Another find from the shed purge:
I think I bought this when I was living in Cambridge. I collected vintage Fiesta back then and I was drawn to all things with art deco lines. (I still am, that hasn’t changed.) I believe I found this at a shop in Somerville, which is right next door to Cambridge. That little shop was run by two women – I can’t remember how I found it as there was no internet back then – and they often carried vintage Fiesta – the original Fiesta – and I would save my pennies and buy a piece. Slowly but surely, my collection grew bigger. They would often call me to tell me something had come in that they thought I’d like. They had a lot of vintage everything and I found this pitcher, which was made by Universal, there. It’s in great condition, even after being packed away for years. Interestingly, Don is crazy about it. Now, to find a place for it.
We’re going to buy some gray metal shelves, the industrial looking kind you can get at a hardware store. We actually have a set in the shed now, but something corrosive spilled on the shelves and half of the shelves are now rusted and falling apart.
It’s sunny today and wee bit warmer. I think we’re going to hit 58 degrees today. It’s all relative, but that seems positively balmy considering what it’s been like around here for the past two days.
I’m pretty sure we’re going to get our Christmas tree early this year – just as we did last year. That’s not our norm, Last year’s decision to buy one early was spontaneous; due, I think, to a big winter storm coming in. This year, however, I notice more and more people decorating early. I think it’s because we’re desperately in need of some cheer and sparkly lights and ornaments. I know we are.
First, though, Thanksgiving.
Stay safe.
Happy Friday.
Yes, We Need a Little Christmas Now. And that pitcher/tea pot—love! I’ve always been drawn to cattails, anything with cattails. I think my grandma, who usually had an arrangement of dried ones in her house, must have influenced me there. (I’m seeing it on Stella’s shelf, just sayin’.)
That’s exactly where I was thinking of putting it!
How is Fred doing, Shanna?
Stay safe.
A couple of rough days, but hanging in. Losing weight because nothing tastes good. No more chemo for three weeks.
hej, shanna …
keeping you all in prayers.
take good care of yourself, too!
kathy in iowa
I’m so sorry. Please give my best to Fred.
While the shed is cleaned out can you do a little caulking, plugging of holes? Or is that futile at this point? As someone who is storage challenged a shed sounds wonderful.
No caulking. But some holes will be plugged.
Stay safe, Rose.
Hi Claudia, my daughter put up our Christmas lights the day after the election. We felt like we needed some cheer! Your fiesta ware is beautiful. I agree that it should be placed on Stella’s shelf. Happy Friday! xo
Thank you, April!
Stay safe.
Another great find! I am a bit puzzled by it though. Is it a pitcher? A teapot? How do you fill it? I don’t see an opening on top.
It will look perfect sitting on Stella.
I have started seeing Christmas trees and lights up already. I always decorate the weekend after Thanksgiving. I prefer to enjoy one holiday at a time.
Stay safe
You can see the stopper on the top at the left. It’s a pitcher.
Stay safe, Marilyn.
These flat-sided vertical pitchers were designed to fit efficiently in the confined space of refrigerators of the 1930s. I assume the stoppers were meant to prevent food odors from affecting the contents.
Yes, I know. Otherwise known as ‘refrigerator ware.’
Thanks, Margaret.
Stay safe.
Very interesting. I didn’t know that!
Your good taste is clearly in evidence from early on. That’s a wowzer! Your tree last year was so beautiful. I was just browsing ornaments on Etsy. I have buckets of them, and several artificial trees, but each year I pack them up and stick them somewhere and I can never find them again. I don’t know how things can disappear in a house this small. I notice in the magazines everything is plaid this year, which I love, but not for an entire tree. Plaid ribbons are my favorites. I’m glad you and Don are discovering old treasures and planning for a beautiful holiday. Stay well!
Thank you, Nora.
Stay safe!
