Do you ever think about the things that were common to you that you would have to explain to a teenager or younger human today? The little rotary dial telephone charm in this week’s fresh to market vintage is definitely one of those things. There are still houses with rotary phones, but not everyone has an opportunity to see one. There are some kids who have never had a landline, let alone a rotary phone. They never had to sit on the kitchen stool to talk to their friends from the wall mounted phone with the extra long curly cord connecting the phone unit to the receiver.
Don’t get us wrong. You would have to pry our smart phone from our tentacles. But there’s something a little sad knowing generations going forward will never live the dream of having a pink princess phone in their room. Or know the acute jealousy of having a bestie who has one when you don’t. But they will dream of other things, because that is how the world works.
And now on to the fresh to market picks, because that is how our Sunday post works.
14k Telephone “I Love You” Charm
Charm bracelets have come back in style. I’ve seen lots of vintage ones filled with charms collected over time by the original owners. Rather than wearing someone else’s collection, perhaps start one of your own with charms that have meaning just for you. Do you know someone who might appreciate this vintage telephone charm that spells out “I love you” inside the dial? If your love would prefer, it would look just as lovely as a pendant.
14K Gold “I Love You” Telephone Charm, $210.00
Pam, Vintage Renude
Decorative Pewter Pitcher w/Acorn Top (c 1960s)
Offering a decorative vintage metal pitcher trimmed in brass and topped with a stylized acorn stopper. Marked “Made in Hong Kong” on the bottom, which indicates it was made for export after 1891. I purchased it in 1971 when we lived on Guam, so I believe it dates to the 1950s or 60s. I spent a bit of time trying to figure out what metal it is made of. Beyond the obvious (is it magnetic?), it’s not that easy to know for sure, but based on this article by Crystal Vogt written for Hunker, my money is on pewter. If anyone thinks differently, please let me know.
Vintage Metal Pitcher, $ 45
Linda, Shop
1960s Welch’s Jelly Flintstones Glasses
Welch’s Jelly jar printed glassware has a special place in my heart. I thought it was magical that when you finished your glass of Tang or Nestle’s Quik (now called Nesquik), you were rewarded with the face of one of the characters from the featured cartoon on the bottom of the glass. At our house, we had Flintstones and Archies, two of the twelve cartoon shows that were featured between the 1950s and 2000.
I chose a pair of Flintstone’s glasses to feature in the weekly Sunday post earlier this year, so I was hesitant to feature another pair, but these two are in the best condition I have ever seen Welch’s glasses in. No hazing or fading from the dishwasher, no spoon marks inside. They are borderline unicorns status.
From a practical perspective, Welch’s glasses are a useful size. I use my Archies glass for washing down my morning meds. It’s the perfect size for that, or for a quick swig of something.
Pair of 1960s Welch’s Flintstones Glasses, $18.
Laurie, NextStage Vintage
Metal Litho New Year’s Noisemakers
Metal litho noisemakers for New Year’s Eve are a vintage essential. Whether they shake, ratchet, toot or clang, they make enough of a racket to chase out any bad vibes from the previous year and welcome in good vibes for the upcoming year.
The heyday of metal litho noisemakers was from the 1940s through the 1960s. Most are tin or tin plate under the litho paint. A major maker was the U.S. Metal Toy Mfg. Co. of Brooklyn, NY. Other big name companies include the Kirchoff Patent Co. of Newark, NJ, Milton Bradley of Springfield, MA and the T. Cohn Co., also from Brooklyn.
This collection of five spinners that ratchet and one shaker are the very essence of New Year’s Eve with their colorful graphics that are a celebration in and of themselves.
Six 1950s-1960s Metal Litho Noisemakers , $36
Available from this week’s guest Linda, Bloom Again Vintage
The next time you’re reading this weekly post, it will be 2026. How did that happen? Did we sleep through August or September by accident?
You may be looking at your list of things you wanted to accomplish this year, and may have a few that need to be bumped ahead to the new year. One thing that’s definitely on your list and will only take a second to do is to subscribe to our email newsletter. You get one email a week with links to all our posts. And we would sooner watch yet another Three Stooges marathon on New Year’s Eve than ever share your info. (Yes, we know that the Three Stooges are important in the history of comedy and important to many people and this may be the most controversial stand we have ever taken on this blog, but we were not born with the genes that allow us to watch without rolling our eyes. We said what we said.)
