Teal and Ultra Marine Colored Glass of the Depression Era

by Kathy Eickholt

What's in a Name?

Teal was not a common color in the depression. Only Jeannette Glass made much teal glassware and they produced only two complete depression glass patterns in turquoise, Swirl and Doric and Pansy.

Jeannette made a line of kitchen glass in the late 1930s called Jenny Ware that came in Ultra Marine, crystal and pink. What we call teal today was ultramarine, sometimes with hyphen, sometimes all one word. Let's look at the two patterns, Jeannette Swirl and Doric and Pansy.

Ultramarine Depression Glass Pattern - Jeannette Swirl

Petal Swirl bowl Jeannette made Swirl depression glass only two years, 1937 to 1938, mostly in pink plus ultramarine. They made about a third of the Swirl pieces in opaque Delphite blue and a couple pieces in ice blue and amber. Pink and ultramarine are the easiest colors to find. Swirl looks great in either color on your table.

Jeannette's ultramarine is a rich blue green transparent glass. Some pieces are more green than others. Ultramarine is striking without being bold or too strong to mix with other colors. If you have only a few pieces of ultramarine Swirl try combining it with other depression glassware or with china. The pieces are charming and the color blends beautifully.

You can get a complete dinner or lunch set in ultramarine Swirl and it mixes well with pink Swirl or other depression glass. Try mixing ultramarine Swirl with vintage etched crystal stemware for a gorgeous combination that is anything but common place.

Jeannette made some neat pieces in Swirl including candle holders, vases, salt and pepper shakers, tumblers and lidded bowls. You can find the basic plates and such fairly easily but the accessory pieces and tumblers are more difficult. The pitcher is rare.

Did you notice the ruffled rim on that salad bowl? Some pieces have ruffles and some do not. The ruffles look like flower petals and collectors nicknamed Swirl Petal Swirl. The angled handles on these pieces is a good contrast with the round shapes. Swirl plates and bowls and footed pieces have concentric rings in the centers.

Ultramarine Depression Glass Pattern - Doric & Pansy

Jeannette made their luscious Doric and Pansy depression glass in ultramarine and pink during the same years they made Swirl.

Doric and Pansy cup If you like Doric and Pansy then you'll want to be aware there is a children's set called Pretty Polly Party dishes. The pieces look similar but are much smaller. If you want the child's set then you will want to get familiar with the sizes. Most of the children's pieces are more expensive than the full sized pattern.

Doric and Pansy combines squares with two different designs arranged in rings. One square is a pansy and the other is a stylized design. Doric and Pansy ultramarine is more expensive and more difficult to find than Swirl. If you are looking for a good pattern in teal glass that is reasonably available and affordable then try Swirl. You don't need a complete set to have a stunning table.

Besides Swirl and Doric and Pansy Jeannette made a few other pieces in teal. You can find the three part Doric depression glass candy dish and possibly a few other pieces of Doric in ultramarine. Plus look out for Jenny Ware kitchen glass - it is neat stuff. The shakers and some incidental pieces go well with Swirl.

Other Teal or Ultramarine Glass

There really are no other glass patterns in quite the same shade of rich, blendable ultramarine. Let's see what you can find.

Christmas candy plate Indiana Glass made Christmas Candy in the 1940s and 50s in Terrace Green, which is a greenish teal color. If we're strict about definitions Christmas Candy came a bit late to be called depression glass, but the color and style fit well. Christmas Candy is thick glass with a plain center. The rims look like the ribbon candy we see at Christmas.

In the late 1960s lighter colored aqua glass became popular.

Anchor Hocking made several lines in a light teal they called aquamarine. It's quite a pretty shade. You can find beverage sets with big round pitchers and tumblers in Soreno or Milano glassware. Both these patterns have interesting textures. Anchor Hocking made a full lunch set with lots of accessory pieces in aquamarine Soreno glass in the late 1960s.

Of course the premier pattern in aqua colored glass is Hazel Atlas Capri. Hazel Atlas used their Capri aqua color on several patterns - square shapes, hexagonal, dots, twist designs - that collectors call Capri. Capri is a medium aqua blue.

What You Will NOT Find

If you find light teal Madrid glassware, this is reproduction Recollections from Indiana Glass. Federal Glass made Madrid in a medium blue that was a true blue, not a greenish blue. The Recollections aqua color is quite different.

Tips When You Buy Teal Glass - How to Get the Right Piece

  1. Jeannette ultramarine had some variations. Some was more green than teal. If this bothers you then you'll want to take care to get glass that is either greenish or teal.
  2. Always check the photos and ask questions, especially online if seller calls the glass blue or green or aqua.
  3. If teal is your color then consider Jeannette Swirl. It's pretty, available and priced to make it easy on the pocket.

Webmaster's NOTE: The NDGA wishes to thank the author for permission to use this article. Kathy is a dealer from Midland, Michigan. Her web site is Cat Lady's Glass.