Encore! Mini Baskets by Dorothy Taylor
Dorothy Taylor produced a subscription-based newsletter, "Carnival Glass Encore" that ran for almost 20 years, from 1975 to 1993, and she wrote three reference books – “Encore by Dorothy Taylor” Books I, II and III - between 1984 and 1986. Encore inspired a generation of collectors to acquire the new glass, and it provides an invaluable source of information.
Her entire focus was the new Carnival Glass that was being made at that time, by the likes of Fenton, Imperial, L E Smith, Westmoreland, L G Wright and others. In particular, she wanted to identify and record the many reissues and reproductions of Classic, old patterns that were being made, to ensure that collectors did not confuse them with the original items.
Encore mini baskets
She also decided to have new Carnival Glass pieces made especially for her Encore club as souvenirs and commemorative, limited editions. One particularly notable series was her “mini baskets”, the designs of which were her representations of Classic Carnival Glass patterns, as shown below.
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It was always her intention to have nine designs, but the ninth, a representation of Fenton’s Classic Horse Head Medallion, was not put into production. The mini baskets were all made by Fenton. They use the same exterior mould, and the plungers – with the eight different designs – were made by Al Botson of Botson’s Machine and Mould Company, Cambridge, Ohio. The mini baskets are marked with a moulded “Taylor” and later “Encore” (with the year made), and they have the Fenton logo in the base. The red Kittens mini basket was in fact an Encore Club commemorative item, and it was so popular that Dorothy Taylor decided to start the series of mini baskets. The Kittens mini basket was subsequently made again, in aqua opal. 
Elk mini basket in Meadow (dark) Green Carnival
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Interestingly, Dorothy Taylor originally approached Westmoreland to make the red Kittens mini basket for her, but Westmoreland closed down before the order could be fulfilled. Dorothy Taylor retrieved the mould/plunger and took it to Imperial, but after a month or so, Imperial informed her that red was not going to be made for a while! The mould/plunger was retrieved again and taken to Fenton, where they were actually successful in getting the piece made. It was a great success, and Fenton made all the subsequent mini baskets in the Encore series.
The handles on the mini baskets were all applied by hand (not part of the mould), in various styles and shape. As was the practice at Fenton, the glassmaker who applies the handle had his own “mark” which was impressed on the glass at the point where the handle is attached to the body of the glass. The handle mark on the Elk mini basket is Fred Bruce's.
The handles on the mini baskets were all applied by hand (not part of the mould), in various styles and shape. As was the practice at Fenton, the glassmaker who applies the handle had his own “mark” which was impressed on the glass at the point where the handle is attached to the body of the glass. The handle mark on the Elk mini basket is Fred Bruce's.
"TAYLOR" and "Fenton 8" marks on base
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Detail of Elk mini basket
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Here is Dorothy Taylor’s record of all the baskets made by Fenton for Encore (Encore magazine, October 1989). The number she recorded is how many were shipped to her by Fenton; her aim was 500 of each but “it didn’t always come out like that, of the amount we did get, several were broken, chipped or something wrong.”
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Pattern / Date made
Kittens, August 1982
Kittens, September 1982
Panther, January 1983
Pony, April 1983
Elk, May 1983
Farmyard, March 1984
Stag & Holly, August 1984
Dragon & Lotus, March 1985
Lion, July 1985
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Colour
Red
Aqua opal
Cobalt (blue)
Vaseline opal
Meadow (dark) Green
Peach opal
Avon blue teal
Peach pink
Green opal
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Handle type
Smooth
Smooth
Ribbed
Rib struck
Twist rib
Rib
Nicked twist rib
Looped
Nicked
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Number
729
394
568
477
530
469
489
598
363
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Note: We know that other colours were made by Fenton for Encore: the Kittens basket was produced in limited quantities in iridised Rosalene, iridised Burmese, and non-iridised Burmese. |
Dorothy Taylor also noted that Fenton would send a few baskets with different handles (eg red Kittens baskets with twisted handles), or shaped a little differently. The baskets mostly had smooth edges, but some were made with different edge treatments – ruffled, pie crust and continuous crimping. Fenton had sent them to her to show the variations Fenton could achieve in future production runs.
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The plungers were also used to make items other than handled baskets, for example miniature bowls and an umbrella shape (with a single upright crook-shaped handle coming from the centre of the bowl). They were used a souvenirs / club commemoratives. Dorothy Taylor also had various other items made for her and Encore, generally with the same theme - her interpretation of Classic Carnival designs. They include miniature water sets – God and Home, Inverted Peacock and Inverted Trout – and miniature punch sets. Dorothy Taylor's Encore moulds were bought by Singleton Bailey who later sold them to Fenton's Collectibles in Missouri (no relation to Fenton Art Glass). So that the items produced for Fenton's Collectibles were readily distinguished from the earlier Encore pieces, Fenton's Collectibles replaced the “Taylor” marks with their own studio mark - a 5-point crown / star above the capital letters FC. Fenton's Collectibles was liquidated in 2016, and the fate of the moulds is unknown. The Elks Inspiration Fenton, Dugan and Millersburg made elk designs for the B.P.O.E. (Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks - a US fraternal order and social club dating back to 1868). The Classic Carnival Glass items were commemorative pieces made for various BPOE Conventions - they are very collectible and some are very rare. There are also a number of contemporary Elks pieces. We have a four page feature on the Elks Conventions Carnival Glass souvenirs, including fascinating illustrations from newspapers and ephemera of the time and superb pictures of BPOE Elks Carnival Glass. Read in in The Story Behind The Glass (otherwise called "Hello Bill!"). |
Fort Wayne (Indiana) Journal Gazette, 1911
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Fenton's BPOE Elks bowl, blue, Atlantic City 1911.
Courtesy Seeck Auctions |
Contemporary Elks paperweight, red. Made for Mi Mi Inc.
It is a reproduction of the original Classic Millersburg item, which was only made in amethyst and green Carnival. |