Breakfast with Rodney Kent

I don't want to disappoint you, if you were expecting a tete a tete, but this is not about the "designer". Rodney Kent is a figment of the imagination of Krischer Giftware and not a very creative one at that. They looked out a window and  saw the intersections of Rodney and Kent Streets in Brooklyn and said.... well that works!

If, however, you have been aching to see  some lovely kitchen utility sets or maybe a cruet or two... well then you will be quite satisfied.

Basic Butter

In the beginning there was the basic butter dish, and it was good. Please don't confuse the original with the poor quality 1980s reproduction of this item from Southern Living Magazine. The glassware maker is Federal Glass Company. The number is 470.

This butter dish below is from the late '50s. The glassware is from Fire King. It is number 418

The same lid and glassware but a fancier holder. I believe this is part of a collection of cassarole holders and coasters with the trim that is similar to the handles on this piece. One day I will do a blog on this collection as a unit. Again the era is late '50s. I was outbid on this piece and I don't know what the number is.

This butter dish I can date to 1955 because I have a page from a catalog dated 1955 show this and many other pieces.

Napkin holders.

This holder must have come as part of a set as I have never seen any number for it.

This also shows on the 1955 tear sheet as an individual #

The individual toast holder  #405

Condiment jars

This is the individual condiment jar. It sits in a tulip flower tray and has the clear plastic spoon that sits in the notch in the lid.

Notice the difference between the condiment holder on the left and the drink coaster on the right. There is a depression in the center meant to hold the glass. Krischer was very exact in the indentations that held glassware. Nothing in the line is loose and sliding around. If the glassware that you have with your item does not fit perfectly, then you have a marriage and not the original glassware.

The Mustard and Ketchup set . Note the cute color coded spoons.

So, lo and behold, it was good and what was created was the Breakfast Utility Set #447,  butter, preserves and a place for the napkins.

And then an incredible selection of combinations......

The  Twin Preserve Set -notice that the tray is scalloped on the end similar to the two most popular pieces in the line #404 and #406 - bread trays with and without handles.

also notice the lids on this set. the hammered texture is quite small compared to the  lids on the jars above, which has the same texture as the tray it sits on.

#474

#472

Lazy Susan Breakfast Utility

and its design brother. Do go back as see the jam jar lids in the catalog page. My sample may be a marriage. You can never be sure with Rodney Kent.

 Cruets

and cruets and preserves

And no breakfast would be complete without a cream and sugar set.

#479

Finally we have to serve drinks.

 I wanted to show you the two pitchers in the collection together. #481 is the smaller pitcher, possibly for breakfast. #453 is more if the ice tea size. It seems every company made glasses. The ones in the photo  are unmarked and I really don't know if they belong to Rodney Kent.

Note the ice blockers. #453 has a very fine bar with tulips stamped on it, while #481 uses the wider gros grain ribbon motif of the handle.

 My final comment on this blog is on the regularly asked question... so how much is this worth? The answer is... it depends on where you live. On the east coast, where this product was produced many markets are flooded and the price is low. In the midwest, it is sometimes a bit higher. If you want to figure out how much your piece is worth, look on eBay. A rare piece, or one that was stored in a garage or basement for 60 years may sell for as high as $60 or $70, especially if the original box with the number is with it.  I have several pieces in my collection with the original box and its the only way that I know the identification number. For a common piece that has been used all its life, it might be as little as $6. Many people do not know what they have. I have found things in Butter dish searches or hammered aluminum that never appear in Rodney Kent searches. Whatever you want to sell, show lots of pictures and the Rodney Kent mark. Put the number, if known, in the listing heading. Then hope you catch the eye of the collector, like me, who will pay a premium for a piece they don't have. 

Rodney Kent ... NAKED

All these no stamp items are missing the tulip bouquet on the front. They do have a stamp on the back. It is the KnightHead stamp and the number is distinctly stamped. This is a late 50's or 60's era  item. The Stamp was the last logo used in the line. All the pieces are very heavy metal. All have thick picot edges. None have tulip stamps or handles. Many have a  soup bowl rim.

 

My latest finds in the no stamp category.

 

Number 401 No Stamp

 

402 No Stamp

 

 

 

 

406 No stamp

407 No Stamp

 

 

 

Number 408 No Stamp

 

 

 

 Number 409 No Stamp

 

 

Number 506

This has the weight and size of 406 NoStamp but a new stamp is introduced. It is the Sunflower Motif. I have only seen 1 other piece floating out there. I'm pretty sure there is a full set that goes to at least 509.

