I know what you’re thinking – why would we keep buying ashtrays?

I have this theory that the recent cloudy haze of “coolness” surrounding ashtrays can be atrributed almost entirely to Mad Men. They’re everywhere in the show. Their popularity can’t possibly be because more people have decided that smoking is cool – because it isn’t. (And I wish our smoking neighbors, who have young children, would also realize it’s doubly not cool.)

The right ashtray on a midmod coffee table can certainly set the mood if you’re looking for that perfect, straight-outta-the-60s look for an office. That said, we’ve seriously cut down on the number of cool ashtrays in the shop. We usually only get them if they look unusual and they’re from more well-known designers or companies. We’ve started to stay away from the pink and blue, gold-speckled beauties that are definitely period, but a bit too flamboyant for our current tastes.

Our favorite ashtray to find at thrift stores is the Heath Ceramics safety ashtray. These things were one the most popular items from Heath in the 60s, and the distinctive notches and shape were endlessly copied by other companies. Unfortunately, the little mustard colored one in the group photo at top that we found recently has a crack – so we’ll probably just use it as a prop.

This Cleminsons ashtray was a nice little find. The snowflake starbursts are very distinctive, though other companies like Jaru had very similar patterns on ceramics from the same time period. We usually see Cleminsons pieces with this pattern in white or black instead of brown.

This Hyalyn ashtray is a good example of an ashtray that we’ll pick up any day, even if it’s not in the best shape. The shape was just so unusual (from Hyalyn’s Shibui line of the 1960s) and the company is a desirable one, so we had to get it for the shop.

This Leif Wessmann Associates ashtray from Norway was new discovery for us. Its minimal look just oozes cool, so I guess it wasn’t a surprise to learn that they were distributed through Knoll International, the famous furniture company known for their modern designs.

We probably will continue to pick up ashtrays, but only if they really fit a certain modern vibe. Not that we’re ashtray snobs, but there’s a sort of limited audience for these objects – even with Mad Men “fueling the fire”…