When Heywood-Wakefield set out to reinvent itself in the early 1930s, it did so at a moment when American taste...

Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky was a Russian-born aristocrat, artist, and industrial designer who became one of the most influential figures...

The decline and closure of Heywood-Wakefield Company was not the result of a single bad decision or a sudden collapse....

In its earliest decades, Heywood-Wakefield was defined less by style than by process. Long before the company became known for...

This interview reflects a pivotal moment in mid-century American manufacturing, when long-established companies like Heywood-Wakefield were navigating profound structural change....

This interview from John Heywood in 1989 captures the voices and experiences surrounding the 1956 Heywood-Wakefield strike, a prolonged labor...

Original pattern design featuring a Franciscan El Patio teaset.

Pattern design based off of Red Wing Pottery's Fantasy dinnerware line

Pattern design based off of Vernon Kiln's Young-in-Heart pattern.

Pattern design based off of the Red Wing Pottery Crazy Rhythm dinnerware line.

Pattern design based on Red Wing Pottery's Kermis lunchware pattern.

This fabric design is a modern reinterpretation of Alfred Latour’s “Ribbons” motif, blending his playful approach to form with a...

This fabric design is a modern reinterpretation of Alfred Latour’s "Hearts and Spades," showcasing a bold and dynamic interplay of...

This vibrant fabric design features bold, abstract interpretations of roses. Each bloom is rendered in striking, layered shapes with sharp,...

This fabric design is a reproduction of a striking 1920s French pattern, featuring bold, stylized flowers (eucalpytus?) in warm tones...

This fabric design is a reproduction of a vibrant 1920s French pattern, featuring a dynamic composition of stylized botanical elements....

This fabric design is a reproduction of a bold 1920s French pattern, featuring a rich tapestry of stylized flowers and...

This fabric design is a faithful reproduction of a 1920s French pattern, featuring an arrangement of peaches and flowing foliage...

Here are some additional poster designs using Bauer Pottery.

This is another design from a vintage seafood restaurant matchbook.

This fabric design is based off of a vintage matchbook from a seafood restaurant.

Some of the earliest vector art work I created focused on Pacific Pottery designs. Some of these are adapted from...

Here are a variety of logo designs I created based off of Catalina Island pottery designs. I created these for...

This design was inspired by a 1930s Catalina Island Pottery brochure.

From the Hazel Atlas Sportsman line, this design features the dancing sailors pattern reimagined as a fabric print in alternating...

From the Hazel Atlas Sportsman line, this design features the fish pattern reimagined as a fabric print.

The second of the two Pacific Pottery logo designs features the logo with an outline of the buffet pitcher.

This pattern is a simple pattern repeat of the classic Pacific Pottery logo in dark blue against a white background....

This fabric design is inspired by Metlox’s 1950s Tropicana Pineapple pattern, showcasing a simple yet striking repeat of a single...

This fabric design reimagines Metlox’s iconic 1950s Tropicana fish pattern, featuring three abstract fish forms in a rhythmic, repeating composition....

This design, inspired by Nathalie Du Pasquier's bold and playful aesthetic, features interconnected dots in vibrant blue, orange, and green....

This geometric pattern design, inspired by Nathalie Du Pasquier, features a crisp white background adorned with an intricate interconnected web...

This pattern design, inspired by Ettore Sottsass's "Bacteria," features an intricate black-and-white motif that captures the organic, irregular essence of...

This original pattern design takes inspiration from the bold color palette of Nathalie Du Pasquier's NDP 56 works, featuring a...

This pattern design draws inspiration from Nathalie Du Pasquier's iconic NDP 56 rug, reinterpreting its bold plaid motif. The design...

This pattern design is inspired by Nathalie Du Pasquier's NDP 56 rug, featuring uniform, concentric dots reminiscent of target motifs....

This pattern design is inspired by the whimsical charm of Holt Howard's mid-century Christmas figures, set against a vibrant chartreuse...

This pattern design is inspired by the classic Holt Howard angel candleholders that spell out "NOEL," a beloved mid-century holiday...

This pattern design draws inspiration from the iconic Holt Howard Santa motifs of the 1950s and 1960s, capturing their whimsical...

Holt Howard was a company known for producing ceramics and other decorative items in the mid-20th century. The company was...

This dynamic fabric design captures the spirited energy of the Wild West with a playful mid-century twist. Featuring stylized cowboys...

This fabric design draws inspiration from the clean, graphic aesthetics of 1950s textiles, featuring a repeating pattern of stylized pinecones...