 

 

 

 

As the holes for identification  fill up, new ones open. Stay tuned. I just bought a chip dip plate from the No Stamp collection which should arrive any day. If you act fast, #401 is on eBay NOW. Happy hunting.

 

I don't own this one, but this is 503 with the sunflower stamp.

The NO STAMP collection
400
401	12 3/4" Round bowl, soupbowl rim	KNIGHT
402	12 3/4"  round bowl, soupbowl rim	KNIGHT
403
404
405	oval bread tray	KNIGHT
406
407	rectangle bread tray	KNIGHT
408	16" square  tray with  1" rim	KNIGHT
409	16" Diameter Salad bowl with rim	KNIGHT
410
411
412	16 X12 Rectangle tray with 1" rim	KNIGHT
462	charger plates with rim	KNIGHT
463
464	Chip and dip plate	KNIGHT



 

 

This isn't an advertisement but this is what I have found that brings back the polish and shine of Rodney Kent. It is the only thing that consistently works and it may be because the aluminum in Rodney Kent, as maybe with other pieces too, is not pure aluminum but aluminum and magnesium. Used for Mag Wheels and easily fount in the auto department of many stores, it is what I polish my pieces with. I never polish the backs. that way the age shows.

 

Detective work on Rodney Kent, imposter??

I have been really busy this June and didn't get to write. Before I knew it, it was July. Still while I wasn't blogging, I was still collecting.

Item # 1 - Salt shakers

 

I have never seen a table set with salt shakers, so I bid on these because they had such a nice shape and the glass bottoms were in good shape. Probably not Rodney Kent since it is missing all the signs, but they were calling me none the less. Plus, bidding started at $1.00.

 

 

 

Then maybe I am wrong because I came across the above photo 3 years ago and I just saved the photo that the seller had posted since I wasn't sure about the piece. Lo, and behold, there are the salt shakers. The exact salt shakers. So maybe I was right. More research is needed, and if anyone has any input, I'm waiting.

 

I write to sellers on eBay and other sites and ask them about their finds. I meet some interesting people and learn a lot So while my foray into salt shakers with aluminum tops didn't help my detective work a lot, this next conversation did.

  

2. The elusive pitcher - Southern Living or Real RK?

 

 

 

 

While bidding on another piece, I wrote to the seller  about how she knew there was a pitcher in the set she was selling. I have only seen a glass pitcher once in my searches, and I was stupid enough to pass it by. The seller, in turn, miraculously found this photo (see, I am not the only one that clips photos for reference) of what she said was posted as the Southern Living Set. This may have been a promotional set through the magazine Southern Living in their Home section. Now the job is to find out if it was offered at a contemporary time or it is a reproduction. The eBay seller that I have been in correspondence with says that She has had two separate  eBayers tell her this is a reproduction group. The above photo was sent to her with the note that it is a copy of the magazine ad.

 

 

the butter dish that I know is RK

 

the sugar bowl with tray that belongs to the creamer

 Another view of the sugar bowl

 

the case for the divided square glass holder

 

the sugar and the square glass sugar packet holder or maybe tea bag holder. I don't want to discriminate against tea drinkers..

 

So the creamer is square shaped with a pressed pattern in the glass like the triple rib shown in all the RK pieces. And it sits on a tray. As for the divided glass piece, it could have been to hold sugar packets.  But I have always had issues with these pieces. I thought that the quality was just deteriorating. The butter dish is a staple in the Rodney Kent line and was used with various sets. Most butter dishes with older sets ( and I have some still in their original boxes), had good quality stamping and a picot edge on the lid. The trays of one of the stand alone dishes was stamped 470. These  poorly stamped butter dishes have no stamp. The metal is thinner. The picot edge is barely there. I still would like to get my hands on the pitcher. The idea that this may have been a promo or reproduction piece from Southern Living magazine, which I understand is no longer in print, could possibly explain the piece below.

 

 

These two jars have the recognizable mini tulip lid finial of the RK line, but nothing else about them seems correct. All the little jars by Kriescher are globe-like and small jars like this, often meant for condiments had notches cut in the lid to allow for a spoon. The ribbing on the glass has always been the triple rib design, not this equal all over rib. Lastly, the hammered stamping quality never showed the circular machine head in the stamping. The idea that this is a reproduction makes a lot of sense. Pretty as they are, they probably don't merit being included in the collection list.

 

Now I will have to review my whole collection again and see if any other pieces show the  issues of these four pieces or if these indeed are reproductions as some claim. Any input or dates would be appreciated.