I love a great story.  And, I love to share them.  I’ve been around the block for 57 years so I have many of them.  Yesterday I shared a small little antique haul that we found this past week.  It included a yellow ware lid to something. I’m not sure if it’s old or new but whatever it is, I loved it.  Since I have a huge collection of yellow ware bowls, I figured that it would fit one of them.  And, let’s face it.  If I was looking for a lid, I would never find one.  I paid only $6 so it was definitely worth it.  While I was sharing my haul over on social media stories, I shared my collection of yellow ware bowls and I had a lot of messages saying they really hearing about it.  I realized I have never shared the story behind my yellow ware collection here on my website.  

I have several posts that I have shared throughout the years about the story behind certain items.  And, since we decorate with mainly antiques, there is always a story.  We have had some of these pieces for years!

The Story Behind our Yellow Ware Bowl Collection

As you can see, I have a pretty large collection of yellow ware bowls.  They range from really old ones with a lot of crazing to some with pretty large chips.  None of that matters to me.  I may have some that are in excellent condition but I don’t like them any better.  I actually think the crazing and chips make them look more interesting.  Who actually used them in the past years?  Was it a family with lots of children?  Was it a woman who got a brand new set of mixing bowls that she used her entire life?  I’m sure there are so many possibilities and so many stories behind these antique bowls.

My very first piece was bought at an auction.  It was a consignment auction that took place every single Friday evening about 20 minutes from the first house I owned.  That auction was truly the best entertainment.  I would stop by on the way home from work to see if there was anything that I “needed.”  It is where I found my first piece of yellow ware.  It was a really small one.  And, I remember thinking how beautiful the crazing was and how cute it would be within my decor.   And how it would match all of my other antiques.  I sat at that auction for HOURS nearly every Friday night just waiting on that ONE piece that I MAY be able to get for a few dollars.  It was where I first learned to bid on items myself.  It was my all-time favorite thing to do on a Friday night.  And then I would spend Saturday decorating my home with the items I found.

The Popularity of Yellow Ware

Back in the 90s, yellow ware was so popular that the prices of them went skyrocketing.  I remember buying lots of my first pieces for $1-$10.  And, then you couldn’t touch them for under $50.  They started making reproduction pieces around that time.  I do have a few that I use almost daily that I keep under the kitchen island.  I do not, however, use the antique pieces for food, but rather for other smaller collections, Christmas trees, etc. 

The yellow color of yellow ware pieces range from buff to a darker gold.  And the stripes are creamy white, blues, and browns.  They also made them with without the stripes and added a simple print.  I have a few of those, as well.  I have found lots of my pieces at garage sales, flea markets, auctions, Etsy, and eBay.  In fact, I still look on Etsy and eBay because you can find them at great prices every now and then.  Check them out as they have a huge assortment.

As you can see, I don’t collect any particular color.  If it’s yellow ware, I love it.  If it’s yellow ware at a great price, I add it to my collection.  Also…I know the lid that I found at the antique store a few days back doesn’t exactly fit on this bowl, but I think it looks perfect for it. 

Do you have any pieces?  They are fun to collect!

This pine hutch was a STEAL.  I shared that here.