Kenro Melmac Ice Buckets

Kenro Ice Bucket on Etsy at shop Archivia, $29

Perhaps you saw my post about the Kenro company and their history; here is my follow up.  I saved my favorite piece for last. What I and many others call the "ice bucket"  or "wine bucket" or "chilling bucket" was actually the "Insulated Bowl" which was patented in January 1956.

The initial design dates to 1955, perhaps even earlier. Dating these should be easy as many early models will say "Patent Pending" on them, which means they were made from the date of application March 2, 1955 until the patent was granted in 1956. Surely after that time the backstamps were swapped to just be marked "Kenro" (on most of the plain buckets) and "Holiday by Kenro" on most (but not all) of the speckled buckets.   Here is a nice selection for sale, and where to find them!

1. Made in the USA this lovely tri color red white and blue would go great at your 4th of July cookout. It can be found for $16.99 (what a steal) by Ebay user rsuresell

2.  A lovely robin's egg blue makes this turquoise ice bucket perfect for any melmac collector. Would look lovely to accompany that summer picnic!  This is only $15.00 starting bid at ThePerfectPickCollectibles.

3.  Retro colors make this tri tone a great addition to any vintage melmac collection.  This one is available at rock bottom pricing, only $12.50 at MODernThrowback on Ebay.

4. Lovely pale yellow is a great item to use in the Spring or for Easter. Available for $48.95 at The Rummage Rak on Ebay.

5. Super speckled version in the Holiday by Kenro line comes with 8 fun bowls! All you need for a super duper party, only $47 for the lot at CarpeBellus on Etsy!

6. Iconic white speckles in the Holiday line make this a nice clean bucket for the mod design lover! I think being one color draws your eye to the great designs! This one  $36 at ElementreeOldSkool on Etsy!

7. Rare Vintage Goodies on Ebay has this speckled two tone for $107.99. I'm in love with this, I think the colors are reminiscent of the late 60's and you could use the base for a garbage bowl in your kitchen!

I found evidence of them being produced up to the late 70's.  Some are quite lovely and comprised of several different colors which can make collecting them fun!  They are heavy duty and I've never found them chipped which tells me their thick heavy construction held up well over time. They are still fully functional and will keep your ice cold for a long time. 

The patterns are rare, and are printed right onto the melamine. This one, $99.99 from DupsterDiverWI

As for value, collectors of Melmac, barware, and mid century modern collectors should appreciate these items. Just the fact they are still useful are a plus!  Prices vary depending on condition, color, and shipping rates. Rarer designs, color combonations or shades will fetch more money. 

I would certainly pay on average $50 for a rarity that would match my collection. Odd is the color of pale yellow from #4 in my Kenro Collage, and it would match the Boontonware line quite wonderfully! For that reason it may be priced higher and sought after by those who can use it as a go-with in their melmac collection. Of course, rarest are patterned pieces where the melmac has tacky designs on it. I tend to think they may sell slower because they have to find the right person to give them their forever home!

Which would you own from above? Tell me!

You May Like: 

Read all Kenro posts here.

Love this or hate it? Kenro Platter.

This post sponsored by the Hogging Up West Virginia BBQ Festival. If you or someone you know lives in West Virginia, or near the panhandle area, be sure to check this festival out as it helps raise money for non profits in the area!

Vintage Melamine Dinnerware Value

Author's sandwich looks so much tastier on a vintage melmac plate.

Vintage Melamine Dishes and Dinnerware

Wait! Before you toss out those old plastic dishes, did you know they may be extremely collectible? Truth be told there's a whole world of melamine and melmac dish collectors out there. Perhaps it's the fact those funny old plastic dishes bring back a happier time in life --- the fab 1950's, or lunch at granny's house.  For me, I remember having those olive green and gold dishes in Mom's kitchen and though the color grossed me out, it brought back a time when she would make me after school snacks of apples and cheese. 

Millions of melamine and melmac dishes were made and sold from the 1940's to the 1970's (even from the 1980's until now) but the ones made in the USA and Canada are sought after these days. Now just to clear things up properly, most all these old plastic dishes were made from melamine, but American Cyanamid called theirs "melmac" due to their own copyright/trademark.  Sadly most people call all old plastic dishes melmac,  but really they aren't so worthy of the name unless the compound was made by American Cyanamid.  Were the compounds identically the same? We would have to save that for the scientists to answer but I can tell you that most melamine powder companies were constantly trying to improve their formulations.  "Unbreakable Guaranteed 2 Years" went to "5 years" went to "Unbreakable Lifetime Replacement".  Later in the 60's melamine powders were so expensive that I believe companies started cutting corners in their additives, because a lot of dishes from the 60's to the 80's were thinner, not as well made and would shatter or chipped when dropped.

