Jadite!

18 Feb Jadite!

Happy Monday, everyone!  How was your weekend?  This weekend was a good one for me – lots of great family time, homemade pancakes, my oldest son’s first baseball “tryouts”, finding the perfect item for a client, some goodies to list on Gypsy Soul’s Facebook page, and drumroll please…a beautiful set of vintage jadite dishes found at an estate sale.  Pinch me, they were a steal.  I first saw jadite in college when on one of my “clear my head” antique mall trips.  Immediately, I was drawn to their beautiful translucent mint green color.

Pioneer Woman

I wish I had bought them in college since a few years later, Martha Stewart had her jadite collection on her show, and everyone went nutso for it!  And of course, up went the prices.  Now whenever I see it in a store, a plate is $40!  So I have been content to admire it from afar, though it’s hard to get that lovely hue out of one’s mind.

Elizabeth Anne Designs

Jadite, also known as Jadeite, was a popular form of dinner ware and restaurant ware beginning in the late 1930’s to early 1970’s.  McKee was the first to manufacture it, though Jeanette Glass Company is credited with giving “jadite” its name.  The Anchor Hocking Glass Corporation was jadite’s largest producer, renaming it “Jade-ite” and launching several colors under the “Fire King” name in 1942.  Literally given away in oatmeal boxes and grocery stores for buying a certain amount of an item, it was touted as your go-to, heavy-duty, can’t-hurt-it dishware.  It was not fine china by any means, so as you can imagine, its popularity is confusing to many that were eating off of it at their local diner in the 1950’s.  In fact, a lady at the estate sale was so surprised at how excited I was about my purchase, she said, “Well, my goodness, I have had two huge boxes of that stuff in my attic for thirty plus years!”  I then asked her where she lived.  I’m kidding.  Sorta.

Which reminds me…this weekend, my father informed me he had two huge mid century abstract paintings in his storage unit, where they have been sitting for 30 years.  Ummm, hello!  Don’t worry, I’m on it.

Back to jadite…I love the freshness it gives a space.  It is just so happy and clean and bright and pretty.

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Jadite Kate

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The collection that began the craze.

Martha Stewart Living

Apparently, the egg cups are rare and valuable.  On a side note, does anyone know what the dish they are serving from the egg cup is called?  It looks yummy to me, and they eat it on Downton Abbey all the time.

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Country Living

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I LOVE when plates are displayed this way!

Apartment Therapy

Coastal Living

Urban Grace

Country Living

How gorgeous are these kitchens?

Better Homes & Gardens

Better Homes & Gardens

Velvet & Linen

Graham & Co

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Country Living

Holly Doodle Designs

My favorite (and what I hope to do in a couple of cabinets in my own kitchen) is mix my jadite with vintage Fire King turquoise and white ware.  I like the collected look, and those colors together are right up my alley.

Jadite Kate

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If you see jadite in a store, it is usually fairly pricey, unless you stumble upon someone who doesn’t know what it is.  Score!  But you can occasionally find some good deals on CraigsList and Ebay, so if you love it, keep an eye out.

Do you love jadite?  Do you have any in your home?

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P.S.  I also wanted to tell you  I am having vascular surgery tomorrow bright and early, so if I am not around tomorrow or the next day, you will know why.  I am having some blood clots in my legs and malfunctioning veins removed, plus my doctor is re-routing some other veins to help my vascular system function better.  I should be fine and dandy, but if you think of it, I would appreciate the prayers.  Knowing myself though, I will probably be at the grocery store with the kids the next day, ha!  xoxo