When I got my first book about Fostoria glass, I though Fostoria Trojan looked plain and boring. “Yuck”, I thought. This is too formal, too rigid, too blah. Then I found my first piece.
Can you believe I found this at the flea market? A couple had a table of mixed stuff – including this gorgeous scroll handled bowl. And they had one of the matching candles!
I’ve talked about this wonderful candle holder inspired by the Art Deco movement before. Fostoria used this shape for most of their popular etchings in the 1930s. You can read about this candle holder with the June etch here: Glass Pick of the Week Fostoria June Candle Holder Art Deco Scroll Etched Yellow Glass
Well! I snatched these up so fast the seller didn’t even have time to look surprised. I don’t think we even haggled even though they were a bit pricey. I didn’t care; these are gorgeous!
This taught me a lesson: You cannot rely solely on the pictures in books to decide what you like. I should know this by now. Some of my favorite depression glass patterns don’t look like much in pictures but are beautiful in person. Art is the same way, but I will try to stay on topic here!
Over the years I’ve bought a few pieces of Trojan, mostly a bit of stemware, cups and saucers, plates. It’s not uncommon, but neither are you likely to stumble on it at flea markets, my happy find not withstanding, nor will you see it often at estate sales. Your best bet is to look online as there are often nice pieces at Replacements or on eBay or Etsy. At the moment the only piece I have listed is the saucer although we also have cups and a couple plates that I will list on Etsy.
Fostoria used a couple stem lines, Fairfax line 5299 and the waterfall stem, line 5099. Both have clear stems and feet. This is the Fostoria Trojan cocktail on the waterfall stem. Can you see how this stem got its name?
You can’t judge a book by its cover nor a glass pattern by its picture. I’m so glad I found this beautiful pattern at the flea market! Good luck to you in your glass searching!