several pieces.

Lots of glass companies made leaf spray cuttings and it is often impossible to tell who made what. We have plates in clear, green and pink glass with almost the same simple leaf spray around the rim. They are all pretty!

You may find pieces sold as "etched" that were actually cut. Both of the pieces shown in our pictures were cut. Etched designs will feel different; if you find that the design feels like it is all the same depth, then it is probably etched. If the edges feel shallower than the center it is cut.

Regardless, these are pretty and remain classics! Come take a look at our TIAS store, Cat Lady Kate's Elegant and Depression Glass, and our eBay store, Vintage Elegant Depression Glass, to choose laurel leaf glass for you!

http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/

http://stores.ebay.com/Vintage-Elegant-Depression-Glass

Console Bowls - Elegant Glass Shapes from the Depression Era

Elegant glass companies in the 1920s and 30s produced patterns that included decorative pieces, stemware and dinnerware, but most people who could afford glass such as Fostoria or Cambridge used china dinnerware. Thus glass firms made many interesting bowl shapes for decorations and centerpieces. Often these decorative bowls matched stemware lines, extending the market appeal. Thus the console bowl was born!

Console bowls were wide, shallow bowls that were meant to display on a side table or in a hallway. They are usually 10 to 12 inches wide and are flared. Some console bowls are deeper than others, but they are usually not so deep as salad bowls. Console bowls were often flanked by matching candleholders, and if you see something called a console set, it would be the console bowl with two candleholders. Console bowls could be used to hold fruit or flowers, but were styled to have enough presence and size to look great empty as well.

The bowl in the picture at the top from Fostoria is the Baroque blank, with the Chintz etching. You can see that this is flared and quite fancy. It looks like it belongs on a table as a centerpiece. This particular bowl is referred to as a 12 inch flared round bowl. You might see these listed as console bowls, centerpiece bowls, or simply 12 inch round bowls.

One of my personal favorites is the rolled edge console bowl. Instead of flaring the rim to make a very wide, shallow opening, the rim gracefully arcs over to form a wide bowl with a much smaller opening. These bowls have looks! Usually the etching or design is on the rolled rim. Since the interior of the bowl is rolled to the outside, the design shows beautifully from any angle. These are meant to be fancy and are one of the signature pieces of the elegant era.

The green bowl is a classic shape console bowl also from Fostoria with the Vesper etch on the edge of the rolled rim. If you saw the profile you could see that the rim on this bowl does not roll fully over to touch the table top.

Fostoria Loop Optics and Drape Optics - Neat Effects in Glass

The green vase is from Fostoria, made in the late 1920s. It doesn't have any etching or other decoration so the pattern is from the optic pressed into the glass.

Optics are shaped on the inside; they are a molded design that makes the piece look shimmery. Some optics are vertical, like panels, others are spiral, or dots or like this example, look like festoons or drapes. Usually the optic will be named something you can recognize so they are not as difficult as some etchings to remember.

Fostoria used optics in several designs. Besides this vase, they used the loop optic in the stemware pattern Cellini, and the ice tea in that design is shown on the right.

Most glass companies used optics. Some are subtle and you will hardly notice them while others jump right out at you. Even depression glass patterns used optics. Block Optic, for example, has vertical lines on the outside and horizontal optic on the inside, making the design look like stacked blocks.

We have all of these listed in our eBay store and our TIAS store, linked on the left. Happy Glassing!

Glass and China – eBay Store vs. Auctions

You can get advice from lots of people, many who sell successfully on eBay and online. You need to decide what works for you, and that’s the hard job. I thought about this a lot and concluded I don’t know the answer. But here’s what I’m thinking today as I prepare my listings for next week.

It's rewarding when a customer says how glad they are to finish a set of dishes that they inherited. Until the internet if you broke something that was it, but now people can complete that cherished set and can actually use it. That is the plus side of selling glass and china!