When I was little the Christmas tree went up in Christmas Eve and we spent the day decorating it
Noticed lots of trees up in homes and apartments here- I think it is to raise the mood, but I am still adjusting to a summer Christmas
Siobhan
Yes, I had a sort of summer Christmas when I lived in San Diego for 8 years. Never got used to it!
My dad’s family always put up their tree and decorated it on Christmas Eve.
Stay safe, Siobahn!
I just noticed yesterday that a couple of houses in my neighborhood already have up their exterior holiday lights. Why not, right? Is definitely cheery. Not the other stuff yet like inflatables (as in more to come I’m sure) but the lights alone right now are very mood-elevating. We need some oohs and aahhs. (Sparkle is good! My husband will be putting ours up on Thanksgiving weekend.)
xo
You have found some wonderful treasures in the shed! I was loving your paper weights. Now this great deco pitcher…my husband loves all things Deco as well. I am all decorated for Christmas inside early this year, and enjoying it so much! Happy Thanksgiving to you and Don.
Good for you, Judy. We’re not far behind you!
Stay safe.
what a sweet re-find from the shed! i think it looks great where it is, but i am sure you and don will find your favorite spot for it.
though what’s in your photo looks to me to be a pitcher, it (and the turquoise teapot on stella) made me think about the two teapots on the back burners of my stove. both gifts, one is from my parents and the other belonged to my maternal grandparents and in swedish reads “coffee is the best of all earthly drinks”. i don’t drink tea or coffee, but do drink lots of warmed water and i love seeing those treasures from my family every time i walk by.
nice of those shopkeepers to let you know they found something you might like. :)
new shelves sound like you are very near the end of the shed clean-out. congratulations!
we’ve had a couple of very warm days, considering we’re now starting the last week of november … seven days of 70-degrees-plus this month (a record). :o hope that balminess heads your way.
as of last week, i’ve seen some Christmas decorations up at people’s homes (nothing civic yet). the lights are so pretty; i’d like to have them up year-round. :) i don’t do any holiday decorating except for Christmas … and not much of that at all for the past several years. will put up a beautiful wreath (a gift from my parents) by next weekend; year-round in my living room i have an old wire tree holding all the angel ornaments they’ve given me. i smile and sometimes cry every time i see them, too.
i am very grateful that today is friday. my boss has been gone for three days in a row, things have been hectic, definitely not fun for me. my back hurts very much, limits what i can do and i just want to go home. now i sound whiny and i don’t like that so will send this off with wishes for you all to have a very happy and safe friday! go enjoy your new/old treasures some more!
oh! to be clear, i am not saying your shed was a pit … not at all … but did your shed clean-out feel a bit like mudlarking when you’d find some long-lost/hidden treasures? i’d love to do some actual mudlarking, preferably along the thames, but anywhere would be fun. someday …
kathy in iowa
It did feel a bit like mudlarking, though I wasn’t surprised by my finds. And it was a pit! Too much jammed in there. We couldn’t use it efficiently. It will make such a difference moving the snow blower and lawn mower in and out. Much more room!
Stay safe and take care of your back, Kathy!
Another treasure. Outstanding. And the suggestion to put it on Stella’s shelf is perfect. Just goes to show…you’ve always had great taste. You’ve managed to squirrel away some great finds…so happy they’ve come to see the light of day.
I cannot wait to start decorating for Christmas this year…I need the lights and cheer I guess. I crave that right now. But, Thanksgiving has to happen first around here. And, our tree will be going up earlier than usual. Again, I need to see the light(s).
Enjoy your day of 58. Ours was yesterday…and it was heavenly, but short-lived. Back to cold today. Stay safe! ;)
Sparkly lights? Yes and yes and yes.
Stay safe, Donna.
That is a charming piece Claudia. It does seem like you.
I am with you. I never decorate until the second week of Christmas. Certainly not before Thanksgiving. The Tree is going up Sunday! I need the hope it brings me. The happy memories. the smiles, the laughter…
All of my cherished decorations from childhood and from my marriage went mysteriously into the auction and are now long gone. I have nothing! I am starting from scratch with ornaments from Thomas Pacconi. If you don’t know him look him up on Ebay. Fun and lovely.
