Vintage and antique chicks make the most delightful gifts and decor in the springtime.
Just the other day, we both breathed in the delicious smell of spring in the air. We are so ready for it! In New England, this is the time for lambing and a bit later, the hatching of chicks from broody hens. Warmth is particularly important for chicks. When we first moved to our rural town, we got chickens as we had a barn and definitely knew we wanted fresh eggs. We called them “the girls.”
During lockdown covid times, we noticed a surge of people in our area raising chickens for eggs and had great access to those neighborhood egg sellers since we have moved to another house and no longer have a barn or the girls. Fertilized eggs in an incubator or under a broody hen will hatch. The wet chicks that emerge soon fluff up to a cotton candy yellow delight. You just want to hold them and listen to them peep. Soon enough, our local post office will begin receiving crates of live chicks ordered from hatcheries both near and far. The peeping can be heard anywhere in the building.
I am going to share with you some of my favorite vintage and antique chicks for your spring decor or even Easter gifts. Here a chick, there a chick….
Enesco Chickens in Bonnets Salt and Pepper Shakers
I so love anthropomorphic creatures. These two are wearing springtime bonnets and crisp white aprons. I see them as being slightly older chicks and just perfect on a springtime table. Salt and pepper shakers are a great way to spice up your decor. Add them to a mid century Easter table. Start with a vintage tablecloth and create a fun and sweet tableau of colored eggs in baskets, handmade place markers with chick or rabbit stickers. I also like the idea of a group of mismatched candlesticks of various heights topped with decorated wood or paper eggs with a bit of tape underneath to keep them from falling.
These sweeties are priced at $24.64 by BygoneAllure on Etsy.
Norcrest Chicks and Egg Planter
Two sweet chicks are perched on the edge of a blue flower decorated eggshell. This planter can also be used with some florist’s foam for a flower arrangement. What about filling it with foil covered chocolate eggs or jelly beans? Norcrest designs are sweet and a little funny and can melt your heart. This also can be used as a baby shower cake topper at this time of year or a one-year-old twins’ birthday cake.
This delightful ceramic is available for $88 on Etsy in the shop owned by VirginiaVintageLaura.
Rosenthal Egg Cup
Rosenthal is known for its amazing porcelain. Located in Selb, Bavaria, it has been in business since 1879. I really admired the fact that they had an art department that encouraged different designers to create items that they added to their catalog. This was called the Studio Line.
I think this egg cup deserves an artsy egg in it. You could go and buy an egg already painted or you can get a wooden egg and do it yourself. One simple idea is to take one white wooden egg, write the year on it and have your Easter guests sign it. If the nostalgia of this appeals, do it each year with a different colored wood egg and start a family collection to become a future heirloom.
This oh-so Avant Garde Henry egg cup is in the shop, BaublesAndBlings for $45 on Etsy.
Anthropomorphic Easter Chicks Prints, An Even Dozen
Of course, they come in a dozen as that is the unit eggs are sold in! Three groups of adorable chicks in the most amazing and hilarious activities. The largest group is chicks as performers in the circus. The next group is a chick couple trying to cook food for their baby chicks. The last two prints are chicks in business in an old-fashioned store selling, wait for it….eggs! These are from circa 1895 postcard studies and will look great framed or for use in crafts.
You can get them for $15.99 on Etsy from the shop at VictorianRosePrints.
Dresden Easter Egg Candy Container
This antique egg, made of steamed and compressed pasteboard covered with gold lithographed paper, is from the 1920s or even perhaps older. What a special treat for the lucky child who received it. It may have held confections and perhaps even a small toy. This one shows two chicks with two rabbits and two colorful eggs, all symbols of spring and Easter. They were so beautiful they were cherished long after the contents were eaten. Each year I imagine they were displayed and new ones would be added to their numbers.
This beauty has been sold just recently from NJNancysAntiques for $35. Keep your eyes open for these if you like them as much as I do.
Here are a couple of vintage and antique chick things from my shop…
Antique German litho-printed die cuts. There are reproductions but this is the real deal for those who are purists. Hilarious anthropomorphic chicks playing instruments, gardening and celebrating Spring and Easter in kitschy cute 1930s ways! There are 14 chicks depicted in 12 scrap pieces.
This tile from David Gil’s Bennington Pottery is charming, speaking of spring, Easter and the warmth that chicks need to thrive. The incised lines are enhanced with black and the blue eyes of the chicks add a surprising kiss of color.
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