When you see some of the fanciful and beautiful candy jars that glass companies made during the depression, doesn’t it seem they had a lot of fun designing these? For example, here is the Cameo low candy jar from Hocking.
Take a good look at the Cameo jar. See how Hocking put the full design on the base and a simplified swag-only motif on the lid.
This is the same shape – narrower on top with a bulbous base – that Hocking used for their Block Optic and Spiral patterns too, but very different from the shapes they used for Princess, Mayfair or Miss America. To me the Cameo shape looks perfect for a powder jar as well as a candy. It is lovely and so graceful.
Hocking’s Spiral pattern is one of the earliest depression glass designs, predating even Block Optic. The candy jar shape is the same as Cameo and Block Optic but has a different, rounded finial that fits the design.
Several Hocking patterns have two candy jars in their line up. For example, Cameo, which was one of the patterns that Hocking made for a long time, has a taller jar as well as the shorter one shown above.
And look! There is a Block Optic tall candy jar too, in the same shape and with the same finial as the taller Cameo jar.
Mayfair, which Hocking began making later than Block Optic or Cameo, has quite a different tall, footed candy jar that is simply lovely, such a graceful shape. I was fortunate to see one of these blue footed candy jars at a depression glass show. The Mayfair blue color is incredible and the piece shapes are perfect.
The footed candy jar in Hocking’s Princess pattern is similar to the Mayfair shape. The Princess pattern on the lid is the swag-only portion of the design, much the same as with the Cameo candy jars. The designers must have realized the lid simply wasn’t big enough for the full motif.
Miss America also has a tall, footed candy jar, very different from any of the ones shown. We had the base to the pink but not the full jar with lid. The base is similar to a goblet shape but larger.
Hocking included candy jars in several other patterns. Old Cafe, Queen Mary, Old Colony and Fortune candy dishes are short, simple shapes with lids. The Fortune one is relatively easy to find and makes a welcome and affordable gift in pink or clear.
Old Colony candy jar has the same base as the floral jar which has a glass frog insert instead of a lid.
Besides candy jars a few patterns included flat, open candy dishes. These are good for wrapped candies or when you don’t intend to leave sweets out very long. Where we live the humidity soon would stick every piece together in a giant sugary lump!
Most of the open candy dishes are similar to this one in Old Café
It’s getting on to Halloween, a good time for special candy jars, then later the wonderful Christmas treats – chocolate bells or ribbon candy or peppermints – so consider a depression candy jar to make your sweets even better.