Emptying your shed is like being on a treasure hunt.
It will be fun to add some new decorations to your tree, Trudy!
Stay safe!
Claudia what fun finding these treasures that have been packed away! I love that pitcher. Very art deco. I am ready to put up my trees and get some sparkle and glow going early. Its just such a hard time for everyone. We are doing what we must to stay safe but I miss family meals. Next year! Hugs!
Yes. I understand!
Stay safe, Linda!
What a beautiful piece, Claudia! You are so generous to share your thoughts and treasures with us. Lord knows we sorely need beauty right now more than ever!
We do indeed!
Stay safe, Carolyn!
Your beautiful day sounds like our yesterday. Today is lovely and on the “warmish” side too but on my walk I noticed the wind picking up and the temp dropping a bit. I heard “snow” in the weather forecast but I’m going to pretend I didn’t!
Love the pitcher. It’s a stunner — at first I thought it was Hall china. So simple and elegant and perfect for this season especially. It reminds me a bit of my vintage ones. Like you, I went for the vintage Fiesta and have for years. But the best thing that happened to me in the Fiesta zone was when a friend’s mother (a many-decades-ago next door neighbor) was getting rid of her Fiesta. None of her kids wanted it so on a road trip east from Colorado they brought it! Lots and lots including pitchers, a few larger bowls, mostly plates and platters. But quite a collection. They are my “summer-into-fall” dishes and I just put them away a few days ago to bring up the turkey and late fall dishes!
Have a terrific weekend and rest up after all that work!
I had a couple of pieces of Hall, as well. What a great Fiesta windfall you received, Jeanie.
Stay safe.
It’s a Universal Cambridge Pottery Cattail Water Pitcher – really beautiful and so fitting with Stella. I love finding a lost/misplaced treasure, especially one I’ve totally forgotten about, which happens with more frequency these days.
Keep safe.
Yes, I know! I love the pattern, though it’s the only piece I have in that pattern.
Stay safe, Anne.
I love hearing exactly what it is. I have too many odd pieces of different pottery that I know nothing about. My mother, with some of her stuff, would painstakingly do research at the library, pre-internet. It’s something I need to spend some time on one of these days.
A so-nice rediscovery for Claudia! I do love this pitcher. Cattails; charming!
It’s sitting on Stella’s shelf, Vicki. xo
Oh, that beautiful piece!! The first thing I thought was on Stella’s shelf, too! So bright and happy! We just put our tree up. I am so ready for some nice soft white lights. We put our outside lights up when we had 70* days during election week….. wasn’t that a year ago?? Seems like it. But we have not turned those on yet. If we can’t have Thanksgiving, we can at least have some joy in other ways. This is an extraordinary year, NOTHING is as it was in past years, I don’t see why we should punish ourselves for being happy ~ if decorations help that along.
I have to share this from my friend’s daughter. My friend is 70 and is in the hospital:
“Hospitals are so full right now that families, mine being one of them, are being asked whether or not they actually want to pursue care for severe upper respiratory infections regardless of whether or not they are Covid positive. They are asking families to decide if they want to let their family members die, in order to let them allocate resources to other patients. We just found out my mom is currently being transferred to another hospital, and it looks like today at least, she will be treated.
I have no idea what the next few days have in store for my family. We know there is a very large chance that if there is an influx of younger healthier Covid positive patients, that they will become the priority, and her care may be rationed and she may be left to die. We also know that if she tests Covid positive, her care may be rationed and she may be left to die. The doctor asked my family to discuss when we are ready to change to comfort care. Even if my mom is Covid negative, Covid might still kill her.
For five hours today I was not able to reach my mother, and no family was allowed to see her, and in that time we were literally asked to have a conversation about if it was time to let her die. Please, people, wear your masks. STAY HOME. Be selfless and not selfish.”
