In the above picture from the I Love Lucy kitchen we see a Swedish style coffee pot by Svensk on the top of the fridge. This type of antique three legged goose neck kettle (sometimes described as a Turkish coffee pot, chocolate pot or teapot) is usually made of copper so it adds a nostalgic traditional touch to the kitchen decor.
I see a nice “Swedish Hand Hammered Vintage Arts and Crafts” one on Etsy this week HERE and another one on eBay pictured below:
Copper Swedish Coffee Pot Kettle seen on eBay
The handle is hollow to hold a long wooden stick to be used when placing it over a hot fire without getting too close to the heat. Some people like the vintage patina on copper but you can bring back the shine by rubbng the copper with with a paste of vinegar and salt, or instead lemon juice and baking soda, or some use tomato ketchup. Click Here to see it on eBay or Click Here to Search for similar listings on eBay. Lucy’s copper kettle appears to be about 8″- 9″ tall when compared to the height of the breadbox below.
Square Plastic Cookie Canister in I Love Lucy kitchen “Charm School” episode.
See it on eBay
This red and white Luster Ware plastic cookie canister looks like the one in Lucy’s kitchen, however the one on the show appears to have a handle on top more like the Burrite canisters in yellow pictured below.
Lustro Ware ad from 1954 5-pc Starter Set priced $9.95
See it on eBay
Burroughs Mfg., Burrite, Yellow Plastic Canisters
Lucy Ricardo’s coffee grinder can be seen in various locations in the kitchen throughout the I Love Lucy series. In the early episodes it is easily spotted on the kitchen shelf. Lucy’s coffee mill is a wooden hand cranked grinder with an ivy design on the front. I came across one just like it pictured below. The ivy decal appears to be hand painted. The wooden box has a 4.25″ square base and curved corners and the drawer has a distinctive metal handle, the knob on the crank arm is an inverted teardrop shape. I have searched extensively for an ID of the maker. One would assume this is an ordinary coffee mill much like any other but when you begin searching the subtle differences stand out. Some of the vintage European made wooden coffee mills look similar but only one I have come across matches well.
1950’s Coffee Mill with Ivy decal similar to Lucy’s
The only make I have found up to now that fits the form factor, measurements and shape of the components is the B.O. Garantie square Wooden Coffee Grinder that was made in Czechoslovakia until production ceased when the company was taken over by the state in 1950. They may have been imported and sold under a US brand but I have no information on that as yet. Below is a page from a vintage catalog showing some of the products of the B.O. Garantie firm. However I have not seen one with an ivy design in any of the old catalog pages I found online.
B.O. GARANTIE Vintage Catalog page . The Futura model on the top right has a similar shape to Lucy’s coffee grinder.B.O. Garantie Coffee Mill 1940’s
The B.O. Garantie firm has reopened in recent years under the nameLodos and they still produce coffee grinders today.
Vintage shabby B.O. Garantie coffee grinders can occasionally be found online. If you are a DIY enthusiast it should be easy enough to strip the paint from an old shabby one and and restore it to look like Lucy’s coffee grinder. [ For paint removal on any vintage item I recommend a safe paint stripper that can render inert any leaded paint layers for safe disposal (Lead Out™ Paint Stripper is highly recommended ).] Look for one that has no dovetail on the front seams, which you can tell by the vertical straight lines that appear on each side through the worn paint as seen in the picture to the right. (if it were dovetailed the square shapes would be seen). To restore the metal parts see the handy link below in the reference section.
Comparison of B.O.Garantie grinder (right) with an unmarked grinder like the one on I Love Lucy(left)
Accent Shaker Set on the Range in the I Love Lucy kitchen
Seen on eBay this week is a vintage Accent third shaker set in original box with leaflet and the plastic rack just like the one we see in Lucy Ricardo’s Kitchen on top of the range. I have seen these before but never with the original leaflet in the box.This is a three shaker set of salt, pepper and Accent Flavor Enhancer. The shakers are large around 4 inches high which made them easy to identify on the set. Click here to see the Accent shaker set on eBay.
