Nesco canisters seen on eBay recently
The above set of three metal kitchen canisters are in the same design as those seen in Lucy Ricardo’s kitchen however the canister set seen in the b/w screen capture from the show below appear to be a darker color than the white ones seen here. Lucy’s kitchen had a set of four canisters and a matching square bread box all with the the same floral motif.
Read more about the original Nesco design in this post.
This is a rare Olde Thompson cruet. It is the same make and shape as the one in Lucy Ricardo’s kitchen but it is painted differently. Lucy’s had an ivy motif. This one has vegetables but is otherwise a good match for the one on the show.
Recently seen on eBay are these Plas-tex red shakers like the pair seen in the screen shot above from the I Love Lucy kitchen. Lucy’s are salt and pepper shakers. The pair seen below are labeled Flour and Sugar but the are otherwise similar. Click picture below for further details on eBay.
Here is a vintage Olde Thompson Ivy ceramic piece, possibly a planter pot or kitchen container of some sort, from the same collection as the ivy cruet set in Lucy Ricardo’s kitchen. It has the original Olde Thompson sticker still on the base and is approx 4″ by 6″ in size.
In a previous post we looked at Lucy Ricardo’s nautical style wall lamp in the kitchen. This time we take a closer look at the lamp shade. It is rare to get a close look at the design in the on screen scenes but the picture above gives an idea what to look for. The shade is a clip-on shade made of paper with a novelty printed nautical theme.
I found a few examples in different colorways so we can try to guess which color might have been used in the kitchen. The first one below is a blue version, followed by the same pattern in orange and lastly a green one.
The green is certainly a possible choice for the show since we know that the color green is used on several other items in the kitchen – such as the ivy patterned dinnerware and the ivy cruet on the wall rack beneath the lamp. Green elements set off Lucille Ball’s hair color for the studio audience. The orange would also be possble as a compliment to the greens. Perhaps the blue one is the least likely as it would have clashed with the green of the cruet below it.
The shade is a clip-on novelty print paper shade – similar vintage shades can be found on eBay.com that date to the 40’s and 50’s.
Here is a link I use to search for similar shades:
This is similar to a Walter Starnes ivy cruet we looked at in an earlier post, It is similar to the Olde Thomson cruet seen on I Love Lucy except the ivy is on the sides and not on the front.
See it on eBay HERE
Previously we looked at evidence of a dulling substance in use on on one of the mantel statues on I Love lucy. An anti-reflective coating is used when needed to reduce glare for the cameras. Above on the left is a instance from Little Ricky Learns to Play Drums where the cream colored Olde Thompson ivy cruet has been darkened sufficiently to appear gray in tone. The picture to the right is from an earlier episode where the same cruet appears lighter.
Here is an example of the same make Olde Thompson cruet in its original state.
A shabby vintage B.O Garantie coffee grinder is restored to resemble the coffee grinder seen in the I Love lucy Kitchen.
The unrestored grinder seen above on the right is compared to a vintage unmarked coffee grinder that matches the one seen on I Love Lucy.
Following are the before and after photos of the restoration.
As seen in the before and after pictures the shabby metal components are shining again and new paintwork seals off the old surface and gives it new life. As a final touch an ivy motif is hand painted on the front – inspired by the original coffee grinder as seen on I Love Lucy.
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On ebay this week there is a B.O. Garantie coffe grinder (CLICK HERE to see it on eBay) that could be restored to look like the coffee grinder on I Love Lucy which we looked at in a previous post The B.O. Garantie grinder is the only other one I have seen that exactly matches the shape of the coffee grinder on the I Love Lucy show as seen below in a previous side by side comparison.
It would need to be stripped and repainted /varnished and an ivy leaf decal painted/applied to the front to get the same look as the one on the show. See previous post for more details:
http://www.50slucy.com/lucy-ricardos-coffee-grinder.html
Lucy’s pair of Victorian style toleware tea tins can be seen on the kitchen window ledge in her Early American Connecticut home. They are cylindrical tin tole painted tea caddys. Shabby antique tea tins can still be found in the characteristic toleware hand painted style on black laquered tin. Lucy’s set are quite shabby and are in keeping with the Early American style of the Ricardo’s new home in the country.
