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NOVEMBER 2007

I have a large Coca Cola collection, both full size and miniature. It began with the purchase of three trays that were reissued in the early 70's as some kind of commemoration. I never set out to collect, but people who saw the trays began giving me Coke stuff as gifts, and I began picking up things here and there that appealed to me.

I WANNA DO HURLEY'S CORNER DRUG
THE 50'S

During a redo of my work area, I found a box in some bookshelves with the splendidly uninformative label, "Small Containers For Scenes." Of course, I didn't have a clue what those containers were, as several years had passed since they were stored.

One item was this cardboard box containing a 50's style Coca-Cola napkin dispenser that I bought many years ago when I was still actively collecting full-size Coke memorabilia. I had searched for that napkin dispenser for years! (Now I know that if I'm going to store several items in a closed box, I better darn sure label exactly what is in there or I will never find it when I want it.)

My husband used his drill to remove the spring mechanism that held the napkins in place.

Now that is one powerful spring. Wonder what I could do with that?

So, here is the setting for my future Coca-Cola diner scene, admittedly quite small. I have test fitted and it will hold one table and one booth. Obviously, I will want to use some of my mini Coke memorabilia.

This drawer contains lots of odds and ends; surely some from the Happy Days era.

I found this old postcard photo of the County Courthouse in the town where I graduated from high school. I think it may be the scene visible through a window in this Coke napkin container.

This looks a lot like a place where we used to go after football games.

This was a business owned by the parents of a highschool classmate. My dad used to have a pickup that looked a lot like this one.

Anyway, Have a Coke is another Someday I Wanna project; who knows how it will turn out?

MORE FUTURE MINIATURE COKE PROJECTS

These little boxes on the wall hold some of my miniature, or at least smaller, Coke pieces. I have ideas for scenes I want to do someday, but figured in the meantime I'd put these items out where they can be seen until I get a setting ready for them.

The Coke case and the mirror were in the kitchen of my McKinley when it was hanging in the living room. That's a round purse mirror; I gave similar mirrors to my sisters and nieces one Christmas; another year I gave them tiny oval tin Coke pill boxes.

Although they look fairly large here, these are actually quite small. The woman in the big hat appears in many early Coke advertisements.

That's a full-size pocket knife lying on the shelf.

The cardboard screen has the same illustrations as appear on a black tray on the wall.

I have the full-size version of this miniature picture, although it is not visible in these photos.

This is the top shelf of the second box. Notice the varying scales. The yellow Coke case on the left is smaller than the Coke carton on the right. That's an ice chest on the far right. We have a real one just like it that belonged to my husband's father. He used to carry it on fishing trips; we carried it on car trips in the early days of our marriage.

And here's the bottom shelf, with more varying scales. That's a key chain on the brass bottle.

The carton, the can and the bottle opener are miniatures which I have used in various scenes over the years.

And speaking of varying scales, notice these two Coke dispensers. I would guess the lower one is about quarter scale.

I have a large glass-fronted display case with lots of smaller Coke items in its cubbyholes. Unfortunately, the glass got broken, so it resides under our guest room bed until I can get the glass front replaced. I will go through it for items when I finally do more miniature Coke settings. I gave away two early miniature projects and don't have photos of either.

COLLECTING COCA COLA MEMORABILIA

This is the collection hanging over our dining table, looking at an angle from the living room.

It's hard to get good pictures because of a hanging lamp over the table and reflections from the mirrors and glass.

Here it is, viewed from the kitchen.

These are the three trays that started it all.

Everyone commented about those trays so much that I purchased sets for my mother, mother-in-law and both my sisters. My collection kept growing. This is a very high wall, and at one time items almost covered it to the ceiling. A few years ago I wanted a change and took it all down, hanging one framed Southwest watercolor in its place. My family and friends, especially my grandchildren, kept saying, "I miss all the Coke stuff." Eventually, I did, too, dragged it all back and started hanging it over the table again. This time, however, I didn't put it all on one wall!

DISPLAYING COCA COLA ITEMS

NOTE: Since I wrote this up the first time, everything has changed, but what the heck .... lol

Our house has an open kitchen and this box covers the plumbing that comes down to the refrigerator and stove. When we repaint, my husband plans to paint this white. It's hard to get a good picture because this is so high. That is a tin drinking cup with a handle in front with a green plant added, and a smaller tin box that barely shows up at all.

These items are on top of the cabinet at the opposite end of the room from the collection on the wall. I had to climb on a stepladder to take these photos. It's hard to tell what's what, but the item on the far left is a ceramic brick general store, with Coca Cola signs. I take it down and turn on its light for Christmas each year. To the right of the round tray I have added greenery to the tin box, and propped the decorative lid in front so it will be visible.

The framed picture was a gift from my husband's great-aunt Mabel. You can't see it from here, but a little boy is pulling a red wagon that says Coca Cola. "This painting reminded me of the country stores and old pickups I saw when I was young," she said.

Back in the 70's I found these small oval trays and framed them together. Ours is an interior kitchen, and having this mirror on top of the cabinets helps light reflect better, I've noticed.

This is the corner and the beginning of the cabinets on the kitchen sink wall. That's another round box next to the plant; I just turned the whole thing on its side. A round tray leaning against the wall to the right of the plant has a turn of the century picture, but it doesn't show up here. The wooden cut-out bookends show 20's era bathing beauties.

This grouping is over our kitchen sink. The skillet clock dates from the first summer we were married. Around the World parties for gift-type items were popular, and this was my hostess gift for having a party (in my mother-in-law's house). It was electric and my husband repaired it more than once, even carved new hands for it out of popsicle sticks. He eventually replaced the clock mechanism with a battery operated one in the 70's and it's been working fine ever since. The glass framed Coke picture on the right I particularly like because it is from the 50's when we were first married.

This ends this wall of cabinets. That's another box with greenery in it and its lid on front, with a small drink tray to its right. I learned that Sarah Bernhardt was in several Coke ads. I believe that's her on that brown box on the end, which I elevated to be more visible.

This is the top shelf over the sink. My husband bought the footed bowl once when our neighbors in Cloudcroft were having a yard sale. It has become a tradition to use it for fruit salad for Thanksgiving and Christmas. The white ceramic hand bookend is one of a pair; a Christmas gift from a teaching friend many years ago.

This is the lower shelf. Sorry for the poor quality of the pictures; need to try for a better one of these days. That's a display of Coca Cola thimbles in the little box to the right of the mirror and the Coca Cola ice box is a toothpick dispenser. The glass cake plate was a Christmas gift from my son when he was a young boy.

I covered a Tide box and my oldest tattiest cookbook with wallpaper left from a dollhouse project. The box holds some of my smaller cookbooks and recipes and keeps the area from looking any more cluttered than it already is.

I have hated not having a window over my kitchen sink, but I don't think about it too much any more since putting the Coke mirrors and the kitchen display box on the wall for something to look at. The mirrors also seem to help a visually narrow space seem a bit larger.

This tray stays on top of the refrigerator so that it is available to actually use. it looks somewhat misshapen here; guess it was the angle and the light.

Well, there's more, including salt and pepper shakers on our kitchen table, but I'm going to stop with these.

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