Fiestaware dancing lady logo from a 1937 price list. Image from the author’s collection.
After over three years looking at vintage Fiesta at Driving For Deco, we have come to the last installment of Fiestaware 101. This post will look at the famous dinner ware line up to its restyling in 1969.
Sales of Fiesta slowed in the 1950’s and that trend continued even more so in the 1960’s. Fiesta remained basically unchanged since the mid and late 1930’s which made the line seem dated by the 1960’s.
Late 1960 or Early 1961 Deletion
The Dessert Bowl
Until the entire Fiesta line was restyle in 1969, the dessert bowl was the only elimination of the decade. In production since the introduction of the line in 1936, Frederick Rhead’s original concept for this piece was as a fruit bowl. When the 5 1/2 inch oatmeal bowl became designated as a fruit bowl, this piece became the dessert bowl. It is very easily found in the first six colors and just a little harder to find in the colors of the 1950’s. Discontinued around the end of 1960, just a year and a half after the introduction of the medium green glaze, it is very rare in that color. And the value reflects its rarity.
Two Fiestaware Dessert Bowls one in chartreuse and one in gray.
Current prices vary greatly. Most dessert bowls on ebay seem to be in the $25.00 – $50.00 range in all colors except medium green. At flea markets some can be bought for as little as $10.00. A medium green bowl sold at auction on November 23, 2013 for $250.00. But some have sold for over $500.00.
Medium Green Fiestaware Dessert Bowl. Image from Strawser Auctions.
Teacup Changes
Sometime in the early 1960’s changes were made to the teacup for easier production. The hand turned foot and inside rings were eliminated. These later teacups are also slightly larger than earlier cups.
Yellow Fiestaware teacups in early and later varieties. The one earlier variation is on the left with the hand turned foot. The cup on the right is the 1960’s style. Image taken by the author.
Yellow Fiestaware teacups showing the rings on the inside of the early style as compared to the ringless 1960’s cup. Image taken by the author.
1962 – 1965
Fiesta Casuals
Four Fiesta Casual Hawaiian 12-Point Daisy salad plates. From the collection of the author.
In what was probably an effort to increase flagging sales, Homer Laughlin produced an interesting variant, Fiesta Casuals. This line used white glazed dinner and salad plates, saucers and platters trimmed in either yellow or turquoise decorated with stylized, stencil flowers. Fiesta Casuals came in two different designs, Hawaiian 12-Point Daisy and Yellow Carnation.
Fiesta Casuals Yellow Carnation. Image from Strawser Auction Group.
This Fiesta variant must not have been popular as it is not that easy to find today. Prices for pieces of Fiesta Casuals are all over the place, ranging from less than $10.00 to over $150.00.
1967
Amberstone
The Amberstone version of the iconic Disc Pitcher. This piece does not have the impressed Fiesta mark on the bottom. Photo by the author.
Another variation on Fiesta in the 1960’s is Amberstone. Marketed by Sheffield as a supermarket premium in 1967 it utilized Fiesta shapes (with the impressed Fiesta marks removed). Some pieces were modernized and all were dipped in a brown glaze. Plates and platters had a black Mediterranean style medallion under the glaze. Tea cups handles changed from a ring to a “c” shape, the sugar bowl lost its handles and mugs became straight sided. Finials were modified from flared to rounded knobs.
Amberstone dinner plate showing the underglazed black decal. Image from ebay.
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- Modified Amberstone mug. Image from ebay.
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- Amberstone coffee cup and saucer, showing the “C” style handle. Image from ebay.
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- Amberstone sugar bowl minus side handles and with knob finial and creamer with “C” style handle. Image from ebay.
Advertisement for Amberstone from the Lawton Constitution, August 14, 1967, Lawton, Oklahoma. From Newspapers.com.
Ambestone teapot. Image from ebay.
During this time, with Fiesta still in production some mistakes happened. Cups with “C” handles exist in yellow, turquoise and medium green. And some Amberstone pieces have the impressed Fiesta mark. The casserole underwent a complete revision and fruit bowls sides changed from straight sided to sloped. The retired coffee pot and marmalade were made available in the line.
The Amberstone casserole. Image from ebay.
Sloped sided Amberstone fruit bowls. Image from ebay.
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- Amberstone coffee pot. Image from ebay.
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- Amberstone marmalade jar. Image from ebay.
Values for Amberstone pieces vary. Plates can be found for $1.00 – $5.00. Cups and saucers have a value of between $5.00 – $10.00. Harder to find pieces like the disc pitcher, coffee pot and casserole have sold recently for about $50.00 (or sometimes even less).
1969
Finally, after 33 years in production, the bright colors and Art Deco style had become old fashioned. Homer Laughlin decided to revise the line one last time. Yellow, turquoise, red and medium green, along with the original shapes were retired in July, 1969. At the same time, Fiesta Ironstone debuted. Utilizing the shapes from Amberstone, Fiesta Ironstone only came in three colors, Antique Gold, Turf Green and Mango Red (the same red of the vintage Fiesta line).
