danforth pewter

First of all in case you were unaware pewter is a generally non-tarnishing metal made from tin and copper (i believe) that can be polished to look like silver or left matte. Lasts forever with little work is the real message here.Items they make on site are all beautiful and reasonably priced. Focus is more on knick-knacks (candle holders, ornaments, mugs etc.), baby items and jewelry, lots of beautiful jewelry. They also make the most beautiful oil lamps you will ever see that are modern takes on a classic idea. Very much a worthwhile short drive from downtown.

It is great to see a business which has been run by a family for generations. The quality craftsmanship is evident. Unfortunately, there was no work going on during my visit, but it was fun to look at all of the wonderful pewter items in the shop. There are so many items which are perfect for gifts or keepsakes to be handed down. Santa's Workshop is absolutely adorable. I have purchased Christmas ornaments, buttons, key chains and zipper pulls, as well as other items. Oil lamps are on my wish list.

I will start by saying that I did not visit the factory. I was watching "How it's Made" on TV. One of the topics for the show was Pewter Oil Lamps. These are hand crafted oil lamps and this segment of the program showed the craftsmanship that goes into these lamps. I ordered the Mariner Lamp as my first purchase and we loved it. A day later I ordered the Captain & Skipper as well. All three appear to be part of a series of three and one just smaller than the next. They should be an heirloom to pass down to family in the years to come. They are a bit pricey with the largest ringing in at $210.00 but quality craftsmanship is well worth the money spent. I plan on buying two additional lamps in the near future for the bedroom. Thanks Danforth.

This was really worth a stop - you can watch pewter items poured into molds or shaped on a lathe. The staff was very helpful and knowledgeable and we were able to get some great gifts and Christmas items. Note: use your GPS to find the store, the signs on the road were a bit confusing.

We recently visited relatives in Vermont and made a special trip to Middlebury to visit Danforth Pewter. I had previously ordered items online and was so pleased with their quality and service that I thought it would be interesting to see their products in person and to learn more about their long, fascinating history. We were two couples and all of us very much enjoyed the visit. First of all, it is a treat to find such beautiful, handcrafted items proudly made in Vermont, USA and the vast array of elegantly designed products is amazing. Even though it is a retail store, it seems more like a museum because of the quality of everything that is produced. We slowly made our way around the space because the items, whether an oil lamp, cheese knife or ornament, seemed to beckon for a closer look. And then in the back of the store there actually is a small museum area that has many of the original, historic pewter pieces with excellent descriptions of each plus some books offering more information. After we had seen everything well, we made some purchases which included holiday ornaments, jewelry and a money clip, a couple of which were to be engraved and shipped to us. Those have since arrived and are beautiful! The purchaser of the initialed money clip is very happy with his choice and I am thrilled with my fern pendant necklace which elicits compliments every time I wear it. Plus we are all looking forward to enjoying the holiday ornaments along with giving some as gifts. I purchased the 2014 ornament for friends in France since they were thrilled with the engraved Sonoma wine coaster we had gifted them during a recent visit. I am very proud of these American crafted pewter items which help to represent our culture and history. Therefore I am very pleased to have discovered Danforth Pewter and to say it is well worth the visit!

We watched how pewter was shaped into vases that day. There is a mini-factory on display inside the main showroom.

I love this place...I have just finished working my 3rd summer at the local camp and as a staff we receive a Danforth key ring of a canoe as a gift of our continued efforts. I knew this and decided I wanted to look in the shop in the center of town to see if I could buy another one for myself to remind myself of my time in Vermont, USA.As soon as I entered the shop the lady was EXTREMLY helpful, polite and made me feel very welcome!I ended up buying a Lovermont key ring.I have just arrived back home in New Zealand and proudly showed my family my Danforth key rings explaining how they were made locally to the camp and how much I loved their collection.Thank you Danforth!!Keep up the great work, good luck with your business!!

Since I was in town, I could pick up the regular items like ornaments and save on shipping. Such a nice shop now located on Main Street in Midd as well.

