Stetson Marcrest Melmac Plastic Dinnerware

This set, for sale has all the pieces from Etsy seller EddyEtcetera

In the 1940's every housewife wanted a new China dinnerware set, for her family or for entertaining, ceramic was pricey and often kept in the corner china closet for special dinners.  By the 1950's, melmac was the rage.  At first, companies selling plastic had to do some hefty marketing to compete with china, can you imagine the fact that their claim to fame was that it was "unbreakable" or would be replaced if broken or stained (coming from the person who worked at Meladur, she was in the replacement division, and had so many coffee cups weekly that were stained by coffee to replace.)  

Now, keep in mind melmac wasn't exactly cheaper than china dinnerware in a fancy department store, in fact, some lines were downright pricey at the time and would be on display at Macy's or Hecht's and a set for four or six would be just as costly as a high end ceramic set. Some housewives had to save for weeks just to afford a set of dinnerware.  

I have to give kudos to the marketing alliance that would make plastic dishes as expensive as ceramic, and make the housewives want them.  This however wasn't so easy on the china dinnerware manufacturers. It was direct competition to them and at first there was a whole ceramic dinnerware manufacturer alliance that plotted and planned on how to boycott the melmac and reinforce the fact their dishes were better. 

Note the tabbed sugar bowl in the Marcrest line is almost identical to the Stetson line. 

This set from Baxters Collectibles on Etsy.

By the mid to late 1960's the smart manufacturers like Stetson decided to have melmac dinnerware molded for them (by a plastics molder) and add their name to it. It was an appendage of their regular lines, so in fact if you opened a department store catalog, you would see their ceramic dinnerware plus their plastic lines too.   Smart companies like Oneida, Stetson, Russel Wright's designs, will be found both in ceramic and melamine.  Others simply refused to jump on the plastic bandwagon, and this was their loss of profits in my opinion.  At first in the 1980's when I was collecting plastic, most dinnerware collectors scoffed at collecting the plastic lines, because they thought they were junk in comparison to ceramic.  However, over time, it was realized that even the designers who designed the plastic lines put great effort into making them.  From the details and designs on the dishes to the box, marketing and promotional material. 

Stetson stems from it's owners Louis B. Stetson who started the china company in 1919 and was located in Lincoln Illinois.  It was a family business and his nephew worked there too.   It is said that early production included other companies "blanks" along the way, and an article on Worthpoint indicates Stetson manufactured both melmac dinneware and pottery dinnerware.  Now, no discredit to the author but I am unsure if this was true.  If Stetson manufactured their own plastic line (they would have had to have a moulding facility just for plastics)  in their factory, but perhaps they were like many companies who contracted another moulding company to do so . Either way, the history on it is minimal and one day I will delve through my plastics encyclopedias's and debunk this one way of the other, but today I do not have the time. 

History indicates that Marcrest products would buy them out, and this makes a lot of sense because later examples of Stetson melmac and Marcrest Melmac look similar in design.  Marcrest had a great marketing mindset, and would sell a lot of melmac premiums from grocery stores to magazine mail order and relatively affordable at that.   You can see the similarities in the covered tabbed sugar bowls and the funky S design divided round serving bowls. 

Even after Stetson was "out of business" Marcrest continued the solicitations and selling of the Stetson melmac products.  By 1963 the classic 1950's patterns were reworked into a new "Contour Line" which was super cool and hard this day to find.  Melmac collectors may scoff at the 1960's wheat and brown leafy designs but what's truly exquisite is the shape of the coffee cups.  They look like something out of the Jetson's. I personally call them cat eye cups. How fun it would be to have a set of just the cups and saucers in a 1950's kitchen! 

I have several sets of Marcrest and Stetson tucked away.  I always thought they were the perfect weight and design.  The 1950's pink Stetson sets will hold the most value if you are collecting them.  Everyone loves 1950's pink, and if you decided to collect only Marcrest or Stetson, you would be surprised just how many designs there are, many will remain unidentified unless you are lucky enough to search old magazines and find their official names. 

Collecting is fun, and keeps the items out of the landfill and at use in the home. 