We bought china at estate sales and sold quite a bit of it, but lately it has not done that well. People often know their pattern name and search for the pieces they need and will buy if the price and condition are right and the seller appears trustworthy. Most patterns appeal to a small number of buyers who may be in and out of the market; they don’t collect the dishes and they just want to augment their set.

I usually put my china in my eBay store. Most of the pieces are offered individually, so you can buy one soup bowl or one dinner plate, but I also try listing some in twos or fours, so you would buy two plate or four bowls. Offering in twos or fours helps keep the shipping cost more reasonable relative to the value of the china. No one likes paying $5 for a plate and $10 to ship, but china is heavy and bulky and has to be wrapped well and insured. Lately I have tried selling in place settings, say one each of the plates - dinner, lunch, bread and butter – cup and saucer. That has worked well so far. Checking my past years’ sales, though, most people bought one or more of a single item even when I had multiple pieces listed and combined shipping.

The cereal bowl is Harker China Godey Prints and we're starting a set of 6 tomorrow.

We'll see how it goes this winter.

Heisey Recessed Panel Candy Jar Etched with Wheeling's Pheasant and Stump

This gorgeous candy jar with lid is from Heisey Glass and it has the Pheasant and Stump etch with gold and cobalt blue. The candy jar is Recessed Panel which was made with a smooth band near the top. Wheeling Decorating Company would have etched the design on the broad band that is perfect for decorating. This is most unusual; I couldn't find any similar glass.

This was a common shape for candy jars during the depression era and most glass companies made something similar. The sizes were based on the weight of candy one would hold, so this jar, which is a little over 10 inches tall with the lid on, was a one pound candy jar.

I listed this today in my TIAS store, Cat Lady Kate's Elegant and Depression Glass and it is starting on auction tomorrow night on eBay. This is one of those pieces that I have mixed feelings about selling. I sell glass because it gives me an opportunity to see and hold and enjoy a lot of different pieces, but each one moves on to a new owner. I want to keep the most beautiful ones for me!

Romantic Holidays with Vintage Stemware

Beautiful stemware with a history! You can add romance and a touch of nostalgia to your holidays by using vintage stemware. Whether you enjoy goblets treasured by your parents and passed down to you or you purchase stemware to start your own family tradition, lovely stemware adds a touch of elegance and sets you apart from everyone else.

The goblet shown on the left is beautifully etched with open roses and flower blossoms. This is called a plate etching, with the design inset into the glass surface. The particular goblet shown is Secretaries Primrose made by Monongah glass sometime before 1931. The flowers and simple shape make this fresh and appealing even today.

Other stemware, such as the amber Georgian goblet by Viking, is more suited to family meals as it is heavier and comes in a huge range of shapes including the goblet shown, plus tumblers, ice teas, juice and sherbets. Georgian has a honeycomb look to it and I remember my grandma had a set of red tumblers. Many glass companies made this design and you can find a rainbow of colors. I like this rich honey amber color which is perfect for fall. It makes you feel warm all over!

If you like the idea of adding a touch of charm and tradition to your family, please check our store, Cat Lady Kate's Elegant and Depression Glass, for these and other vintage stemware.

Dogwood Pink Depression Glass - Large Flowered Beauty

Recently I got a large set of Dogwood by MacBeth Evans from an antique dealer. This is pink, thin glass with a design of large four-petaled flowers and leaves. It’s quite pretty. I thought long and hard about buying all this, as you can imagine, because it was expensive and because this came from the ex-dealer. After all, she couldn’t sell it, so why would I? Anyway, I took the plunge and now have a nice set of Dogwood.

The valuable pieces in almost any depression pattern are the cereal and soup bowls, tumblers and some serving pieces. I got the cereal bowls, larger serving bowl, and best of all, four tumblers! Dogwood sherbets are scarce and we got some of them too. The cereal bowl and sherbet are shown in the photos.

