Cellini Craft

Searching for Cellini Craft information is frustrating. There is so little available. I have found no catalogs of the company wares and, compared to most of the other popular and well known companies, relatively few examples of their work are available

The Cellini pieces are  rather easy to identify: the aluminum is not as thick as that of many of the other companies, and there are no motifs.
This company used the design of their pieces to create their simple charm, although they often added tile insets and cast decoration.

I cannot apply this to Cellini Craft with certainty, but I have been told that the tiles used in the heydays of aluminum production, were often expensive imported ones. We do know that they were varied, colorful and charming.

Cast aluminum spoon 

     The best reference that I have found for Cellini Craft shows numerous tile designs and several other items including the first piece of Cellini in my collection. I was slightly disappointed to see it classified as bring part of the company's shift to plebian products and described as low-end! Their silver product had been rather elegant and that appearance continued into the designs for their aluminum products.

Salad bowl and servers

 black bakelite tray w/ alum. H.

The tray at left is my favorite piece of Cellini and, to me, lives up the company's reputation of producing elegant pieces. The tiny  berries lining a portion of the handles leaf design are typical of their work.

"pumpkin" pitcher

When this photograph first appeared in Hammered Aluminum-Handwroght Collectibles Book Two it caused a flurry of envy among collectors everywhere! I may be mistaken, but I believe this was from the collection of Jim Khan. 

I found a collection of Cellini pitchers when researching Cellini on the Internet but it was not clear whether or not they were made of aluminum. What was clear, however, was the ocassional use of the tiny berry decoration.





More company background and pieces tomorrow. Until then......

Dannie