Let’s Party with Fiesta Dinnerware

At Chef’s Corner Store, we sell products we love. If we love them, we feel confident our customers will too. Several of us have Fiesta dinnerware in our own kitchens, and we use it daily. We began selling Fiesta dinnerware in 2021, and we’ve been so pleased to see how much our customers love it too. As we eagerly await the launch of Fiesta’s newest color -- Sky -- we’d love to tell you more about the history of this iconic line.

Fiesta History

Fiesta dinnerware was introduced by the Homer Laughlin Company in 1936 as an answer to the dreary days of the Great Depression. Families loved the American-made, brightly colored, heavy-duty pottery that could stand up to busy life without chipping or breaking. Fiesta dinnerware was also far more cost-effective than a set of fine china.

Fiesta was originally introduced in only five colors: a bright orange-red, green, yellow, blue, and ivory. Turquoise was launched the following year. Production of the orange-red color was briefly suspended during World War II when the government took over the uranium supply. (Uranium oxide was used in the glaze to achieve this brilliant color.) Other than that, Fiesta’s color lineup remained unchanged until the 1950s.

New colors were introduced and retired throughout the decades in an effort to keep up with changing tastes and styles. The colors consisted of softer earthy tones like rose, chartreuse, gray, medium green, antique gold, and turf green. However, the new colors never reached the popularity of the originals, and Fiesta dinnerware was retired in 1972.

In 1985, Bloomingdale’s approached Homer Laughlin about resurrecting the once-popular line. The following year, Fiesta was relaunched with a new color palette, made from the same restaurant-quality, American-made pottery as the original Fiesta dinnerware. The relaunch was an instant success, and Fiesta dinnerware has been in demand ever since.

Fiesta introduces a new color every year to help feed our collector spirits. Modern Fiesta dinnerware won’t register on a Geiger counter (like vintage orange-red Fiesta will). It is also lead safe, meaning it complies with FDA regulations and California Proposition 65.

A Color Story

Over the decades, Fiesta has introduced 55 colors. There are currently 14 colors in circulation. Fiesta dinnerware is made to last, with sturdy construction and a five-year warranty. But if you need to replace a piece, or you simply wish to expand your collection, Fiesta makes it easy to find out whether your preferred color is still around. Their Color History page lists all the Fiesta colors, along with their years of production. Some colors have been going strong for decades, like White and Turquoise and Sunflower, while some colors come and go within the span of only two years.

Should you learn that your beloved color has been discontinued, all is not lost. It is easier than ever to track down the piece you need. Thrift stores and antique stores are usually flush with Fiesta dinnerware.

If the piece or color you’re looking for is more specialized, limited in production, or from the original run of Fiesta dinnerware, we recommend Replacements Ltd. This site is known for sourcing hard-to-find dinnerware. Pricing is usually based on the scarcity and desirability of the piece.

We look forward to launching Sky -- the latest color from Fiesta -- in late April. We hope you’ll visit us to check it out. In the meantime, visit our  YouTube channel to see our videos showing Fiesta dinnerware colors under different lighting conditions. We also hope you'll share a picture of your Fiesta-filled cabinets on Facebook or Instagram.