I went to a flea market late season last year (just before Halloween) and happened upon a woman selling a lot of vintage Halloween paper items.
I ended up buying quite a few items from her including some original 1960's or '70's grocery store display pieces.
First up is this Jack O' Lantern.
This Jack O' Lantern appears to have been cut from a larger display, probably a banner that would have hung over some seasonal item like candy or apples. It's made from a flexible corrugated cardboard.
Next up is this witch poster. The woman that sold me this had a stack of these about 2 inches thick. I wish I'd bought more. Again, this likely hung over some Halloween display.
It seems to me, and I don't believe I'm mistaken, grocery stores got way more into Halloween in the past with decorations throughout the store. Even their ads were geared toward Halloween this time of year. I miss that all-encompassing celebration of the season. Enjoy these images from grocery stores of Halloween past.
Love old advertising and ephemera. I think you should have bought the whole 2 inch stack and shared them with all your blogger friends. ;)
ReplyDeleteWell, she was charging $5 a poster, which I thought was a little steep given her supply. Not that I don't think you fellow bloggers are worth every penny!
DeleteYes $5 is pretty steep. She obviously knew the value of what she was peddling.
ReplyDeleteThe art of the Jack O'Lantern and Witch is fun, would be great as decorations anywhere! Miss the intense displays like those old ones. All our store has is bins with barely anything on them.
ReplyDeleteRAISINS RAISINS RAISINS
ReplyDeleteA smart manager would have put that display as an endcap on the cleaning products aisle, as anyone handing those out will be scrubbing raw eggs off the stucco the following A.M..
Hee hee. People handing out raisins deserve an egging.
Deletecame here to also comment on the raisins (worst thing to find in your bag by FAR!) -- but also to comment on the great vintage candies (Clark Bars!) and the awesome typefaces used in those photos.
ReplyDeleteRefresh my memory. Clark bars were essentially Butterfingers, right? And yes, the talent of the vintage advertising creators far exceeds that of the people that try to imitate it today.
Deleteyeah, if i'm remembering correctly, they are proto-butterfingers. or butterfinger-esque? anyway. as far as retro advertising goes, it's not all great, but the old hand-drawn typefaces show a lot more care than gets given nowadays. that's my take, anyway.
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