Thanks for reading, if you like this article, share. Sponsored by: 

Melmac Dinnerware Podcast

Finally, I'm doing a podcast on vintage living and in my first episode I touch on Melmac and melamine dinnerware by American Cyanamid.  It's a short segment but one I hope to talk to you about.  I haven't had much time to actually write here on my melamine dinnerware blog so I figured I would talk to you instead.  If you want to listen, you can click to listen to episodes right here on the blog, or go to 

BuzzSprout 

or Spotify here to listen.  

amazon music here

In the meantime happy collecting. 

Brookpark Melmac Fantasy Line Joan Luntz Five Facts You Should Know

Old Brookpark Melmac Ad.

Today I was fully prepared to write a post on Russian melmac when I became sidetracked by a listing for Fantasy Brookpark by Joan Luntz.

Let me explain to you that when I write this post I write with full respect and awe, that Joan Luntz accomplished so much in her day and have written much on her before.

She was a working mother of six (yes six) children, and married to George Goulder,  (so she really was Joan Luntz Goulder).  After WW2 George purchased a plastics company, being President of the International Molding Company he would partner with Joan who designed Brookpark melmac dinnerware.

I cannot say enough about what a contribution Joan made to design, or the melamine history!  I think she was amazing in that she did so much as a woman in her day.  If you recollect the era, circa 1950's  women were still fighting to find adequate places in a predominantly male workforce.  And doing that while raising six children?  A huge accomplishment.

Lastly, but more importantly as it relates to this blog, her contribution to melmac dinnerware and her deigns were timeless, chic, and pretty. She won  many awards, received much publicity,  and many museums inducted her creations such as the Modern Museum of Art.

Photo of Fantasy Melmac Line is actually shown in her Obituary ! 

Refer to article / Obituary on Joan here in the Cleveland Jewish News. 

I recently came across her obituary, which I encourage you to click on the photo or link above to be taken to the Cleveland Jewish News and read.  I am a little bit sad to know she passed on Christmas day.  I for one learned some interesting things reading it.

Fantasy Pattern : Five Facts You Should Know

So with this post I write respectfully about Brookpark and in particular the line called Fantasy.

1. It's Rare.

In my years of collecting Fantasy has been somewhat hard to find and I consider it rare.  I can only tell you from being a plastics collector and researcher since the 90's I have been unable to ever see or find a complete set.  There may be several reasons for this, but if you collect it, covet it! I am not for sure if this is because it was a low production run or the fact that the plates seem to be white with design (and perhaps over time this white became stained and ended up not surviving.)

2. It's hard to identify as the Backstamps Are Most Likely Washed Away. 

Another plausible possibility is maybe no one knows what to call it if they do find it, since it's usually unmarked (and unless they really do their research. )The plates themselves were white with outlines designs reminiscent of leaves, herbs, apothecary.  The accompanying pieces were blue, solid turquoise. Most of these pieces maybe have been umarked or ink-stamped.

This picture proves my theory as shown in Thifty Doodads Etsy Shop.

(* Brookpark was known to ink stamp in black ink some of their pieces, which made it difficult when trying to identify lines thirty to sixty years later.  I actually washed a set of Pink Hyacinth by Brookpark (from the same timeframe) and washed the backstamps clean off!)   I confirmed this by actually finding a lot of Fantasy, and checking out the backstamps above.  They were definitely inked!

The leafy saucers of Fantasy by Brookpark Pic/Buy them at ThriftyDoodads

3. It's Quite Possibly A Very Small Production Run.

I found it in May 1956 Magazine, up until 1959.  I have not been able to find out the exact dates of production, but this gives a three year run.  That's not a whole heck of a lot of pieces.   Additionally, it was up against other lines being introduced around the same time. For instance,  Pink Hycianth, which was in my opinion more popular and more desirable (it was pink and white and if you look in the ad on top this post you'll see how pretty, oh so pretty....)   I have found much of this pink and white in my travels and it is still easy to put together a complete set to this day.

Top Right: Bloodgood Japenese Maple leaf vs "Pot" leaf below right. Note that the leaves on the Fantasy line are freeform ferny style plant leaves.

4.  Some collectors mistook the leaves for pot leaves. ( ouch!) 

I hope if the family of Joan reads this they won't think I mean anything disrespectful to her, but I have gotten a lot of inquiries over the years "Hey, what's the pot leaf design on melmac name?" and wondered just what the reader was talking about. Now I see that that leaf structure on the plates does resemble a bit of Cannabis Sativa leaf.