This lively fabric design, originally seen on Heywood-Wakefield Ashcraft furniture, captures the whimsical charm of 1950s textile patterns. Featuring playful...

This fabric design channels the bold, exotic motifs popular in 1950s decor, featuring sleek black panthers poised amidst lush tropical...

This fabric design is a reimagining of a pattern originally featured on a 1950s Ritts Tropitan sectional sofa and also...

This fabric design is inspired by a 1950s aesthetic, featuring a structured arrangement of abstract leaf motifs interspersed with geometric...

This fabric design takes inspiration from a 1950s pattern, showcasing a layered arrangement of hand-drawn leaves with detailed veins and...

This fabric design is a reinterpretation of a classic 1950s aesthetic, featuring an array of stylized leaves in bold shapes...

This design is a lively reinterpretation of mid-century modern abstract patterns, characterized by bold, biomorphic shapes in vibrant red, yellow,...

This fabric design, inspired by folkloric and pastoral themes, captures the essence of rural life with illustrations of people carrying...

Fabric and print designs from my Skeleton Fish series created around 2018.

REVERE COPPER COMPANY, ZEPHYR COCKTAIL SET (1937) William Archibald Welden designed Revere’s Zephyr cocktail shaker. The company produced this shaker...

Don't Shake, Rotate! One of my favorite cocktail shakers is the Kromex Konga. This 11" tall aluminum shaker features two...

In 1928, developer Peter Snyder broke ground on Midwick View Estates, a development project in Monterey Park, Los Angeles. As...

Metlox's "California Pottery" line (sometimes referred to as the 100 Series) has always been a bit of a mystery. Author...

Imagine if you were shopping in downtown Los Angeles in the 1930s and happened to walk by a beautiful display...

The Tudor Tile catalog from 1931 features Tudor in the lobby of the Warner Brothers Theater at 6714 Pacific Boulevard,...

For several years, I ran a California pottery collector group on Facebook. One of our members, the prominent Bauer collector...

Buoyed by the Southern California building boom, Pacific Clay rapidly expanded their production capabilities in the early 1920s, including the...

This scene features a setting of Harry Bird's Tropical Fish dinnerware for Vernon Kilns on the Montecito shape. The table...

Backgammon tables produced by Catalina Island Pottery & Tileworks. Backgammon tiles are 8.5" and come in a variety of colors....

6.5" tea tiles produced by California Faience. Learn more about California Faience here More on California Tile D&M Galleon Tile...

Small D&M Tile table with iron base. Tiles are 6". To learn more about D&M visit the D&M Tile page...

Wooden tile tables featuring 8" D&M Tiles To learn more about D&M visit the D&M Tile page More on California...

California Revival scene featuring San Jose Pottery, Bauer Pottery, D&M Tile and Monterey chair. The San Jose tile featured in...

Marine life themed 13" plates available from both Mexican Arts & Crafts and San Jose Potteries. Check out the San Jose...

This tilework is called “Las Sombras” or The Shadows. Fernando Ramos used this motif in several different tile sizes and patterns.

After the 1940s, Mission Crafts, Ethel Harris’s latest incarnation of San Jose Pottery, produced a series of fruit and flower tiles.

This San Jose tile set, “Tango gitano” (Gypsy tango) is a self-portrait of Carla Montel and Fernando Ramos, San Jose’s principal designer..

Check out this great early 1930s advertising logo from Catalina Island Pottery

Looking for opportunities to increase revenue during the Depression, the Revere Copper & Brass Company started producing giftware items in...

In the Vintage Bar Ware collector's book by Stephen Visakay (you can still find his time capsule of a website...

I took a break from pottery modeling to create some new shapes. On the path to architectural visualization, I built...

Between 1935-36, San Diego held another exposition at the site of the original 1915 Panama-California Exposition in Balboa Park. The…

Better Homes & Gardens, May 1938 “May’s the month for it – for a crisp green landslide of fresh vegetables…

The January 1938 edition of Better Homes & Gardens features an article on “Shelves, Those Smart Space-Savers.” It’s a little…

Better Homes & Gardens, April 1937 | Adventures in Table Settings Between 1936 and 1937 Pacific Pottery launched a nationwide…

Sunset Magazine, July 1936 | The Modern Garden Table The star of this July 1936 cover of Sunset magazine is…

Melvin J. Lattie was Pacific Clay's sales director in the 1930s. I uncovered an article in the Fresno Bee from July...

Here's a set of Pacific Pottery Hostessware in the hard-to-find delph glaze. I purchased this set from another collector in...

California pottery historian Jack Chipment sent me a photo from Pacific Clay Products' company photo from plant #4 - the...