Tique Talk by Marianne Dow: Collecting Holt Howard Pixie Ware with Walter Dworkin

The Antique Trader has a really informative article about vintage Holt Howard collectibles, by Walter Dworkin.

Walter has literally ''written the book'' on Holt Howard items. [Amazon books link]

The author covers the Pixie line, as well as the cute Holt Howard Cats line, and he discusses the Lefton look-alikes, too. It's a great article to introduce you to collecting these fun pieces. Definitely worth reading, and seeing the other pix.

Here's an excerpt:

"... During the late 1950s, with almost perfect timing, a most creative and clever company named Holt-Howard was developing a revolutionary new concept in deep-glazed ceramics called “Pixiewares.” These containers included covered condiment jars featuring whimsical pixie heads on top.

Due to the huge success of Pixiewares, other novelty companies such as Davar, Lefton, Lipper & Mann, and Napco, all began to copy Holt-Howard’s style. While each company made creative condiment jars, the Davar Company practically copied the Pixieware copyrighted design. Although many other companies’ jars were different, they were all competing for sales around the same time—the 1950s and early 1960s. Today, many of these condiment jars have also become highly collectible and some are commanding top dollar at antiques and collectibles shows.

These cute condiment jars and related household imps have truly stolen everyone’s heart and turned out to be one of the hottest collectibles in America today.

How many Pixies were created in the 1950s, and how many are needed to complete a set? The total number of vintage Pixieware pieces is 64. The 64 include the solid-colored and striped Pixieware liquor decanters, and the cocktail Cherries, Onion and Olives. ..."

They are such cute retro items. Even though the vintage pieces are adorable, my absolute favorite is the new PIXIE Cookie Jar. I honestly think it will be the last cookie jar that I sell from my collection - it's that cute!