Copper is back! It has always been timeless, beautiful and stylish, but copper has definitely grown in popularity lately as a home accent color for the way that it brings a pop of warmth and beauty to any tint, tone or hue that you pair it with. Check out how well it goes with brass and pastels! Lots of homeowners are selecting copper finishes for their kitchen sinks and faucets, bath fixtures, cookware or dishes and home décor items too. And with the resurgence in popularity of the Moscow Mule cocktail, bars and restaurants are now fully stocked with copper mugs as well! My husband and I love using copper mugs at home for all kinds of drinks since it keeps them cooler longer (though I don’t recommend drinking hot drinks out of a copper mug since the metal may get WAY too hot to touch!)
Aside from the classic Moscow Mule recipe that consists of vodka, lime, ginger beer and mint, try out these delicious recipes from Sweet Simple Vegan for an Autumn Apple Cider Moscow Mule (hello, fall!) and Veggie Desserts for a Carrot Moscow Mule (that's basically like drinking a salad, right?)
You can't talk about vintage copper décor without mentioning Coppercraft though! Coppercraft Guild of Taunton, Massachusetts is one of the most popular and well-known copper companies, especially because their vintage pieces are known to pop up anywhere and everywhere and are a favorite of vintage collectors.
The Coppercraft Guild sticker label. Pieces can either have the sticker label, the logo etched into the base or in some cases might not have any labeling at all.
CG made a huge variety of items, including cookware, planters, wall art, moulds, jewelry, men’s accessories, barware and other home décor items. If you own a vintage copper piece, there’s a huge chance that it could be a Coppercraft! Aside from their beauty and durability, one of the main reasons why so many people collect items from this company is because Coppercraft Guild had a special processing step that allows the pieces to keep their shiny finish and not tarnish. This has made a lot of the vintage pieces still appear as if they’re brand new even though they’re around 40 years old!
A set of roly poly drinking cups.
A copper and brass watering can and a copper planter with cute little brass feet!
An assortment of other Coppercraft items, including vases, drink pitchers, serving trays, candleholders, dinner bells, planters and tea kettles.
In my research into this company there seems to be a lot of differing information on the dates that the company was in business, but it looks like they were started in 1949 and over the years that they were in business they were associated with and/or were a division or subsidiary of West Bend, Dart Industries, and Armor Bronze & Silver. Something that I didn’t know about Coppercraft that I learned while researching this post is that they were sold at home hostess parties, just like Tupperware products! Who remembers those? Our house was always stocked with different Tupperware products when I was little (I can still remember the large yellow canister that held the kibble for our cat Sanka!). Coppercraft products were toted around in suitcases lined with felt and each item was wrapped in a green bag. Just like Tupperware it was mostly housewives who hosted the parties for friends, family and neighbors and the pieces were all set out and also used as serving pieces for food and drinks for the parties as well. This way the samples could be seen and tested in person and then the party guests could order their own pieces out of a catalog. A lot of people reminisce about the cherries jubilee dessert that was made and served out of the Coppercraft chafing dish that capped off the party and was the highlight of the sales pitch! Here’s a vintage ad for Coppercraft Guild:
Coppercraft Guild ad photo courtesy of sheilazellerinteriors.com.
The text reads: "We need each other. We are looking for people like yourself to represent an established company selling a prestigious product through party plan sales. We feel Coppercraft Guild of Canada offers the most complete product line of solid copper and home accessories sold in Canada. Plus a hostess plan and recommendation program that is second to none in direct sales today. And we care. We care about each of our people the way any close family does about each of its members."
And here's a little booklet that came with the original pieces and detailed some of the care instructions:
Unfortunately the company closed its doors sometime in the late 70’s or early 80’s, and it’s rumored that this is because of a falling out between the two original founders. Whatever the case is, these gorgeous pieces continue to pop up and make great accents to any style of home décor!
Click here to view all Coppercraft Guild and all other copper items currently for sale! You can also click here to shop all copper dollhouse miniatures as well.
Do you have any Coppercraft Guild items in your home? Which ones? What about your moms or grandmas? Did anyone sell Coppercraft or know anyone who did? Share your experiences in the comments!
(Please note that email addresses submitted in order to leave a comment are kept private and are not shown to the public.)
All imaging and written copy on this site is original and the protected property of The Mustard Dandelion™ brand. Image sources for the Moscow Mule recipes are the 'Sweet Simple Vegan' and 'Veggie Desserts' blogs.
Copyright © 2022 The Mustard Dandelion™
I enjoy using and displaying my items. My Aunt use to sell Coppercraft. When my grandmother died I got a few pieces.
I had a lot of the old Coppercraft products. Absolutely loved them. So warm looking. Sad the parties are no more but hopefully will be getting some new things…
Coppercraft Guild was a wonderful company to work for. I started as a Counselor in Kentucky in 1975 showing the beautiful products against velvet by candlelight, using the copper candlesticks. I earned a Convention/trip for my husband and I in 1976 to Costa del Sol, the Spanish Riviera. There were over 500 of us there. I progressed to District Manager and trained new Counselors. I drove a brand new copper colored 1977 Ford Ltd II. I did all of this while staying home days raising my four children. My husband took care of them evenings while I did my 5 shows a week. I earned additional trips, London 1977 over 700 earned that. Hawaii almost 1000 earned that and San Francisco (with a side trip to San Diego and lunch in Tijuana). I drove another new company 1979 Ford Fairmont until 1980. I then dropped back from Management. The Company slowly declined in the early 1980’s. It was sad to see it go.
It provided a beautiful product to enhance people’s homes. It also provided additional income for stay-at-home moms. I remember one of my recruits being so excited. She earned enough extra money to buy her husband a new garage door. Back then the majority of women stayed at home. Coppercraft opened a new and exciting world for us.
I sold Coppercraft around 1973 – 1974 in Kansas City, MO. Parties became more difficult to book because of the economy downturn. I finally stopped selling when my manager pushed for sales and my comment was "if I can’t afford food, why would I purchase Coppercraft ".
I still have many pieces packed away and would love to sell because of a pending move.