One early impression of western Vermont; they are quite proud of, and true to, their heritage of handcrafts. Now, I have a particular interest in pewter, and so I was quite tempted to see this place, especially after pausing briefly in their retail store in the city center.We were warmly greeted and led to the rear of their showroom, where big glass windows allow visitors to watch the workshop areas as new pieces are being meticulously created. Our guide was fully knowledgeable about pewter, its manufacture and history, and the particularly interesting origins of this workshop.Having seen the craft in practice made us linger while shopping the retail section of the shop, and we departed with a couple of to-be-cherished pieces.There's no admission charge here, but if you care at all about well-crafted metalwork, be prepared to part with some dollars!

My husband and I passed thru Middlebury today. In addition to their main store where they make the products, Danforth opened a space in the center of town (very easy to find : ) near other small shops. The woman in the store was incredibly helpful and authentically very enthusiastic to share the history of the business. I feel this business is quintessentially Vermont. Their products are top notch, of beautiful quality and workmanship. It is a small business of less than 50 people who are committed to their work and community. It shows. They have products with price points from a couple dollars to some very beautiful high end pieces. Even the more expensive ones are well within a fair price and not like a piece of art that the average person can't afford.I strongly disagree with the person "givemeabrake" that said almost nothing under $50. That is totally untrue. The store is filled with many, many, many items for less than $20.00... from jewelry to Christmas ornaments, to buttons, to spoons, hair barrettes, key chains. There are too many to name.As a Vermonter, I am very proud to have Danforth selling such beautiful products in a number of locations in our state and at prices so many can afford.

This is a hard place to find even with a GPS. The workshop shuts down at 4 but there is a video that shows the entire production process. Many beautiful items but definitely high end prices. Be sure to check out the charms and tree ornaments. The clerk was very helpful even though we were pushing the closing time.

We were looking for a specific color and size of frame and we finally found it at the main store! The people were very nice! One of the ladies gave us a quick tour of how the frames are made!

Danforth Pewterers makes tasteful objects in pewter and their store in Middlebury deserves a visit. It is done in excellent taste with a few hand-made objects from Vermont to complement (ex: a book called Good Night Vermont for children). It is an expensive store, with almost nothing under $50. Visitors can watch the objects being made through a glass window. They have an excellent choice of gifts for babies (spoons, bowls, cups, all in pewter, very well wrapped.)They also have a nice catalogue and ship everywhere.They are a little hard to find but you can ask for a map of this pretty small town at any store.

Okay, I'm going to gush a bit, so forgive me: we loved this place!This is a small manufacturer of hand-made pewter items, still in the hands of the husband and wife owners. They design most items themselves, and the end products are delightful! The work is all done on-site, and the large windows in the showroom give you a peek into an average workday making pewter objects. If that isn't enough, the very helpful staff in the retail store will happily show you a video which describes what is being done, and how everything is formed. Fascinating!I'd looked them up online, and seen several items I thought we would need to buy at their store, but grossly underestimated what I would find when we got here. Necklaces, earrings, Christmas ornaments, key rings, letter openers, bookmarks, candle holders, cake servers, oil lamps, pins... We bought early Xmas gifts, thank-you gifts for friends, wedding presents, birthday gifts, and a couple (!) of items just for us, too. The very friendly women in the store clearly wanted us to move to Vermont after all of this... They also suggested I ship the items rather than shlepping them all home, and cleverly held that box an extra day, in case we came back to pick up something else (we did.) I'm anxiously awaiting it's arrival - I can't wait for the fern necklace to remind me of all of our hikes in the lush Vermont mountains. This was the high point of our visit to Middlebury by far, and I'm thrilled to have found so many excellent, beautiful, hand-made and made-in-America items. This should definitely be on your list if you visit the area!

Danforth Pewter is a favorite stop when I visit Middlebury. The staff is incredibly friendly and the shop is set up in a manner where you can see the artisans at work. In previous visits, the staff has shown a video of the history of pewtersmithing.Since this is a store as well as a workshop, it is worth mentioning that the merchandise is of excellent quality and variety (I get compliments every time I wear the jewelry/use the other merchandise). Everything is attractively arranged with new and seasonal items available each time I've been there.I will be visiting Middlebury again this month and look forward to stopping in to see what's new. :)