MacBeth Evans made Dogwood in pink and green from 1929 to 1932, so it is one of the earliest depression glass patterns. Sometimes people call this Apple Blossom or Wild Rose because of the open flowers with wide petals, but this design has four petals, not five as would an apple or rose blossom. Dogwood is mold-etched, which means the design was etched into the mold and not into the glass. This method allowed glass companies to mass produce fanciful designs with intricate patterns quickly and with no hand work. Dogwood looks a little like the gorgeous brocade etches with its all-over pattern.

MacBeth Evans is the same glass company which made American Sweetheart and Petalware. Dogwood may be slightly less well-known than American Sweetheart, but it shares the same thin glass, pretty shapes and beautiful design.

Good Books for Glass Identification - Stemware

Last time we showed how I identified a Lenox goblet we bought at an estate sale. We used online sites to find the matching picture, but only after going through our stemware identification book. Personally I find it easier to flip through books than go through a gazillion websites, so I start with my trusty shelf of books first.

The book I mentioned yesterday, Stemware Stemware Identification Guide, was written by Page and Fredericksen. It has line drawings or photos of goblets – 250 pages worth of goblets, about 20 per page. That is a lot of goblets! And that’s one of the downsides of this book, the sheer number to check. Also, the line drawings sometimes emphasize style points that are less noticeable when you hold the piece in your hands. For example, when I hold my Libbey Rock Sharpe’s Crystal Leaf stems shown in the photo, the cutting looks like cattails and the big design point are the little protruding nubs at the top of the stem. The drawing doesn’t convey this. This is minor carping, though, and I use the book a lot. You just have to be aware that you may look right past the exact piece the first 3 or 4 times you search.

Another stemware book is Cordials by Gene Florence. While I like Florence’s other books, this one hasn’t been as useful. It’s good for the overall shapes but not the design details.

If you think your stemware was contemporary – Royal Doulton, Waterford, Lenox, etc. – then you don’t have a lot of reference books to choose from. There is a Waterford book but I don’t have it. Other than that, if you cannot find in the Replacements stemware guide then you will probably have to either trudge through websites. The good news is that newer glass is often marked, which really helps.

If your glass is older, say pre-1984, then you may find it in one of the many books that cover elegant glass makers. For example, there are books about Fostoria, Seneca, Tiffin, and more that focus on stemware, plus others that are more general. I’ll share my experiences with these another time.

Researching Glass to Sell on eBay

Yesterday I identified a wine goblet we had as Lenox Crystal’s Hanover. This is contemporary crystal with a cut paneled bowl and molded stem; it’s heavy and the glass is beautifully clear. We had a good photograph of this already so I listed it to start later this week.

We’ve boxes upon boxes of glass that needs a name – if we can name it we have a better chance of selling – so it’s a happy event when we get one more piece identified. Here’s how the identification worked:
This goblet was marked Lenox which made it easy. First step, check the crystal stemware guide by Page and Fredericksen, Crystal Stemware Identification Guide. The stem shape wasn’t there.
Next step, try the Replacements online catalog. They have tiny pictures of many patterns and it takes time to go through the list, click and open any that look possible, then rule out and go onto the next. There it is, Hanover.

Now for pricing, there are several sources, including eBay listings, Replacements, TIAS stores, Ruby Lane stores, other stores through Google and my own best guess. eBay completed prices are reasonable guides if the same item sells consistently but is chancy if it’s uncommon. The downside to using eBay completed is if two bidders happened to find the same item and got into a bidding war the price may be too high, and if a seller listed with a low opening bid but only one person felt like buying, then the price is low.

I tend to use my judgment plus other retail sites for items like this. For this goblet, I looked at when it was made, 1985 to 1989, figured that people ought to want to complete their sets and am listing for $29.99 with buy it now of $32.99. This is not a super popular pattern so it will likely do better in my store where it can wait for a few months, but we’ll try the auction path first.

We’ll look at how this goblet did on auction next week after it closes.

If you would like to watch too, here is my eBay store: http://stores.ebay.com/Vintage-Elegant-Depression-Glass and here is my store on TIAS online collectible mall: http://www.tias.com/stores/catladykate/