1969 brochure for Fiesta Ironstone. Image from laurelhollowpark.com.
Fiesta Ironstone limped along for three years. On January 1, 1973 Homer Laughlin decided to drop the line and retire the Fiesta name forever.
Well that didn’t exactly happen, but that’s another story.
This concludes the series Fiesta 101. More is still to come with Fiesta 201, in which we will look at other Fiesta related china and comparisons between vintage Fiesta and the currently produced Fiesta.
Thank you so much for the info!! We love each installment (I almost had a small stroke when I read”this concludes the series fiesta 101”!!!) We’re looking forward to Fiestaware 201!!!!
Hello Cindy, thank you for the nice comment about the Fiesta series. It means a lot to us. All our best, Anthony and Chris.
Like the other commenter, Cindy, I too was SO disappointed when I thought this might be the actual last article about Fiesta from you guys! Your information, photos, and research are FABULOUS! I had been questioning my knowledge base regarding Amberstone and Ironstone, but you confirmed my information and research. Now to add to my gravy/sauce boat collection with the Ironstone colors! Looking forward to Fiesta 201 !!!…….Pamela
Hello Pamela, thank you for the nice comments and very happy to hear that you find the posts helpful. We look forward to going in depth on some of the pieces and other lines associated with Fiesta in the future.
I was recently given about 80 pieces of my grandmother’s 1930s original fiestaware in the original five and six colors. Plates (3 sizes), bowls (2 sizes), cups, saucers, platters (round and oval), nappie bowls, vegetable bowls, mixing bowls, soup bowls, gravy boats, trays, salt/pepper, pitchers, etc. , and I was thrilled to read your 12 part series on fiestaware and all of the changes that it has gone through in the decades since its existence. (There are a couple of forest green and chartreuse items as well from the later years). I remember using these in my grandmother’s house as a child, and I am thrilled to have them. I do see several pieces that I do not have tho, so now the hunt begins!
Hello Deborah, I’m so happy that you found our series on Fiesta helpful and sharing your thoughts with us. And what a great collection of Fieata you received and even better that it was your grandmother’s, I love to hear stories of family possessions being passed from generation to generation to people who appreciate the items. Enjoy your Fiesta and good luck with your hunt for additional pieces.
Hello! I’ve just finished reading all twelve parts and I can’t wait for 201. I found a No. 6 mixing bowl in green with the inside rings today and that’s what got me started. The owner of the store nearly died when I brought it to the counter—he didn’t know it was in there and he was almost reluctant to sell it. I didn’t know what it was; I just love Fiesta and had never seen this type of bowl before. I thought $65 was expensive, but I was so happy to discover that it isn’t at all! I’ve been collecting new Fiesta since I was 14 (I’m 30 now) and my grandmother has given me some that was hers and her mother’s, which is why I noticed the mixing bowl in the first place (on a bottom shelf behind a stack of books). It matches a serving platter and some bread plates from the original ’30s production line that I have already. I wonder if you might know anything about another bowl I bought and can’t find anywhere online or elsewhere. It’s a butter yellow color with a kind of geometric pattern along the outside rim. I thought it may be a cereal bowl. It’s inked with the Fiesta logo on the bottom. I’d love to be able to find more pieces because it’s a pretty pattern. Thanks for all your research—I’ve so enjoyed learning about Fiesta history. And now I know why I love Bauer Ringware too!
Finally found some info on the Casuals! I found a Yellow Carnation platter the other day and had no idea what it was. This was really informative. Thank you.
Great series, as I’ve told you before! Very happy you’ve spent the time creating it. A valuable resource for those seeking enlightenment on Fiesta’s history and variety.
Just adding a personal opinion observation which I wanted to share: How could HLC be so stupid as to use the actual Fiesta items to market as a grocery store give away, while still trying to market those same items (for the most part) as the Fiesta dinnerware line? One might understand doing that if they had ALREADY discontinued the true Fiesta line AFTER 1973, but to use the shapes for retail promos and give away items at the same time they were still trying to sell genuine Fiesta seems very ill advised. How stupid did they think the public was? Who would go pay big bucks (relatively speaking) for items they’d already seen for pennies in the local grocery store, albeit in different colors. The so-called Fiesta Casuals, at least still had some dignity to the offerings by being “premiums” and were markedly different then the grocery store offerings, by blending true Fiesta pieces with decorated versions and acknowledging themselves AS Fiesta, not masquerading under some pseudo name. As I say, just my two cents on that topic!
This series was awesome! I’m just beginning to collect Fiesta and this was a fantastic introduction! Thank you!!!
This series was fantastic – I am eagerly waiting for more – I am hoping it will include the small teapot, as I just got one at an auction. I can’t imagine the time it took you two to do this at this level of detail and photography. Massive kudos to you!
I. Just came across your blog I have been collecting fiesta for 30+ years got hooked with a pair of salt/pepper shakers your articles on fiesta were wonderful informative and beautiful to see all the different colors & styles thank you