Truth be told, melmac dishes were said to be unbreakable but would burn easily if sat too close to the stove, and would scratch when cutting with heavy knives. Even though over time the material was said to become more durable, heavy knives will scratch and wear down the surfaces.  So, if you have gouged up burnt up melmac, better to use for garden decorations! Plates look fun and lovely as bird feeders (mount a cup and saucer on a stick) or use the plates to line your garden.

Now, if you have a set where some pieces are in good condition, perhaps with only light stains or light scratches they may be worth salvaging for several reasons.  Read the Care and Cleaning section here!

First off, they are perfectly safe to use in your kitchen as long as you aren't microwaving them.  Why go spend a fortune in Target or Walmart buying the new made-in-china versions when you have authentic vintage melamine?

Secondly, your dishes may be sought after for those who are trying to complete a set.  For instance, those wanting to assemble a set just like grandma had, may gladly give you a few bucks at a flea market, on craigslist or ebay or Etsy as your pieces or partial set may help them complete theirs.

The downfall to selling online (outside of your local area) is that the dishes are somewhat heavy to ship, and your best bet will be a flat rate shipping box or UPS.

Some manufacturers command more money than others, this would be the ones that were made by famous designers. For instance, not every company had a designer on staff so the company would just use decals or inlays and mass produce funny designs.

However, some companies paid high end industrial designers, now famous for their work such as Russel Wright (for Northern), Joan Luntz (for Brookpark), Jon Hedu (for Watertown), or Raymond Loewy (designing for Lucent) for example.  These designs, are now more valuable to those who may collect mid century modern, or melmac.

Now you may not know whether looking at your old melmac dishes just what they are, so you should start by doing a search on the web and finding out just what you have. It may be fun to realize that set you acquired some time back may still hold it's value.


Sponsored Post

This post is sponsored by infographic design  please check them out!   Keep in mind sponsors of RetroChalet Melmac Central blog help keep me writing and providing you free information on Melmac and Melamine Dinnerware. Please visit their sites!

Related Reading


Care and Cleaning of Melmac Dinnerware


Collecting Melmac Dinnerware

You may enjoy reading my art studio mayhem blog  , click on the photo to continue!

Imperial Ware Melmac and Wee Little Butter Pats did Texas Ware Make This...

Imperial Ware...

The Pretend Den has some for sale, and shows how lovely this can be.

Look at the butter pats at Delectable Accents!

This really great set of Imperial Ware melmac is up for grabs on Etsy, at DelectableAccents .  The really cool thing about it is the what-I-think-are butter pats to the lower left. Note how they are tiny coaster-sized items, often used FOR coasters or candy dishes, but back in the day certainly meant for butter! I've only ever seen them in a few vintage melmac lines, as most have been lost or misplaced over time.  (Let's not forget melmac was a bit pricy back then, so the optional "butter pats" weren't always a heavily bought item. They usually measure around 3" or under.)

Yes, just close your eyes and imagine how it must have been. A pat of fresh churned butter was just waiting on your lovely melmac butter pat to be spread lovingly on Granny's fresh baked buns. Of course those would have had their own place on the bread plate.

See the speckles, these $18 at RetroChalet!

Imperial Ware was speckled in pastel colors of blue, white, pink and yellow. It's fun to collect a whole set and still easy to assemble. Mr. Melmac had suggested that it was made by the makers of Texas Ware (PMC Manufacturing Company).  Not much in the way of original boxes or paperwork has been found. I did see an old store ad, once, showing it but not naming the maker.

Courtesy:  Ira Mency

I've seen two totally different backstamps for the line.  One says "Imperial Ware" in cursive, (above--I think this is an older mark) and the second showing "Imperial" in cursive but "melmac" in blog letters as this (below) is the second...
 

"The Pretend Den" took this photo of one of the backstamps."

As with any melmac, I'm often suprised if you look hard enough you will find the needle in the haystack. Let me just say this is an oddity and so lovely if I do say so myself. They are very modern design saucers backstamped Imperial Ware, but I have no earthly idea why. So lovely!  Get them while you can!

Imperial Ware Oddity, so lovely, Available at Vintage Goodies.