Advertising Miniatures -Part 3

part 1 part 2

by Mary Dessoie

In addition, a number of butter pats have been made with big, gaudy railroad logos applied to bone white china stock. Sometimes additional striping or ornamentation has been added. Among the railroads represented are the Pennsylvania, Chicago & Northwestern, Santa Fe, Southern Pacific, Missouri-Kansas-Texas, Missouri Pacific, Union Pacific and New York Central. These have mostly been made in Taiwan, although there are reports of domestic production by certain nefarious individuals.

All of these look more like souvenirs than commercial-grade china but may fool a novice. Some have crackle glazing to make them appear old -- a common "faux-antique" technique. The savvy shopper should avoid purchasing these fake items. They diminish the value and beauty of the authentic items in an advertising butter pat collection.

Display Ideas

Advertising butter pats make a most unusual decorating statement. Collectors admire the clean, crisp and glossy look of these attractive pieces. For some people advertising butter pats are viewed as a kind of mid-20th century art. When grouped together these tiny works of art make a stunning display. Most of us cannot afford a Van Gogh or a Matisse but we can all afford to splurge on a little gem made by Wallace or Salem China.

Many of the members of the Butter Pat Patter Association, America’s only club for collectors of butter pats, have designed interesting ways to incorporate advertising butter pats into their home décor. Cynthia in California related how her husband crafted a butter pat breakfast bar for her collection of diner pats. The top of the bar is glass. When closed the couple can eat at the bar and/or just relax and gaze at the colorful assortment of advertising pats. To complete the vintage look, the bar stools are 1950's retro style.

Butter Pat Patter Association member Barbara in New York State remarks, "In an effort to display as many advertising butter pats as I can, I attach them to my kitchen soffit with Velcro. Yes, it is a maintenance problem and I do change them at least once a year so that I have an opportunity to enjoy more of the collection. It is important to use Velcro glue to adhere them as other kinds of glues give way, pulling the Velcro right off the wall."

One collector recently sent me a photo of her advertising butter pat collection, which she had used to outline the soaring palladium windows in her kitchen.

Where to Find Them

Antique shops and malls, flea markets, auctions and internet sites are the logical places to locate advertising butter pats. But have you ever considered digging for them?

Recently I received a letter from Slim who comes up big when he digs for the diminutive treasures. Slim wrote, "I dig for the restaurant and diner pats about 20 miles south of Chicago. I have dug there since 1974 and collect Chicago creamers myself. The place I dig is a forest preserve. It was a hog farm between 1927 and 1959. The idea that it didn’t matter what they fed these hogs was at work here. The hogs were raised for a gland that a medicine was made from. The farm owner worked a deal with the owners of the hotels and restaurants to take away the garbage at half what an in-town refuse company would charge. He would in turn feed the scraps to the hogs. Mixed in by sloppy and rushed help would be unbroken creamers, butter pats, etc. I started digging there when I was ten and this type of item was still considered garbage!"

Now if I could only get Slim to give me specific driving directions to this site! Cont'd