If you note that the pattern of the largest leaf has a five top leaf spread and then two tiny bottom leaf patterns. This is exactly that of some photographs of hemp/Marijuana leaves.   Although I am unsure just what the leave was, I myself thought that it represented a tree that I grew up with, a cousin of the Japanese Maple---more in referred to as BLOODGOOD JAPANESE MAPLE.    I am unsure and if anyone from Joan's family reads this blog, maybe they can shed light on the leaf itself.  However, all look ferny and fantasy like with the mod dots behind them.

5. It comes in more than one color palette- look for brown hues and the blue hues. 

Although all my above talk above shows the blue on white design accompanied with solid blue pieces, I have posted an article before where the pieces were actually brown hues, with brown or tan solid pieces. Look for both in your travels.  To me, both are elusive.

See the brown pieces in my earlier post on Joan, Arrowhead, Brookpark and Fantasy here.

If you enjoy my blog, follow my Living Vintage podcasts! I'm listed in various podcasts under RetroChalet: Living a Vintage Life!  You can connect with me via Instagram or TikTok! Have a great day ! This post last updated 7.10.21

The Making of the Texasware Mottled Melmac Mixing Bowl

Speckled Texasware Mixing Bowls from Etsy Shop Museum of Kitsch

Speckled and Spattered the Texasware Bowl Comes to Life

Thanks to this blog and my articles on Melmac on the web, I have heard from readers all over the world, and I have been fortunate enough to hear from the grandchildren of the owner of Plastics Manufacturing Company, who produced Texasware melamine dinnerware among other plastics.  "Gary Joy's" grandfather started the company, but dad also worked there, up until he passed in 1983.  The company was since sold but technically heir to the original owners, so pardon the reference.

"My grandfather started Plastics Mfg. Co. in Dallas in the late 40s - my father ran the company until his death in 1983. For many years it was the largest manufacturer of melamine dinnerware in the world, as well as the only plastic dinnerware sold at Neiman-Marcus! I worked in the outlet store while in college in the early 70s - Gary Joy "

In simple terms, back in the heydey, PMC was the BIG BOY of dish production. Smaller molders would buy melamine molding powders or melmac formula powders to mold plastic dishes; but not PMC! They were making their own powders and dishes. In technical terms, they were producing laminating paper, laminating resins, melamine moulding compounds, urea molding compound and 135 resin  of production to name a few circa 1979.

I will simply state that this simple story is a great example of America's industrialism and a family run business. Thank you so much for reaching out to me, my readers will love this story.

Pic: By U.S. Air Force [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Gary Joy wrote that it was Granddad who started PMC in the late 1940's .  He had been manufacturing B17 bubbles during the war. We know that WW2 Dated 1939-1945 and in case you are wondering, this would be the gigantic Boeing B17 airplane (see aboved.

When Granddad switched to making tabletops for awhile, and finally mainstreamed into dinnerware, I wonder if perhaps this move would be the most profitable one at the time? Perhaps really, the most historical decision he ever made.   Every time I look at a Texasware dish now, I will wonder what possessed a man who was molding aircraft parts and laminated tables to dabble in the dishes?

The Making of the Texasware Mottled Mixing Bowl

When her father went to work for the Company, he was an innovator and she explains, "He did things other companies could not do. Dad took a bunch of scraps and made the first speckled bowl. He brought it home and Mom thought it was hideous. "

Poof , just like that, a speckled bowl was made.   Isn't that ironic, throwing a bunch of scrap pieces together and making history? Perhaps some of the best creations are made in error, or on the fly.  Texas Ware's mottled mixing bowls have become a collector's dream and I'm very thankful (for once) we have a man who didn't listen to his wife's opinion on style and design. These treasures may have never existed.

But Wait Who Was First?

Back in the day I was in a group of four friends and we vehemently discussed melmac and for the sake of journalism, our big discussion was who was first to market.  In this instance, I think it's important who was BEST to market.  I have seen early examples of Boontonware mixing bowls and later examples of Brookpark mixing bowls (closest in design and confetti mottling to Texasware-see below). Perhaps you will agree PMC / Texasware was known for these bowls.

Even more confusing, I see so many speckled, confetti, or spattered melamine dishes erroneously tagged Texasware, as there is a plethora of people who assume anything with speckles is called Texasware, which it's not.

