|
September 25th, 2009
We at AntiqueKitchen.com just returned from the World Market Center where we previewed the new home décor lines at the Las Vegas Market. One of the strong design themes was the use of black and white, lots of painted black furniture, along with the traditional wood finishes and a fair amount of rattans and modern wickers and wire forms. There were lots of streamlined sofas and upholstered furnishings, as well as tables and chairs reminiscent of the modern design of the 1950’s. Along with those basics were the colorful accents of yellow, green and reds. There were a few vendors offering extremely ornate furnishings with crystal chandeliers and elaborate gold detailing.
At the World Market Center, there are three buildings. Building A has 10 floors with 1.3 million square feet, building B has 16 floors with 1.6 million sq ft and building C has 16 floors with 2.1 million sq ft. It is a real project to see everything, but we didn’t miss one floor.
One of the things we especially look forward to at Market is visiting the “temporaries” and the “international pavilion” which are often new products which do not yet have a foothold in the industry. We saw some fine products from Mexico, Brazil, Viet Nam, China and India.
One of the most interesting to us was that we had to go all the way to Las Vegas to find a company from our home state of Indiana, only one hour from home. In the future you will be seeing fine woolen blankets made by Pendleton for Old Hickory Furniture Co. on our website. These have a western lodge influence and are the highest quality to go along side our existing woolens by Pacific Blanket.
Posted in Trips to Market | No Comments »
July 2nd, 2009
Did you happen to catch the episode on printing kitchen towels on the Food Network show, UNWRAPPED? If you liked those re-creations of the printed retro towels, we have them here at AntiqueKitchen. The show went through the whole process of how they are created from design to finished product.
The retro craze has always been around as some folks enjoy collecting what they remember from their childhood. eBay exacerbated the trend by making these finds readily available. Some kitchen textile collectors are purists and insist on nothing but originals. Some concede the holes and stains and fading from a lifetime of use make it easier to settle for the reproductions.
Posted in Kitchen Textiles, Retro Kitchen | No Comments »
June 29th, 2009
One of the things we sell is Estate Silver. This may be Sterling Silver or Silverplated Flatware and Hollowware. Flatware is commonly called silverware in the home, even if it is stainless steel. Flatware would include knives, forks and spoons as well as serving utensils. Holloware may include candlesticks and candelabra, serving bowls, vases, etc.
One of the newest tools on the internet is netSpray.com. NetSpray allows you to import all your eBay listings into their site, where affiliates can upload those ads on their own sites (like this blog), thereby earning a commission for selling someone else’s product. You don’t have to buy the product or do any of the work of selling, merely place the WIDGET on a website of blog and begin earning. There is nothing like it on the web, I think it may be the next big thing!
Here is an example of one of those widgets in use. This is merely one of my eBay ads, uploaded with one button to netSpray.com. This is a fully purchaseable item integrated with PayPal and the necessary information to not only complete a purchase, but for you to earn for selling it for me.
Posted in Marketing, Silver Housewares | No Comments »
June 26th, 2009
My girlfriend tells me that when she was a little girl in the 1950’s, that everyday, she (and all the other girls in her first grade class) had to wear a handkerchief safety pinned to her dress. Of course this was before Kleenex took over the world of the runny nose. So those hankies are today very collectible. We find them only rarely at estate auctions.
In case this rings a memory bell for you, you might consider these reproductions. One gal said she was going to make a quilt out of them, clever idea.
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
June 25th, 2009
Oneida Silver Co made silverplate for various companies. The same pattern may have been made for several different companies and thus the marks on the silverware can vary.
Keep your antique silver looking great with Hagerty Silver Care Products.
Beacon Silver Plate
Camden Silver Plate
Capital Plate
Carlton Silver Plate
Community
Debonair Silver Plate
Duro Plate
Extra Plate
Extra Coin Silver Plate
Genesee Silver Plate
Glastonbury
Heirloom Plate
Imperial Silver Plate
Linton Silver Plate
Madison Silver Plate
Maywood Silver Plate
Monarch Plate
Niagara
Nobility Plate
Oneida Community
Oneida Ltd.