My friend is in our hospital in our small town. Every hospital in WI is overwhelmed. This is so very serious, and people seem to still not believe or accept it. I don’t know what else has to happen. And, as she says, the young people, many who become spreaders, will be saved first.
This is heartbreaking. Heartbreaking.
Thank you for sharing it, Chris.
Stay safe.
wow, chris k … wow. :(
i am not directing this at anyone here, but seriously … how could a person read what your friend’s daughter wrote and not imagine their own loved ones and themselves in that awful position? how could they read and imagine that and not be moved enough to do something helpful yet so simple as wearing a mask and staying physically away from people with whom they do not live?
thanks to you and her for sharing that message. wishing that pino and anyone who’s been choosing to not wear a mask, etc. could read her words, put themselves in her shoes and do the right thing.
so sorry for what your friend and her family are dealing with. hope you get happy news about and from your friend soon.
prayers will be said for your friend and her family, you and yours and everyone else here.
stay safe, well and enjoy your Christmas tree and lights.
kathy in iowa
I know. It is so sad. She had Cataract surgery 2 weeks ago, and all was fine. So fast!! My son had a call from his Diabetic nurse this AM asking what their plans were for the holiday. When he said we had all been isolating so we could be together, she said absolutely not. This is not the time to work along the fringes of “it should be fine”. So we changed our plans, of course. I think it will be hardest on my hubs 86 yr old sister. It was just to be the 6 of us and the little one. But this, too, will pass. We will do Thanksgiving in the summer when we hopefully will be thankful that we all made it through this mess. The update on my friend is that she was successfully moved to another hospital. She remains unchanged. This is just all so scary. Remember everyone: You are not stuck at home, you are safe at home.
sorry the thanksgiving day plans must change.
do you or could you all visit via zoom, skype, etc.?
glad your friend is getting care.
more prayers!
and happy, safe saturday.
kathy in iowa
Chris, I read it aloud to Don. It’s devastating. Prayers for your friend and for her family and for all the health care workers and patients.
Much love.
Oh, Chris. Just heartbreaking. I’m so sorry. I’ve been really watching news about Wisconsin because my husband is fixated on moving there after Covid. He researches real estate constantly. New Holstein, Oshkosh, Chilton, Fond du Lac, Appleton, etc. You must be under so much stress. Things keep worsening where I am in SoCalif but it’s nothing like what you’re going thru. Yet.
I happened to see Rachel Maddow’s show last night; first time she’s been back in two weeks since (and still currently) in quarantine due to her partner having gotten Covid and who was apparently quite ill. It was very human and direct from Rachel at home to her audience, “You don’t want this. It’s scary as hell. Whatever you’ve been willing to do to risk getting Covid, don’t. Just don’t. Whatever you have calculated into your life as acceptable risk (something that you’re willing to go thru in terms of this virus), I’m here to tell you to recalibrate that because, frankly, the country needs to recalibrate that, as in broadly-speaking, there’s no room for you in the hospital any more.” (I edited and paraphrased between an article I read online about her but also from hearing her speak about it at the top of her show; it was quite impactful.)
The pitcher is quite, lovely, Claudia. A real find! The cat tails are beautiful. (Can’t believe it was tucked away for years!) I collected and used pitchers when I was first on my own — thought it was fun and “neat”. Long ago gave them away. Boo hoo!
Congratulations on getting the shed cleared out. I don’t know what your plans for shelving are, but have you seen the Origami products? I haven’t personally bought any, but some friends have and they look very great, fit in nicely and fold up, when not needed.
Have a delicious and delightful Thanksgiving.
Stay safe.
Caroline
I’ve seen them. But I want something heavy and sturdy – and the ones I’m looking for are easy to put together.
Thanks, Caroline!
Stay safe.
Love that art deco Fiesta piece. I’m drawn to both!
