The summer weekends were filled with Chase ‘n Fiesta. I tend to go driving-for-deco more frequently alone during the week and weekends.  Our inside joke is that when we hunt together, we find some good pieces. However, not necessarily what we collect. Alone, I tend to find pretty good items to add to our collections.

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So, what have I found on my hunts?

My weekends usually start at the Golden Nugget Flea Market. Since reopening post-pandemic, Saturdays are generally less populated. Both by vendors and patrons. On this day, one seller had a small sampling of Chase. He knew what he had but his prices were on the much lower side of fair.

I did not pick up the bar caddy from this vendor as we found one the week before.

And so, adding to our Chase collection is this Conical Sugar Shaker (1936 – 1938).  It is a difficult to find item. And when you do, they have scratches and dents.  It has some light wear, but is a pretty good example.

This is an unusual nut cracker from Chase. We have seen examples without the base, or with a chrome or copper bowl between the base and the cracker. Is the bowl missing? We don’t think so.

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There are “pick holes” on the shaft on the ones manufactured with the bowl component.  However, the shafts are smooth on the ones that are free-standing.  This has no pick holes but has a base. It could be a marriage of pieces, or an alternate version unknown to us.

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More research is needed on this one.

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Also found there, are these very hard-to-find individual ashtrays in copper. These are from a different vendor and he had no idea what they were. Nor they were made by Chase. And they were inexpensive. Cha-ching!

There is a regular vendor who deals in art deco with a heavy emphasis on Chase giftware. We don’t tend to buy from him because, a) his prices are on the really high end of fair.  And b) he refuses to bargain.

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Flash forward a few Saturdays. To my surprise I found him selling a piece of Chase that I have been looking for.

If you read about the Pretzel Man in an earlier post, you know this piece is already hard to find in copper. And it is nearly impossible to find in chrome. I dreaded asking him the price for the chrome example. To my surprise, he was asking $75.00.  These generally go for well over $120.00.

And as for the Fiesta, it started at my next stop. A vintage Fiesta cup in forest green glaze from Good Stuff. Cost? $1.00.

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The next morning, can you guess where I went?  If you said the Golden Nugget, pat yourself on the back.

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First, I found a pair of Post ‘86 Fiesta turquoise bulb candle holders for $8.00.  Although we tend to look for vintage, we are not above picking up “newer” pieces.  That is, if you can call something almost 40 years old “newer”.

The exceptional find of the day was a complete Fiesta relish set, heavy on the Ivory. One of the inserts is damaged. The vendor was honest about it and priced it accordingly.  This is an item that is not the easiest to find.  And when you do, it will be over $200.00.

Because of the damage, the asking price was well below that. Even lower than it should be. I know this vendor. He knows his stuff and he does not usually deal in Fiesta. Still, I did a little bit of haggling (which Anthony hates when I do) and got a bit more knocked off. Final cost, $65.00.

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As a side note, when we were in Madison, Wisconsin antiquing, we found a replacement insert. Woo-hoo!

Best of all, he threw in a vintage Fiesta 10 1/2 inch light green divided plate for free.

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These were produced 1937 – 1959 in the original 10 colors. But, unfortunately they proved too heavy for practical use. When you find them now, the raised ridges are often scuffed or chipped.

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This one is in mint condition, and I like free!

But wait, there is more. Elsewhere, what did my wandering eye see?  Well, not Fiesta but some pieces associated with Homer Laughlin’s Heniquin line. I picked up a mauve-blue individual creamer and a mauve-blue nut dish for $1.00 each.

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The creamers are not listed as part of the Harlequin line. However, as they are glazed in the Harlequin colors, they are often referred to as: Harlequin Individual Creamer.

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The in-between weekends were spent in Detroit. Follow us along on that adventure.

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The next weekend after Detroit, I bargained and bought a Homer Laughlin 1939 Artist Decorating a Vase World’s Fair plate. Though fairly (no pun intended) easy to find, this sample is trimmed in gold. This makes it a harder-to-find example.

And finally – for that day – a mint condition #6 Mixing bowl in light green.

Since I mentioned the 1939-1940 World’s Fair, a vendor that weekend had quite a selection of memorabilia – but that is for a different post.

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A few weekends have passed and back to, you-know-where? And what did I spy but another individual creamer in red, and two nut dishes, red and yellow.

It is a bit ironic finding more of these. The Creamers can go for between $20 – $30 each. Light green and Rose are hard-to-find and can cost over $100 each.

This past weekend I picked up a light green creamer for $5.00. Antiquing Karma is smiling down upon me.

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Here’s my current collection. I need one dipped in the 40’s rose glaze for a complete set.

The nut dishes are also fairly easy to find. These generally sell for around $20.00. And like the individual creamer, light green and rose are the more difficult to locate and command a higher price.

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My purchase price for this last group? A grand total of $7.00.

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Ready for more irony? I found another, albeit without the gold trim, 1939 World’s Fair Artist Decorating a Vase plate. It was a good price and so it came home with me.

So that is some of my summer adventures Chase ‘n Fiesta. Thanks for coming along for the ride.

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Don’t forget to check out our next Detroit post: Tabernacles, Tables and Trays. More sightseeing and more driving-for-deco antiquing!

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Chris & Anthony (the Freakin’ ‘tiquen Guys)