Now granted, for the sake of unbiased reporting, I can't be certain this was "the holy grail" of speckling, and keep in mind this wasn't uncommon for employees at plastics plants or even companies to make "end of day" dinnerware with left over scraps. I've seen early examples of Beetleware with speckles plus a lot of glittery 50's flexible kitchen plastics.  I've written about Russel Wright's speckled melamine items circa 1953 and Northern Melamine's end of day wares, so we could get all technical on who put the first bit speck or stipple or mottle in the dish or in the plastic,  but we won't go there because who has time for that?

First mottle in plastic? I wouldn't be surprised if a defunct plastic molder made a sewing button and was first to spatter or speckle plastics, out of pure necessity and need for buttons hence, perhaps we will never know.

I'm simply discussing the magnitude of the design impact of Texas Ware Bowls.  So call it what you will, Spatterware , Speckled, Mottled, Confetti, or even Dabbled or Spotted, but you will not find anything as amazing. 

Look for yourself, anything similar to the Texasware in the bowls you see on this Etsy page or just so-so blazay-blazay spatters and speckle?

Above:  Speckled Melmac for sale on Etsy search term : Spatterware+Melmac 

Below we see Brookpark's examples and they look much like Texasware, only different being PMC's design was more footed and thicker on the bottom ridge.   See for yourself and would you agree that these bowls are simply stunning?

Retro Replacements has these for sale, look like TexasWare but they are Brookpark.

Texas Ware Bowl lovely at best.  Note the footed ridge. Found:  @mightyMODERN

Boonton's Mixing Bowl note, this is heavy mottling, most I have seen are less mottled and less prominent. This is a beauty found @PieInSkyVintage

I guess that's more about bowls that you want to know, but as someone famous once said there are no mistakes in life, just happy accidents. 

Thanks for reading!

Part Two Coming Soon   Wait for Part Two, where Gary Joy explains more about the Small Fry Originals...Coming soon....

I encourage sharing of my blog but please note if you wish to reference any part of this article you must adhere to my Content policy. Thanks.

Vintage Color-Flyte Melmac Dinnerware Ads

1950's Ad for Color-Flyte by Branchell was found on Etsy at thevintageshop

Kaye Lamoyne was the designer on Branchell's melamine lines, shown here Color-Flyte and Royale. Both similar in design but different colors kept the lines distinguishable. The ad above shows how you could sign up and get items for only $1!  Below, the elegance of Royale by Branchell is showcased, with the hard-to-find silverware.

Hard to find silverware is shown in this ad on Etsy's thevintageshop.

The Elegance of Branchell! This stack a mixed bag $35 at LisasRetroStyle2

For more information on this company, visit Dennis' great history site here: 

http://www.notagaingraphics.com/Branchell/

Finding Vintage Melmac Melamine EstateSale.Company For Vintage Plastics

 Old magazines found at estate sales have great ads!

Melamc and Melamine , or Vintage Plastics, Where Is the Best Place to Find Them ?

I've taken a few month hiatus from this RetroChalet blog, as I was busy with events this summer, and life in general. I'm baccckkk and will be writing about melmac, melamine and more. Stay tuned! But first to answer a lot of messages I've received. The number one question seems to be how to find collections of melmac, or how to get started.   The best places to find vintage melmac and melamine, besides flea markets and thrift stores, I'm a big advocate on Estate Sales!

 The Thrift Stores Near Me are Getting Pricey, This One: Joppa Road Baltimore.

There is a new website on the web called Estate Sale Company which pulls estate sales from Facebook, Twitter, and the Web that may be in YOUR AREA. What a better place to look for melmac and melamine than there?  Not to mention find a bunch of other great kitchen or decor items to retro-fy your home. Estate sales are fun and a must-do on my weekends off.  You can sometimes put together a whole pile of plastics for a few bucks!

EstateSale.Company is always adding new estate sales, so never know what you will find.  Generally speaking when the amount of "treasure" left from someone's estate is too overwhelming, an estate sale is had.  Sometimes these are had by professional estate companies or individuals.   You can browse their featured Estate Sales to see if find any "kitchenwares" if you are specifically looking for melmac and melamine. For instance, one sale specifically highlights tools, so that's a must have for the vintage tool collector.

 It is possible to find a whole set of melmac dishes cheap at an estate sale.

