The Blue Willow Toastrite toaster is a crossover favorite, wanted by both Blue Willow and toaster collectors. That is part of the reason it sold for 50 a few months ago at an Auction Team Koln auction in Cologne, Germany.

Electric toasters were probably first used in England about 1893. Several American companies developed their own toasters, but it was not until 1909 that the first commercial toaster was successful. It was the D-12 made by General Electric. E. Townsend Artman wrote the book “Toasters, 1909 – 1960” for collectors, and there’s an online toaster museum, www.toaster.org. Collectors have given nicknames to the types of toasters. There are Perchers (the bread leans against the heating element), Pinchers (between two elements), Flatbeds (like tables), Turner/Swingers (basket swings out, turns bread to other side), Floppers (the doors flop open), Droppers (the toast drops down), Tippers (the bread is tipped out) and the familiar Pop-up. But the most coveted toaster for collectors today is the Toastrite, which has a porcelainlike exterior in the Blue Willow pattern. It was sold with a matching breakfast set. The Toastrite, made about 1928 by Pan Electric Mfg. Co. of Cleveland, came in seven colors, including Pink Willow, blue, green, orange, yellow and mother-of-pearl. It is a “percher.” Toaster collectors are international. The Blue Willow Toastrite just sold for $550 at Auction Team Koln in Cologne, Germany.

Q: I collect old license plates from cars, bikes, motorcycles and more. How should I store the extras? I have already covered the walls of my garage.

If you stack them, put a piece of newspaper between each plate. Do not use any plastic bubble wrap or other sheets. Use wooden crates, never cardboard boxes. Keep them in a dry place. Wash the plates with warm water, dry with a soft cloth and, if you wish, polish with car wax. Don’t remove rust or polish the plates.

Q: I bought a novelty clock for $3.50 at a thrift store and hope you can help me identify it. It’s wood carved in the shape of a dog and is 5 inches tall. The dog’s eyes revolve to show the time – a line in each eye points to dots around the eye socket. One eye points to the hour and the other to the minute.

A: Your clock was made by J. Oswald of Freiburg, Germany, in the 1920s or ’30s. Oswald patented the eye mechanism in 1926 and put it in clock cases shaped like dogs, owls and turbaned women. We have seen these clocks sell for a few dollars up into the hundreds, depending on the condition of the case and whether or not the clock still keeps time.

Q: I purchased a cane 15 years ago. I figured out that it opened up and extended to look like a measuring device of some sort. What is its purpose and value?

A: You have a horse-measuring stick. The height of a horse is measured by holding the stick next to the withers. Slide the top of the stick out until it is at the top of the horse’s shoulder. The top must be perfectly level and the bottom of the stick must be on the ground. The length of the stick is then measured with a tape measure. The size of the horse is always given in “hands.” A “hand” is four inches, so the number of inches on the stick is divided by four to get the measurement in hands. If the result is not an even number, the remainder is expressed in inches. So a horse that measures 62 inches at the withers is 15.2 hands. The number before the period is hands, the number after is inches.

Q: I inherited a 7-inch antique ceramic pitcher from my mother. My father worked in construction and found it inside the walls of an old office building he was renovating. Both sides of the white pitcher are decorated with a yellow, red and blue picture of Shakespeare (but his name is spelled “Shakspere” under the picture). On one side near the top there’s a scroll that reads, “Born April 23rd, 1564.” A similar scroll on the other side reads, “Died April 23rd, 1616.” The pewter lid is engraved “T. Booth Hanley.” The mark on the bottom of the pitcher is stamped in green. It shows a man on horseback above the initials “H & W.” Who made it and when?

A: Your pitcher was made by Hancock & Whittingham, a firm that made earthenware in Stoke, Staffordshire, England, from 1873 to 1879. The pitcher is decorated with transfer pictures of William Shakespeare. Hancock & Whittingham bought pewter tops from T. Booth, a pewterer in Hanley, another town in the same district of England. The dates on your pitcher are the generally accepted dates used for William Shakespeare’s birth and death. We have seen pitchers like yours selling for $185.

Tip

If you spill grease on an antique tablecloth, quickly sprinkle the spot with table salt. It will absorb most of the grease. The remaining should wash out later.