Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Bringing Out Memories of My First Dishes

These were the first dishes I had as a new bride in 1960; Fire King Jadite restaurant ware. They were a shower gift from my Aunt Hazel, and I'm pretty sure she took these from her own kitchen.

This line of dinnerware was produced by the Anchor Hocking Company and was used sometimes as a promotional item at gas stations, grocery stores, and small pieces were included in boxes of oatmeal, etc. They carry the mark of Oven Ware on the back.

The pieces were also used in schools and restaurants because of their durability. My plates are called grill plates because of the division in them. They measure 9 1/2 inches across, small in comparison to most plates today (used back in the day before food had to be served in super-sized portions). The mugs are short and heavy; I have all six of them, in perfect condition. The plates have some crazing in the large area. Three were broken, since these were used every day for some years, but I found two in a flea market and paid $2.00 for each since they weren't in perfect condition either.

So, I'll leave out a couple of place settings just for their beauty to be enjoyed, and to remember that they held the first ever-so-humble meals I prepared as a new bride.


Do you have pieces of Fire King dinnerware? Or maybe you might have other dinnerware you had as a new bride? Please share it with us.


I wanted to provide more information on this line of glassware, but Wikipedia is blacked out today. If you're interested perhaps you can find something else on Google.
Charlotte








13 comments:

  1. Those dishes are a treasure.. I haven't seen any of them around in a long time.. I've still got some of my first ones, but we don't use them anymore.. Susie

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  2. Oh, my goodness!!! Fire King in restaurant ware. I have a few pieces that I have had to pay dearly for over the years. We had all kinds of it when I was growing up but none were left by the time I wanted dishes. I love yours. Thanks for sharing.

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  3. How wonderful that you still have your first set of dishes. A wonderful treasure.

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  4. As a child, I loved eating from a divided plate so a serving of one thing didn't touch another. You have really dressed up your table with the old dishes and the beautiful table topper.

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  5. I love the charm of your vintage dinnerware. Yours is amazing. It's wonderful that you have the whole set. I'm impressed. At this moment I can't even remember our first dinnerware. lol But happily I have a deviled egg tray, iron skillets and a few other miscellaneous items from the beginning of my martial bliss.
    Great post of lovely memories. :)

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  6. Charlotte, I love these dishes - also the small quilted tablecloth.
    I have one that my mother made for me... Also I am a little older then you - no set of dishes but a number of pieces that I used then plus my first cookbook and recipe file.

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  7. Oh, Charlotte~ these are wonderful! I remember these well... I think my mother had a few pieces but not a complete set.
    I still use my "wedding set"~ someone got me a Corelle set of "unbreakables" for my shower. (And I managed to break one... go figure. *hehe*)

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  8. They are so pretty Charlotte (and I love the table runner too!). I don't have my first set of dishes any more but I do have all of the faberware pots given to us as a shower gift and the good china. I use them to this day.

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  9. Now, just today I was wishing I knew the size of the Jade colored dishes I once saw on thepioneerwoman.com! And here you have pictures and the size too! Lucky me!
    We still use the silverware my mother gave us for my wedding, it will be 34 years (7 children) in May. It's just a stainless steel set, but we both love the feel of it.

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  10. A lovely gift it is and beautifully displayed.

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  11. I love Jadite! Those are beautiful. Well, I still use my dishes that I had as a bride (1978). I had a ceder chest that I bought at a yard sale and I filled it with items before I got married. My first dishes were Corelle, so they aren't very collectible, but they are durable, because I still use them. That shows you how much I change things around here. I guess I'm of the old guard where if it is still good, you don't need a new one.

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  12. I have always loved this kind of dinnerware and how much I loved reading your story about yours! I have only two tea cups and two coffee cups. I love them. What a pretty quilted table topping I see with those dishes! blessings,Kathleen

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  13. So pretty-I love the dishes. My dishes are someone else's first dishes : ) I bought them at a yardsale and the lady told me they were a wedding present for her and her husband back in the 60s.

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