Oneida Silversmiths
Oxford Silver Plate
1880 Pairpoint Mfg Co
Par Plate
Peerless Silver Plate
Pelham Silver Plate
Prestige ****Plate
Puritan Silver
Reliance Plate
Rockford Silver Plate Co
1881 Rogers
S.L. & G.H. Rogers (Simeon L. & George H.)
 Simeon L and George H Rogers
Wm A Rogers
R.S. Mfg Co
Senate Silver Plate
Service Plate
Tudor Plate
Vernon Silver Plate
Wards Silver Plate
+W. R. Keystone
SO if you see these marks on the backs of silverware knives, forks, spoons or serving pieces, no matter what the mark says, you know it was actually produced by Oneida, one of the foremost producers of silverplate.
Keep your antique silver looking great with Hagerty Silver Care Products.
Posted in Silver Housewares | No Comments »
June 24th, 2009
Our local bank, offers business owners who are their customers, the opportunity to display their wares inside the bank periodically. Of course it is to their advantage when local entrepreneurs thrive. You might check in your locale to see if this is possible. Local Chamber of Commerce, Better Business Bureau, Colleges and Universities, Home Shows, etc are possible opportunities for free advertising. AntiqueKitchen.com
 It's Free Advertising Posted in Marketing | No Comments »
June 22nd, 2009
GLOSSARY
FLATWARE: A term used to describe an eating utensil, as a knife fork or spoon. It also includes the serving utensils that might go with a flatware set, such as a large meat fork, ladle, or pie server.
HOLLOWWARE (also spelled hollow ware or holloware): A term used to describe any silver item that isn’t flatware. It could be decorative such as a vase or for the dinner table food service, a tureen, gravy boat, bowl, platter, tea service, etc.
EPNS: Mark found on the bottom of either hollowware or flatware which stands for Electro Plated Nickel Silver
CHASING: The decorative detailing of silver by striking tiny punches with a hammer onto silver creating decorative detailing, like flowers, leaves, designs.
ENGRAVING: Cutting shallow lines into metal to create monograms, initials, names, dates, etc. If this is done with a machine, it does not remove silver, but done by hand, it does remove silver in the process.
- MARKS — These 3 are all related and many people use the terms interchangeably.
HALLMARK: Stamped maker’s mark
- HOUSE MARK: Logo of a specific manufacturer
- MAKER’S MARK: Signature of a specific individual
PATINA: This has various meanings, but the most common use describes the color that silver takes on over the years. (Not tarnish) It describes an aging process that really cannot be gained any way except with time.
A secondary use of the term, is to describe the factory applied darkness to certain areas of a piece giving definition to the pattern or design. Generally, one wants to preserve the patina.
This is why it is not best to use liquid silver cleaners like you see advertised on TV because these actually remove silver in the process of cleaning, thereby stripping the patina, the elements that define the pattern.
REPOUSSE: (RE-PO-ZAY) Rough embossing from the back side which creates a pattern on silver. Newer patterns are made to look like repousse, but there are few that are actually done with this old method.
STERLING SILVER: A standard set by many of the world’s governments defining the quality or grade of silver must be 92.5%.
This is seen on silver marks as .925 or 925/1000 or simply as the word STERLING. (Pure silver is not used as it is too soft to be functional.)
SILVERPLATE: A process that covers other harder metals, such as copper, nickel, brass, steel, with a coating of silver.
This comes in various grades and is seen on silver marks as A1 , Quadruple, Triple Silver, Deep Silver and others.
If it doesn’t say STERLING, 99% of the time it is silverplate.
SILVER was mined as early as 2500 BC in Asia Minor as it was recognized for its beauty and malleability. It is harder than gold, softer than copper and found in many places on our precious planet.