Plastic at Estate Sales 

You can find some great plastic fantastic finds, from antique plastic scoops, to Bakelite jewelry, TexasWare bowls and melamine dinnerware, to retro plastic toys.  I've seen old rubber mats and dish drains (nabbed a pink one!) also.  I also find that most estate sales seem to price plastics and melamines lower than the pottery, ceramic, and china.  Maybe they consider it junk, I don't know, but that's lucky for us and unlucky for them!

Top Five Places to Score Melmac or Melamine or Vintage Plastics

1. Yard Sales    Items can be found cheap and inexpensively.

2.  Church Bazaars  Home of the 25 cent deals


3. Estate Sales Get a whole box for a few bucks


4. Thrift Stores  Getting Pricey but Still Finds to Be Had


5. Etsy or Ebay or Online Antique Malls  Last resort- Dealers will charge near book value

Note: This Auction Coming up October 4th is Loaded with Plastics and is in NY. 

Go here to find Estate Sales Near You.

Three Years Melmac Central Blogversary

Pic: Plastic Three, at Honey and Bear on Etsy

Hey, I'm three!

Thank you to everyone for three lovely years here at Melmac Central. I really didn't know that so many people would think melmac and melamine would be so very cool and fun when I started writing.  But almost a quarter of a million views later (now approaching 250,000 visitors) three years in your lovely comments and letters and calls about melmac keep me writing.

My mom was 21 when she had me. We spent time baking in the kitchen in our melmac bowls.

This just goes to prove you should start a blog and write about something you love. Writing can really be a stress relief.  Some of you may know I started the blog when my mom was diagnosed with colorectal cancer three years ago, which kept my mind busy to focus on something -- even after I lost her.  I would revisit the blog a few times a month, do some research and post some pictures of things I loved.  I would remember the happy times we were cooking in the kitchen, in her big Texasware melmac bowls. I wrote, and I wrote, and I wrote....and here I am.

So today I just wanted to say thanks for reading. it means a lot to me.  I've answered some of your questions below. I'm working on some great new things for this site including some great interviews and working on a  sister site called the Melmac Encyclopedia where you can find reference material in one place, and even want to have a Melmac Giveaway soon! So, tell your friends and get me over the quarter million mark, so I can keep writing!

In the meantime, enjoy this rainbow of Melmac love,  and read some of my most popular articles.

RED MELAMINE LOVE:

Pic: Etsy, Evergreen Lane See Details Below

These red hot Dallasware place settings were made by the Plastics Manufacturing aka the makers of Texasware. The seller , Evergreen Lane has three piece sets on Etsy for $18.50. Red seems to be one of the harder colors in melmac to find, and it's super cool.

You can read all about Texas Ware Melamine  on my site, or  take the Texas Ware Factory tour here.

Q: How long do your posts take?  Janet - South Carolina

A: Some posts take over an hour if I'm researching, some take days.  This one took almost two hours because I'm doing a lot of links and want to make sure they are right!



ORANGE MELAMINE LOVE:

Pic: Etsy, Peach Parlor see details below.

Peach Parlor Vintage on Etsy has this great Branchell Color-Flyte orangy melamine set for $28! You get the sugar, creamer, salt and pepepr and bowl. The sugar doesn't have a lid but the value is in the sahkers and party bowl alone! What a fun theme for a party. 

You can read all my posts on Color-Flyte and Branchell here. 

Q: Do the people pay you to be featured on your blog for instance the selections and if not how do you select them?   Charlotte - New York

A: No, I find all the items I like myself and add them in. If someone has sponsored my post it's usually a compmany who may compensate me to add in their link, or which I must telll people in the bottom of my post. I select my content based on pictures and rarity of the item and mostly try to support Etsy sellers. This is the way to keep the crap off my blog!

YELLOW MELAMINE LOVE:

Pic: Etsy RetroChalet see below

I usually go for bright yellows but today it's mellow sixties funky yellow by Oneida Deluxe. The sugar and creamer are $12.95 at RetroChalet on Etsy and of coruse I love it because of the I Dream of Jeannie style sugar bowl. It's so retro.

Read all my posts on Oneida here of which primarily I wrote about Kids Oneida dishes, as they were very common, their history and value. 

Q: If you didn't collect Russel Wright Melamine what line would you collect?  April - California

A: Boonton! I just like the fact it was well made, and Jersey is close to Maryland so, you have to stick with the hometown theme...

