This Current Inc Recipe Cards Lot includes four partial boxed assortments featuring the printed names Here's What's Cookin' and Herb Garden Double Recipe Cards.
The colorful fruit, vegetable, strawberry, herb, and old-fashioned stove designs fit a retro kitchen, family recipe box, paper ephemera collection, or junk journal supply cabinet.
Details
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Item: Four partial boxes of blank recipe cards
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Item Type: Boxed recipe card assortment lot
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Era: 1978 and 1979 dates are visible on two boxes; dates of the remaining boxes are not confirmed from photos
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Materials: Printed cardstock cards and paperboard boxes
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Color: Cream, white, yellow, avocado green, orange, red, brown, and multicolor illustrations
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Maker and Mark: Current, Inc., Colorado Springs, Colorado 80941; Current markings appear on multiple boxes
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Pattern or Model: Here's What's Cookin' Single Recipe Card Assortment, Herb Garden Double Recipe Cards, Here's What's Cookin' Recipe Card Assortment, and yellow stove-design assortment
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Style: Late 1970s retro kitchen stationery and paper ephemera
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Dimensions: Herb Garden double cards measure approximately 6 inches by 5 inches; the remaining cards measure 5 inches by 3 inches
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Special Features: Four original boxes, several card formats, multiple illustrated designs, blank writing lines, and one handwritten family note found inside the yellow box
Condition Grade: Good
Positives
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Graded Good: The blank cards are clean and usable, while the original boxes remain intact with visible storage wear and incomplete contents.
- The cards have not been written on according to Pam's inspection.
- The illustrations remain colorful and readable, including herbs, strawberries, fruit, vegetables, and an old-fashioned kitchen stove.
- The Herb Garden assortment retains its larger double-card format, while the other assortments use the standard 5 inch by 3 inch format.
- All four boxes retain their printed fronts, and the Current, Inc. identification remains readable.
- A handwritten note from a son to his mother remains tucked inside the yellow box and will stay with the lot.
Issues / Wear
- None of the four boxes contains its original full quantity of cards. The cards were not counted.
- The yellow box is less than half full. The other three boxes are approximately three-quarters full according to Pam's visual inspection.
- The yellow stove-design box shows heavier rubbing, staining, edge loss, surface marks, and softened corners.
- The green Herb Garden box has creases, rubbed edges, small tears, and compression along the lid and corners.
- The cream boxes show bent tabs, rubbed corners, small tears, discoloration, and handling marks.
- The pale insert visible inside the yellow box has widespread spotting and brown discoloration.
Condition Grade Key
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Near Fine: Almost perfect. Very minor signs of age only.
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Very Good: Shows light use. Sound and attractive with minor flaws.
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Good: Complete and intact. Noticeable wear consistent with age and use.
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Fair: Shows significant wear. Readable or usable but clearly used.
Collector's Notes
The visible 1978 and 1979 dates place two assortments in the late 1970s. Recipe cards like these gave home cooks an organized way to record and exchange family favorites.
The four boxes carry fruit, vegetable, herb, berry, and stove artwork. Their range suits a collector of retro kitchen paper goods or Current, Inc. stationery.
The cards include both standard single cards and larger Herb Garden double cards. The two formats provide room for short recipes as well as longer instructions.
The handwritten note was found at the bottom of the yellow box. Leaving it with the cards preserves a small family moment without separating it from the place it was kept.
