Ho Ho Ho-Vintage mid-century Holt Howard Christmas ceramic giftware is highly sought-after today! Some ceramic pieces selling for over $400!
Where did the Holt-Howard label come from?
The Holt-Howard Company was started during the mid-century by two brothers-John and Robert Howard- and a college friend, A. Grant Holt. Together the trio put together their talents and savvy business skills into creating a whimsical line of household ceramic giftware. It was Robert (Bob) Howard, who designed the sketches for those cute, animated faces and atomic shapes for the ceramicware pieces.
The Holt-Howard Company of N.Y and Connecticut featured ceramic household, decorative pieces, which saw their heyday years during the ’50s and ’60s. They sold their merchandise through specialty gift shops, major department stores and through their own catalogs. Some of their wares included condiment jars and salt and pepper shakers, ashtrays, cookie jars, spice sets, bud vases, and planters; serving pieces for the kitchen table, string holders, and decorative home giftware
Some of their most popular and collectible lines were: Pixieware (1958-1962) featuring pixie-head tableware, Cozy Cats, Dandy-Lion, Merry Mouse, Red Rooster (“Coq Rouge” dinnerware), and Christmas Collectibles.
Holt-Howard Christmas Line Giftware
Holt-Howard introduced their Christmas Collectible line during the mid-1950s. Each Holt-Howard piece will be labeled or identified on their bottom, with an “HH” logo stamp and the date the item was created in black ink. Some pieces also came with foiled label sticker since they were too small for stamp information. The sticker will read “Holt Howard” and the year it was made. Additionally, “Japan” for pieces manufactured abroad.
The Christmas line of table accessories, which featured iconic Atomic Age images and shapes, such as found in this starry-eyed Santa pouring pitcher, can sell for over $200 online.
Here is a vintage 1950’s “Winking Santa” pitcher and mugs valued at over $250.
This Holt-Howard Christmas piece is called “Santa’s North Pole Express” selling price in excellent condition is over $300.
Extremely hard-to-find Holt-Howard “Santa King Cocktail Shaker-mixer” with matching cups is selling currently for over $400.
Even the whimsical salt and pepper shakers can sell for over $125 a set.
The Holt-Howard Company created over 1000 different pieces; some pieces are more valuable than others. Rarity and condition will play a huge part in their values.
Heads up! Watch out for reproductions. There are helpful articles online to help you identify reproductions or copies of Holt-Howard ceramicware.
Whether you collect these adorable vintage Holt Howard kitschy, ceramic wares for nostalgic keepsakes, or to resell, their popular will be around for years to come.
“Happy Treasure Hunting!”
“It’s beginning to look a lot like cocktails, everywhere I go….”
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