Was in the 50’s here yesterday and today. Felt wonderful. I aired the house out both days. Was nice not to have to bundle up to take my daily walk, too.
As you know, we don’t put up a big tree anymore, just a table top one. This year, I’ve been talking to Brian about possibly trying to find several small trees to put around the house. Not real ones, as I’m allergic to pine. But I think I’d like to spread the Christmas tree cheer around the house. Each one could be decorated in a different theme. Like you though, we will wait until after Thanksgiving.
xoxo
It’s not Fiesta, Melanie. It’s by Universal. I just happened to buy it when I was collecting Fiesta.
Stay safe!
SUCH a coincidence; I’ve had my thoughts on Fiesta for DAYS and spent a lot of time yesterday looking at various sources because I like some of the retired colors; but, ohmygosh, this is a beautiful piece you have, Claudia! I’ve never seen cattails with Fiesta! Macy’s has a few pieces on sale of more-recent patterns but, well, still too expensive nowadays for my budget; however, I am always SO drawn to the many colors of Fiesta. I’m also into Bauer, Franciscanware, Catalina tile, Malibu tile and of course Roseville pottery. I saw an exhibit at the Autry Museum in L.A.’s Griffith Park, gosh, had to be a long time ago now, like close to 20 years maybe, and it was all about California pottery, so it was right up my alley. They had some wonderful 1930s-era Fiestaware. (When you lived in San Diego, did you ever get over to Catalina Island? There’s so much Catalina tile all over the place there, on sides of buildings, etc.)
The Fiesta glazes are just so cheery and I’m on the lookout a lot of the time for the vintage colors of, say, the rose with the brownish tint; or, the apricot. I’d love to find some periwinkle or lilac. (The plum has been phased out and is now ‘mulberry’.)
Anyway, I’m so glad to see this rediscovered piece of yours; it’s fab. Don’t kick yourself for selling your former collection of Fiesta, because you kept the best!
This piece isn’t Fiesta, Vicki. I bought it when I was collecting Fiesta but this is by Universal in the cat tail pattern. I have a couple of pieces of Catalina. I don’t like the new glazes on Fiesta. Only the original 5 or 6 colors.
Stay safe!
Ah, I misunderstood; more education for me. I somehow was thinking Universal meant it was a pattern for Fiesta; my bad.
Okay, I definitely just read that some of the truest collectors are like you who stay loyal to the original 6 (which are???). I get confused because there’s the six 1950s colors like the rose and gray. I know the yellow and turquoise are original to earlier in the century. Of course the red. I need to do more reading!
Tell me again sometime what you have left of your Fiesta collection; what’s in the cottage. I’m so interested.
Let me think: yellow, cobalt blue, red (which looks like orange,) ivory, and green. Aqua was added a year later.
I have some coffee pots, some mixing bowls, two teapots, a huge red platter, salt and pepper shakers, some bowls, a gravy boat, and the compote that you see on the kitchen island.
Just googling around; found this: The Universal Potteries Company was formed in 1934 in Cambridge, Ohio by a group of Cambridge businessmen. The company is best known to collectors for its Cattail and Ballerina lines. The Universal Potteries Company sold many lines to grocery stores, movie houses and service stations for use as premium items. Cattail can be found in a variety of shapes. It can also be found on tinware, glassware and wood items. An oak kitchen table was available from Sears decorated to match the Cattail dinnerware. Ballerina was also widely distributed and decorated in many different decorations and treatments. The Universal Potteries Company closed in 1960.
Something new for me to learn about; I’ve said it a dozen times, Claudia; you’re always bringing new stuff to us to become informed about; I learn SO much on your blog!
xo
Many years ago I bought heavy duty plastic shelving from one of the big box stores. Easy to assemble, very sturdy and no possibility of rust.
xo
We can enjoy Christmas and be thankful at the same time. Isolating will make it sad but have to do so. Prayers
Yes, indeed, Brenda.
Stay safe!