So You Want To Collect Fiestaware

fiesta rainbow2

You’ve decided to embark on a journey, my friend.

You like the colors. The pretty circle plates. Something about Fiesta calls to you, and I understand. My sister picked up a cobalt disk pitcher and has never looked back. (My mistake was finding the color peacock.)

There are many different ways to go about this.

Do you want to collect just one color? Sure! Do you want to collect all colors of one item? Sure! Do you want to collect whatever catches your fancy? Sure!

There are no rules when it comes to collecting Fiesta. Do whatever your heart desires.

 

I’m here to share a little bit of history about the pieces and the colors, and to give you checklists, because checklists make me happy, and they might make you happy too.

Want to collect by color? Go here for a masterpost of checklists!

Want to collect a specific product in all colors? Go here for a masterpost of checklists!

Want to collect one of the other Fiesta lines, like Amberstone or Ironstone? Go here!

Want to know about the history of colors? Go here for an overview, here for a more in depth look at the vintage colors and here for a closer look at the Post 86 colors.

Want to know more about the products themselves? Go here for vintage products and here for Post 86 products. Want to know about those other Fiesta lines? Go here.

Want a quick vocab lesson? Check this page out!

PS – they’ll be updated as I finish each one!

Product Checklist: 4¾” Fruit Bowl

4 Inch Fruit Bowl
11½” surrounded by 4¾” fruit bowls

Vintage 4¾” Fruit Bowl Collecting List

▢ Original Radioactive Red
▢ Vintage Cobalt Blue
▢ Light Green
▢ Vintage Yellow
▢ Vintage Ivory
▢ Vintage Turquoise
▢ Forest Green
▢ Vintage Rose
▢ Vintage Chartreuse
▢ Gray
▢ Medium Green

Post86 4¾” Fruit Bowl Collecting List

None

Product Spotlight: 4¾” Fruit Bowl

 

Chartruese 4 Fruit
Vintage Chartreuse

This small fruit bowl was originally designed to be a berry bowl.

Turquoise 4 Bowl
Vintage Turquoise

The bowls were hand-jiggered, which means the circles will vary. Also, starting in the 50s the bottom of the bowls were wiped dry instead of being entirely glazed.

You can find these small ‘berry bowls’ in all original eleven colors.

Approximate Dimensions (WxH): 4¾”x1½”
Production: 1937-1959

Product Checklist: 5½” Fruit Bowl

5 Inch Fruit Bowl Ivory

Vintage 5½” Fruit Bowl Collecting List

▢ Original Radioactive Red
▢ Vintage Cobalt Blue
▢ Light Green
▢ Vintage Yellow
▢ Vintage Ivory
▢ Vintage Turquoise
▢ Forest Green
▢ Vintage Rose
▢ Vintage Chartreuse
▢ Gray
▢ Medium Green

Post86 5½” Fruit Bowl Collecting List

None

Product Spotlight: 5½” Fruit Bowl

5 Inch Fruit Bowl
Vintage Yellow

This medium sized fruit bowl was originally thought of as an oatmeal bowl, and was simply labeled as a 5″ bowl when listed in HLC’s price guides.

Rose 5 Inch Bowl
Vintage Rose

This particular shape, with the flared edges, shows up again in the nappy bowls and again in several versions of Post86 bowls.

Forest Green 5 Inch Bowl
Forest Green

You can find the 5 inch bowl in all eleven vintage colors, but medium green is the hardest to find, due to it’s smaller production numbers.

Approximate Dimensions (WxH): 5½”x1¾”
Production: 1936-1969

Product Spotlight: Fruit Bowl 11¾”

11 Fruit Bowl

This dessert bowl was originally thought to be a salad bowl by Frederick Rhead, and to be used with the Kitchen Kraft utensils. Also one of the larger pieces, this bowl doesn’t quite reach it’s official dimension of 11¾” but usually reaches just under 11⅜”.

Turquoise 11 Inch Fruit Bowl

Because the circles on the bottom were hand jiggered, the circle patter vary from even to graduated. All versions have the Fiesta logo. These large bowls are only found in the Original Six colors.

Approximate Dimensions (WxH): 11⅜”x3″
Production: 1937-1946

Product Checklist: Footed Salad Bowl 11″

vintage ivory footed salad bowl

Vintage 11″ Footed Salad Bowl Collecting List

▢ Original Radioactive Red
▢ Vintage Cobalt Blue
▢ Light Green
▢ Vintage Yellow
▢ Vintage Ivory
▢ Vintage Turquoise

Post86 11″ Footed Salad Bowl Collecting List

None

Product Spotlight: Footed Salad Bowl 11″

vintage turquoise footed salad bowl
Vintage Turquoise

This huge salad bowl is one of the largest vintage pieces in the Fiesta line. Originally, the foot was molded separately and connected by hand, but the laborious process was was quickly changed and a mold for the entire bowl was created.

Radioactive Red Footed Salad Bowl
Radioactive Red

This mold was also used for the Tom & Jerry bowl, which is why you see a bowl with the Tom & Jerry decal with the familiar Fiesta mold. Tom & Jerry, while also a name for a mug in the Fiesta line, is a traditional Christmas drink that is similar to eggnog.

Tom and Jerry Bowl
Tom & Jerry Bowl with mugs

The footed salad bowl is a slightly more difficult piece to find, since it was produced in lower numbers than other items, and it’s only found in the original six colors. Red and yellow are the hardest to find.

Approximate Dimensions (WxH): 11⅜”x5½”
Production: 1936-1946

Product Checklist: Dessert Bowl 6″

dessert medium green

Vintage 6″ Dessert Bowl Collecting List

▢ Original Radioactive Red
▢ Vintage Cobalt Blue
▢ Light Green
▢ Vintage Yellow
▢ Vintage Ivory
▢ Vintage Turquoise
▢ Forest Green
▢ Vintage Rose
▢ Vintage Chartreuse
▢ Gray
▢ Medium Green

Post86 Dessert 6″ Bowl Collecting List

None

Product Spotlight: Dessert Bowl 6″

dessert bowl

This six inch bowl was original considered to be a fruit bowl by it’s designer, Frederick Rhead, and some people might call it that, but it’s official designation is a dessert bowl.

yellow dessert bowl

This dessert bowl, retired in late 1960, was the last item to be discontinued from the Fiesta line before Fiesta became Fiesta Ironstone in 1969. Medium green is, of course, the hardest to find, particularly because it was retired one year after medium green was introduced.

 

Approximate Dimensions (WxH): 6¼”x1¼”
Production: 1936-1960