The largest caches are in Peru and Norway, but is also plentiful in the American southwest and Mexico.
TARNISH on silver is principally silver sulfide or silver sulfate. The sulfur comes from the atmosphere and slowly combines with the silver turning the bright silver dull over time. This is best cleaned by polishes which do not damage the silver.
Posted in Silver Housewares | No Comments »
June 21st, 2009
Hope everyone celebrated their father today! We went to an Indiana hang-out called Ivanhoe’s that had just the best burgers and ice cream a guy could want. Always a great time to be with the kids.
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
June 19th, 2009
According to GourmetInsiderOnline, new kitchen textiles must have it all, fashion, function and quality. If the colors and style aren’t right, the function hardly matters. If a towel isn’t absorbent, the fashion will soon be discarded.
One of the hottest new fabrics in the kitchen textile arena, is bamboo which is both biodegradable and nonpolluting. Because a bamboo plant grows from 3 to 5 feet overnight, it is a sustainable source for the environment. Bamboo is naturally antibacterial without additives. Microgaps in the fiber provide ventilation that wicks away moisture. The antibacterial properties of bamboo can withstand numerous washings.
See our brand new to the marketplace, bamboo aprons and towels!
Bamboo is very absorbent and thus the uptake of dye is complete for long-lasting service. The ingenious style of this apron allows for adjustment of length and ties in the back. It will fit most everyone.
Posted in Eco-friendly Products, Kitchen Textiles | No Comments »
June 13th, 2009
There is nothing quite like silver on lace under candlelight. If you enjoy the bling and elegance of antique sterling silver and silverplate, whether for your interior decor or table service, you can often find it in plentiful supply at reasonable prices at estate auctions. Here are a few tips to help the novice decide which pieces are worth buying and what to leave behind.
1. TARNISH Don’t be afraid of tarnish, even black tarnish. Tarnish alone is not bad, it just hurts your arm as it may need some serious, time-consuming, arm-aching labor. BUT once it is cleaned up, if cared for properly, that doesn’t need to happen again.
2. DENTS are bad news unless you just want to set it on a shelf, you probably don’t want to by dented pieces. The exception to that rule, would be fine sterling pieces that have tiny pin-dot dents around the base. These are common on soft sterling and aren’t a major factor in value. Also, if you are buying it just for pure melt value, it doesn’t matter what the condition.
3. PITS and CORROSION (rust) are bad news. Avoid them unless you want to have a piece restored to match a family heirloom. There are silver restoration specialists who can reclaim just about anything, for a price.
4. BUY THE UNUSUAL. If you are new at this, try looking at all the pieces being offered at an auction, then decide which of these pieces is the most unusual. Unusual could mean a mark you have never heard of, or a weird serving utensil, or a gaudy piece of hollowware. Of course, always be on the lookout for Tiffany, Kirk-Stieff, Gorham, Wallace.
5. BUY a 10x MAGNIFYING JEWELER’S LOUPE. These are available on eBay and Amazon and will help you see the tiniest hallmark on silver.
6. SEARCH THE INTERNET to help you identify marks found on silver. There are many sites available, but we find http://www.925-1000.com/americansilver__Menu.html to be one of the best.
7. Buy some HAGERTY SILVER POLISH which you can find in my eBay store, estatesilver. NEVER use liquid silver dips as they remove silver and the patina.
8. Buy some books on eBay to help you identify patterns. I recommend: SILVERPLATED FLATWARE by Tere Hagan and STERLING FLATWARE by Tere Hagan.
Most every pattern ever made is shown in one of these books.
9. Don’t forget your local public library. You may be surprised to find that your library has these titles. Depending on the quality of your library, they may be willing to buy a book for the library at your request or they may be able to get it on an interlibrary loan.
We have THE BEST library and they have helped me out in all of these ways. Before long you’ll decide you have to have your own copy.
Posted in Silver Housewares | No Comments »
|