Grainware
Lucite & Chrome Acrylic Block of Ice Bucket
Lucite & Chrome Acrylic Block of Ice Bucket
Regular price
$295.00 USD
Regular price
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$295.00 USD
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Vintage 1970s, Grainware Lucite and chrome Ice Bucket in the shape of an ice block with stylized chrome ice tong shaped handle. This large, high-end ice bucket has a hinged lid, to keep ice cooler for longer, and textured exterior to simulate the look of an ice block, slightly melting. The ice bucket measures 9 1/4" high (with the lid closed), 7 3/4" wide and 6 3/4" deep. When the removable handle is in the up position as shown in the cameo photo, it measures 16 5/8" high. This heavy ice bucket, weighing 8 lbs, is one of the Lucite designs of Will Hardy, the son of the original founder of Wilardy Originals (Bill Hardy), producer of Lucite purses from the 1940s - 1970s, designed for Grainware, the leading brand of high end acrylic products. (See below for more detail on Wilardy and Grainware.) This exceptional ice bucket is in very good condition, fun and practical design for a party or a stunning addition to an interesting bar vignette.
Acrylic was invented in 1902 by a German chemist but it only became mass produced in 1933 when its inventor, Otto Rohm, began to market it as Plexiglass (trademark) and later Lucite (trademark). It was shorty afterwards that Plastic Productions Company of Redwood City, CA began to produce items using sheets of acrylic. This early acrylic was black with grey tones that came through when produced. Marked under the 'Gray n Ware' brand, the name was later changed to Grainware. In the 1970s, with the introduction of refined injection molding processes developed in Taiwan, Grainware solidified its dominance in the marketplace by offering high end, intricately detailed acrylic pieces using this crystalline acrylic process. As a part of their production of new pieces, Grainware used both inside and outside designers, of which Will Hardy was one. When Will Hardy took over the Wilardy Originals business from his father in the 1960s, he continued designing and manufacturing into the early 1980s, both for his company and for outside brands. His designs included Lucite handbags, Lucite bathroom fixtures, containers for Atlantic Can, a chest of drawers for Jacqueline Kennedy, chandeliers for the White House, lighting fixtures for Dinico, and tableware for the Grainware.
