It’s funny how berry bowls, those cute small dishes that are perfect for applesauce or a little cole slaw, range from easy to find to harder than heck to track down. For example, I have had several Sharon pink or amber small bowls, and a few Patrician, Normandie, Bowknot, Windsor and Waterford berry bowls. Looking in my trusty Gene Florence book Collector’s Encyclopedia of Depression Glass, 19th Edition I see that small bowls vary in price from under $10 to well over $30.
If you equate book pricing with abundance, which is a reasonable guide for patterns of equal popularity, Block Optic bowls ought to be relatively plentiful. Yet I have never seen a small Block Optic bowl. Sherbets, yes. Small plates, yes. Cups, yes. Even dinner plates and saucers. But no bowls. Granted I’ve not gone out to look specifically for Block Optic bowls, but you would think that if they are abundant that I would trip over them.
Doric and Pansy is a pattern where small bowls are medium priced and we’d expect, medium availability. (Doric and Pansy is popular but not to the extent of Cameo, Mayfair or American Sweetheart.) I was fortunate to purchase a large set from a collector who was trying to get dishes for her family dinners. I’ve sold quite a few pieces of this, oddly with a majority going to fellow Michiganders.
Doric and Pansy Ultramarine Teal Deression Glass Berry Bowl
I like the Doric and Pansy pattern, although it is a little busy for my taste. But the wow factor here is the color. Imagine a deep blue green, with all the lovely play of light that we think of when we think “glass”. That is Jeannette’s Ultramarine color. And I like bowls. They show off the pattern so much better than plates or cups. Even when you fill them up you can still see the design.
For all these, our Doric and Pansy Ultramarine small berry bowl (about 4 1/2 inches wide is my pick this week.