If you grew up in the 70's, you probably did as well. These were margarine bowls. The brand is somewhat disputed. My first thought was Imperial. Others on the internet recall Blue Bonnet or Parkay. I'm almost positive it wasn't Parkay, as that was too expensive for my family. When the margarine was gone, voila, cereal bowl. These were a favorite for Saturday morning cereal in front of the television. I seem to recall fighting over which color my sister and I would eat from. I'm sure I always ended up with the pea green one...
Anyway, when I saw these sitting on a shelf in the basement of a recent estate sale, that all came back to me. I grabbed 6 of them (there were a couple others that were too far gone) and brought them up to check out. The person hosting the sale looked at me and said, "I'll bet you ate cereal out of those bowls when you were little." She went on to say she had shown them to some younger people (20's) and they had no clue.
Whatever happened to jelly jar glasses, margarine cereal bowls, and butter tub Tupperware? It seems nobody repurposes used containers like they once did. Seems like a pretty smart thing to do.
i don't recall specifically eating out of margarine bowls like this, but i am an avid re-user of all manner of containers to this day. it's just shy of being some sort of obsessive danger, i think. yes, every cabinet has a stash of something potentially useful (glass jars, empty store containers, things with various tops and nozzles), but i swear i will use them at some point, and when i am able to pull out the perfect container for something, i feel vindicated.
ReplyDeleteI am looking for some of these bowls to purchase, do you know anyone selling?
ReplyDeletethank you
bztina@yahoo.com
I am looking for some of these bowls to purchase, do you know anyone selling?
ReplyDeletethank you
deucin@gmail.com
I remember Parkay, since that's the brand we used most often. Although, maybe they were Blue Bonnet. We used that, too.
ReplyDeleteSo many cool colors.
It was Parkay, specifically the 1 pound container. I could not believe when I visited my dad a few months ago, and he still has around a dozen of those.
ReplyDeleteI would love to find some of these, perfect cereal bowl size. Neecee62@aol.com
ReplyDeleteNeecee, more people write me about these cereal bowls than anything else I've blogged about. Clearly, they are a link to a simpler time in our childhood. Unfortunately, I've only found these bowls once. I'm always keeping my eyes opened for more though.
DeleteI was just telling my children the story of the butter bowl cereal bowls that we still have and they still eat cereal out of! The very same bowls that I ate my cereal from as a kid! I still have 7 of these and my kids eat their cereal out of them every day! What happened to the times when you recycled things like these! I'm hoping that my childrens children get to use these bowls! They are a great childhood memory of mine!
ReplyDeleteBeing a 70's kid, I am curious...if a company was to re-introduce a bowl of this type today, do you think customer's would be more apt to buy it for the re-use of cereal and such over a cheaper thin bowl with the same contents?
ReplyDeleteThat's a good question. I would guess the heavier material required would drive the cost up and probably ultimately hurt sales. Unfortunately, I believe we've become a "buy the cheapest there is" society.
Deleteoh, man i have 6 of these bowls that i got from my grandmother's house after she passed. they are out most used bowls! the lids from sherbet bowls it on them perfect but we mostly use them as cereal/ice cream/salad bowls. i LOVE THEM.
ReplyDeletethough, i also re-use cool-whip, sherbet, sour cream, etc containers for leftovers and the like. the best part of never having bought tupperware is that if something goes bad in the fridge you can just toss the whole container because it was free.
I found one at my grandmothers house it is Blue Bonnet
ReplyDeleteMy mom has a few survivors as well.. but hers have a diamond pattern around the outside. We used to use them as cereal bowls as well.
ReplyDeleteI remember these and would love to find some. The problem is that margarine makers started putting on their markings and nutrition info on the bowls instead of just the lids. Also, todays containers are cheap and crack easy.
ReplyDeleteI still have these (My daughter is currently using one for a cereal bowl right now). They belonged to my grandparents and used them for cereal bowls and most other cold item bowls. Have a few lids also left labeled Parkay. I remember they had more in their camper also.
ReplyDeleteThese were the cereal bowls we ate from every morning. It wasn't until I was much older that I found out they were margarine containers. I still have these in my own kitchen cupboard now! Danno from Fridley
ReplyDeleteI love these as do my kids. I grew up using them but now my kids have them I'm down to about 4 left as they are cracking. I am trying to find more and seem impossible to find. My kids only know of the 2 red ones they use (one diamond pattern, one flower pattern). They don't know I have an orange and yellow one hidden away.
ReplyDeleteI remember them! Loved them! I believe they were Blue Bonnet.
ReplyDeleteI remember! They were NuMaid margarine bowls! They were the best cereal bowls!
ReplyDeleteAnd the brand debate continues!
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