GREEN MELAMINE LOVE:

Pic: Etsy KitschyVintage See below

I went with dark green pick since KitschyVintage on Etsyhas found the perfect use for this Boontonware melmac bowl. It's a hard to find divided bowl in dark green. Originally these had lids but often were misplaced and hard to find, and for $18 is well worth it!  This particular bowl is from the Boonton Belle line  (designer Belle Kogan) .

Read all about Boonton here.  See Part 2 of My Boontonware Factory Tour. I'm working on moving Part One over soon!

Q: If you didn't collect Russel Wright Melamine what line would you collect?  April - California

A: Boonton! I just like the fact it was well made, and Jersey is close to Maryland so, you have to stick with the hometown theme...


BLUE MELAMINE LOVE: 

Pic: etsy, Peace Traveler see below

For this I had to pick the creation of Peace Traveler. They took an old Prolon Creamer and put a Mustache on it! I know, how cool is that, giving it a cute and hip new look.  Only $6, what a steal. Their shop is super cool, they put mustaches on lots of things.  As for the creamer, this is part of the Prolon Line.

You can read my posts on Prolon here, or read my post about Prolon Lunch Trays.

Q:  How do I clean my Melmac?  Sue Ellen - Idaho 

A:   I wrote a whole article on Cleaning Melmac here on Squidoo.
PURPLE MELAMINE LOVE:

Pic: Etsy, Miss Ruthies see below

Normally the first thing that comes to mind is Royalon melmac as this was very popular Purple colored melmac sold everywhere, but in this case I went with the underdog. Purple in general is hard to find in melamine, and this set at Miss Ruthies on Etsy is the cat's meow.   It is typical California ware, probably made at Pacific Plastics, as you can tell by the cat eye handles. I love this, and finding a set in all purple in a complete set is SUPER RARE. Miss Ruthies has this set priced at $75 and for a collector that's a great set to acquire.

Read about the tour of California Melamine here, or pick a California molder to read more about:  Laguna, Capac, Miramar .



Q: What is my melmac worth ?  Jane - Wisconsin

A: I can't tell you that. Melmac is subjective based on color, condition and manufacture. Truth is I've seen the market go nuts over the past 20 years. There are so many makers, names, brands, and it all comes down to supply and demand. If you search Etsy and Ebay and see a billion cups and saucers just like yours, chances are you aren't going to get top dollar. However you will get a median starting point based on asking prices.  Sometimes I think the value is in the condition and finding the right person who needs those pieces.   Sounds like great subject material for a new post...

Thanks for three great years. 

Melmac Melamine Magazine Issue #1 Is Here and Free!

Click to view Melmac Central: Melamine & Plastic Vol 1 Issue 1 on GLOSSI.COM

Finally, our first Magazine is out published on Glossi, it's free, so click on the link above and go read it!   You should know if you don't  Google Chrome, Safari 5.1+, Firefox 14+, and Internet Explorer 9+ it may not look right, nor will the links work properly. 

If it's viewed properly, you'll be able to click on the links and the product photos that have a price tag on them to find out where to get the latest and greatest items!

Thank you for all the wonderful readers who have written me asking where to get this and where to get that, now you will know!

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!

Kenro Company History Melmac Melamine Fredonia Plastics

The futuristic deisgns of Kenro's holiday , this  set $40 at CalmCoolCollected on Etsy.

Kenro was one of great melamine manufacturers that outlived most. One may argue it was their timing or their keen ways of marketing and management.   I did a lot of research on them because I was in awe that by 1959 they were opening a second location when most plastics companies were lucky to survive.

Lovely Kenro Plates $38 at WanderlustSupplyCo on Etsy!

Kenro was named for it's owners, Kenneth Welch and Roger Sacia   (They took the KEN from Kenneth and RO from Roger to make the name Kenro. ) Their first plant, in Freedonia  Wisconsin at 200 Industrial Drive (Washington County) established in 1953 was turning out 24 hours worth of plastic  products, and 2 million dollars in annual sales by 1958.

An ariel View from Google shows you how large this area was. 

The company was so overwhelmed,a second location in Galesville was in swing by the end of 1958, set to open in February 1959.  By 1959 a lot of earlier plastics companies were on their way out due to rising production costs and a general lack of love for melamine by consumers. Kenro's successful lines were Holiday by Kenro, Debonaire Melmac, and various kitchen plastics.

