Kermis (Party Line) Years: 1955-1956
Kermis was a party set, not a full dinnerware pattern. The focus on most Kermis pieces was a jester in various poses. The jester was dressed in turquoise and black, with flesh colored face and hands. Wavy light gray lines swirled around the jester with a confetti-like effect, adding to the party atmosphere. The background color was white. Items available in the Kermis pattern were a 14.5″ sandwich tray (platter), cup, saucer, sugar, creamer, nut bowl (small bowl), 10″ and 13″ salad bowls, beverage server with cover, and 8.5″ plates. The plates had an irregular shape, and each plate featured the jester in one of four different poses. Thus there were four different Kermis plates. On the back of most plates was a handwritten blue letter that indicated the pose shown on that plate.
Kermis was introduced in July 1955 at the same time as Spruce and White and Turquoise. Kermis colors were the same as White and Turquoise. Because of the similar colors people sometimes mistakenly believe that White and Turquoise were part of the Kermis pattern. Some speculate that Kermis was intended to be used in combination with White and Turquoise, because Kermis could supply the place setting pieces that are missing from White and Turquoise but were made for the Spruce pattern. This seems logical, but there was no suggestion to this effect in the Red Wing brochures or price lists.
Harlequin Clown Baby Set Years: 1958
This three piece set consisted of an 8″ plate, 5″ bowl and cup. The cup resembled a coffee cup with deep sides and a large, easy to grip handle. The design featured a close-up of a smiling clown’s face; the face occupied the entire surface. The clown had a reddish-pink nose, lips and hair, a flesh-colored face, black mouth, eyes and eyebrows and a predominantly green multi-colored bow tie. The background color was beige fleck. Rather than amusing children, the close-up clown face was said to have frightened them. This lead to a quick demise for this set, which appeared in a July 1958 dealer price list. Very few pieces of the Harlequin Clown Baby Set are available today, and a single piece will sell for several hundred dollars.
Continental Buffet Years: 1957-1958
Buffet Royale Years: 1960-1962
Continental Buffet was a buffet service set that consisted of four different warming dishes as well as a beverage server with warmer stand, salad bowl with metal fork & spoon, salt & pepper shakers, creamer and sugar bowl. The warmer stands and the handles on covers were nickel-plated metal. Continental Buffet was available in two solid colors, matte white and matte blue. This was a well-made, heavy, expensive set. The high production costs for Continental Buffet lead to high consumer prices. Despite the quality of this set, the high prices lead to poor sales.
Soon Red Wing looked to replace Continental Buffet with a similar but less expensive buffet service. By 1960 Continental Buffet was discontinued and replaced by Buffet Royale, a redesigned buffet service lighter in weight and with walnut wood knobs and serving stands instead of nickel-plated metal. Buffet Royale shapes were not the same as Continental Buffet; all pieces were redesigned into new shapes. Also, the Buffet Royale set did not include a sauce boat with stand but added a long bread tray. Color was another difference; Buffet Royale was made only in Matte White. A “New for 1960” advertising flyer aimed at retailers used the name “Buffet Chateau” but this name was soon changed.