1953 Women’s Day Accent Flavor Enhancer Ad
These sets are not made anymore but if you have a vintage set you can buy Accent seasoning on Amazon to put in the Accent third shaker.
Lucille Ball used Accent seasoning in her cooking. In her Goulash Recipe she writes “Salt and Pepper to taste, add Accent“. Home cooks at the time knew what she meant even though the ingredient list did not mention it. Accent Flavor Enhancer contains MSG which is now considered safe to consume in normal amounts, it is widely used in Chinese cooking and many commercial foods including popular brands such as Campbell’s Soups, Doritos and KFC.
Related post: http://www.50slucy.com/lucys-accent-shaker-set.html
Use the Inflation Calculator below to see what Lucy Ricardo would have to pay for her Westinghouse refrigerator, range and vacuum cleaners in today’s money. These are 1951 appliances on sale in 1952 – the regular pre-sale price may have been closer to the 1951 price.
Lucy uses a Westinghouse Waffle Iron on an episode of I Love Lucy
In the I Love Lucy Season 4 episode The Business Manager the show opens with Lucy making waffles for breakfast on her Westinghouse “Grill-n-Waffler” Waffle Iron. Unfortunately these waffles don’t get cooked because Lucy has not been paying the electric bills on time. You may notice the studio audience laughing while Lucy is pouring the waffle batter, but at this point in the story line we don’t yet know the power has been cut – apparently the audience knew the plot, or perhaps this was not the first take . On eBay this week is a Westinghouse Waffle Iron model HW 40-1 pictures below or Click Here to view the listing . I also see a very similar model SGWB-521 with original booklet.
Seen on eBay this week is a cruet set advertised as the set from I Love lucy CLICK HERE to view the listing. There is a cert from a prop house but I don’t know if there is any direct provenance to anyone who can verify the authenticity. I am curious that the funnel is present because I assumed it went missing as the funnel is not seen in several episodes of the show. It appears that ivy leaf pattern on the cruet offered on eBay is not an exact match for the cruet seen in the screen shot above when you compare the placement of the ivy leaf shapes. The cruets were hand painted so no two are exactly alike.
If you read the previous post about the Thompson ivy cruet set you will be aware that similar cruet sets from George S. Thompson of Pasadena, Ca. under the Olde Thompson label can still sometimes turn up on for sale, so you may be able to find an identical one for less if you are patient.
Ivy Cruet set Offered on eBay recently. Photo: eBay
Note: I am not an expert on original props and cannot verify the authenticity of any items claimed to be from the show. As always exercise caution and look for reliable provenance.
Lucy pours Ricky’s morning coffee from her Automatic Percolator
Here is a typical breakfast set with Lucy in her apron pouring coffee for Ricky in a scene that is representative of the typical 50’s housewife, although Lucille Ball with her heavy work schedule had little time for domesticity in her personal life. She is holding an electric coffee percolator, an affordable aluminum model that could be found in an average American home, at a time when the percolator was ubiquitous, well before dip coffee makers came along to dominate the home market. Continue reading Lucy’s Automatic Coffee Percolator→
Lucy’s Pyrex Mixing Bowls were a nesting set in bright colors which we only see in grayscale on the show, but we can see the original colors in the original vintage sets that are still available for collectors. See this set on eBay today:
Vintage set of 4 Pyrex nesting bowls on eBay
Find more like this on eBay
Vintage borosilicate Pryex dishes made by Corning are more heat resistant and shatter proof than present day products bearing the Pyrex label which are made from inferior glass. However they have to be more than 25 years old to be sure they are indeed Corning dishes. (Read more at http://www.snopes.com/food/warnings/pyrex.asp)
Original 1952 Pyrex adLucy and Desi at home in the kitchen – see similar bowl on the left.
Tip for Collectors:
Do not put your vintage Pyrex in the dishwasher.
FAQ for Pyrex collectors at: http://www.pyrexlove.com/faq/
This type of antique three legged goose neck kettle (sometimes described as a Turkish coffee pot, chocolate pot or teapot) is usually made of copper so it adds a nostalgic traditional touch to the kitchen decor.
See it on eBay
See it on eBay