By 1966, Tom Meisenheimer was the national sales manager for Kenro, and had landed a contract with McDonald's, producing some of their plastic movie plates.  The company continued it's plastics production.  

Eventually there was some unknown merger or affiliation with Brookpark because later information lists Brookpark in 1996-1999 at the same address.Was Kenro molding for Brookpark or what?   To date, the company's building still stands today but is part of the Carlisle Corporation, you know, the ones who make commercial foodservice plates.

Presently, the company still says Kenro Inc and Carlisle on it. Courtesy: Google maps. 

Identifying Kenro items are easy, since most items are clearly marked.  What may be confusing is dating. Some will list patent numbers on them, and some will say patent pending. The patent pending is obviously older and scarcer because the company had applied but a patent was not yet granted for the items.  Later items show the original patent but does not mean they were produced on that date of the patent, but is simply referring to their original patent. You will see script and print backstamps for Kenro.

Identification tip: Backstamps were in Print and Cursive and often contained the
Patent number below or patent pending!  Kenro also made the Debonaire Line!

This funky backstamp looks like an "oops" from BrickFarmhouse on Etsy.

   

 

Print backstamp Courtesy of WanderlustSupplyCo on Etsy!

Debonaire Melmac Line backstamp from Modster Mash on Etsy.

Kenro was making all kinds of plastics for picnic, special order for companies or household use! I just found these adorable squatty cups today I'd never seen in 25 years of collecting. Because of Kenro's production run long you never know what you will find!  Funky!

These cute Kenro cups available at BrickFarmhouse on Etsy!

 What is known is the factory was later merged with Carlisle Corporation ( you know, the ones who make the buffet and commercial dinnerware for Foodservice.) The building still displays Kenro on it today!

Debonaire by Kenro, these at Modster Mash on Etsy.

Not just a pretty name. They were two very smart guys!

What's more, the inventors Kenneth B. Welch (President) and Roger R Sacia (Vice President) decided to patent their technique for METHOD AND COMPOSITION FOR THE PRODUCTION OF SPECKLED PLASTIC WARE on April 6, 1954!  This patent would technically prove them being "first to patent the speckled ware" although they weren't exactly first to invent. 

Most of Kenro's designs were patented.

One could argue from Russel Wright's experimental work in Syracuse, that he was experimenting with gold flecks and speckled wares as early as manufacturing of his Meladur or Prototype test lines, circa 1946-1949. Then enter Residential by Russel wright which was speckled in ways and on the table by the time the Kenro patent went through.  Other makers such as Daileyware or Boonton also had speckled designs.  In fact it's almost certain Boonton was first to the table but the difference here is that the Kenro guys were smart enough to put a patent on it!  Additionally, they held patents in Canada as well.  I have found some Canadian designs that are dead ringers for Kenro.

Kenro Debonaire Tumblers from seller WWBYNIGHT on Ebay

 Stay tuned, because my next post will be all about Kenro's glorious Ice Buckets...............

You May Like: 

All my Kenro posts. 



Check out my latest project,  Design-Swag website for keeping me motivated!

Looking for space on my sidebar? Click below

Laureline by Belle Kogan for Boonton Boontonware

Plastic tumblers from Etsy are unmarked and  probably resemble Laureline, these available at the DaileyShopper

Laureline By Boonton
I had a reader write in to me about a drinking glass he had growing up with the inscription, "Laureline.". I had never seen that before per se on a plastic cup, but I did a little research and found this was a Belle Kogan design introduced by Boonton in 1956.   This came from the book, "China and Glass in America."   The earliest reference to the word Laureline being used in the plastic industry was 1952 in a Hardware Age magazine, but I'm uncertain if this is the same type plastic used in the tumblers.

BooksShop on Etsy has this 61 pc TexasWare set for sale, note the blue plastic "AKA GLASTIC" drinking vessels up top on either side of the top shelf, this is probably what Laureline looked like!

These "plastic drinking vessels" were very similar to the plastic glasses that were crystallized by TexasWare.    Not sure if you remember them from your younger days eating at the Ponderosa or buffet style restaurants, but they were plastic frosted type glasses that I thought were cheesy. I used to call them GLASTIC, a mix of plastic supposed to look like glass.  They often had stress cracks in them and / or chips on the rim. Ewwww.

If you know anything about Laureline, let me know.