Shadows was a short lived dinnerware shape first made by Taylor, Smith & Taylor in 1955. The pieces came from the Classic shape - a formal line created by designer John Gilkes. The rims of flatware, the coffeepot lid, sugar lid, and casserole lid were modified with light embossing details. This modeled relief was brought to life by colored glazes along the rims. At least three colors were used: pink, green, and gray. Some pieces can be found with no colored glaze which makes the embossing hard to see.
A summary of the line was given in the April 1955 issue of Crockery and Glass Journal by Shirley Howard:
A new departure in dinnerware decoration - "sculptured" dinnerware that combines both an embossing and a debossing process - is very successful for Taylor, Smith & Taylor. This elegant dinnerware is detergent and oven-proof. Called Shadows, the new pattern has a pink or gray shoulder of entwining leaves and blossoms with a white well. The pink shoulder pattern is available with gold bands; gray with silver. For $9.95, 16-piece starter set. Unbanded, it sells for $6.95, 16-piece set. It was designed by John Gilkes.
The East Liverpool, Ohio newspaper, The Evening Review, had a wirte-up on the line from January 7, 1955:
Taylor, Smith & Taylor is concentrating sales efforts on a new shape, "Classic," by its designer, John Gilkes, featuring the show's two most popular colors, pink and gray.
The most striking feature is a sculptured edge that gives the ware a three-dimensional effect. It features a border of entwined leaves and blossoms on a traditional wide shoulder with a recessed ivory center.
The color bands on "Classic" are called "Pussy Willow Gray" and "Camellia Pink."
Once in a while, Shadows can be found with decals or underglaze transfer treatments popular at the time. Based on backstamps with date codes, the line wasn't made beyond the mid-1950s.
Even though Shadows was produced for a short time, the basic Classic shape itself was used rather extensively in the 1950s and early 1960s. During this time it was made with both rim and coupe flatware but minus the embossed border.
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