Daher Designed Tins

In 1952, Daher Limited Manufacturing began operations, manufacturing tin boxes and tinware items in England and Holland. They were all designed by and carried the distinctive Designed by Daher mark as shown here. This is the printed mark, but some were imprinted in the metal of the bottom of the item. The pieces were of beautiful quality artwork, and were very popular among those who received them. The tins are now considered "vintage."

In 1980, the company ceased retail operations and began to be a wholesale only company and the name was changed to The Tin Box Company. All manufacturing was moved to China. Since 1998 the company has concentrated on manufacturing and wholesale of licensed tin merchandise. The pieces are now designed for commercial use, and no longer designed by Daher.

The Designed by Daher items were manufactured in the 1940s, 50s, 60s and 70s. You can find these vintage tin boxes with the Daher mark while shopping online, and on ebay, etsy, or yard sales, and antique stores, though they are not antiques.

One caution, some Daher designed products have been damaged. Always make sure before you buy, that the finish is not scratched, the item is unbent, and a top (if any) closes. If they are not in pristine condition, they are neither decorative nor useful.

If you can bring yourself to give a Daher tin away, fill it with homemade goodies and present it to someone special. They'll treasure it long after the cookies or candy are gone. (This is when it comes in handy to have duplicate tins so you can still keep one you like for yourself.) I usually put the food into a plastic bag before putting it in the tin, so that it doesn't dry out.

As I mentioned before I use my tins as a decoration on top of my kitchen cabinets. They can also be used for tea bags or coffee, or to hold buttons, nicknacks, barretts, etc. Oh, and those little notions you find around the house that never seem to fit anywhere...well, they fit just fine in a beautiful Daher Designed tin. What's more, they even look great doing it.

A couple years back, on my 70th birthday, my family threw me a surprise birthday party. We had told people not to bring gifts, but some folks did anyway. My niece knows I collect Daher Designed tins, and she found a beautiful little one and used it for my birthday gift. As you can see here in this photo, it was hilarious when I opened it. It was filled with 70-$1 bills, taped end-to-end, in a tight roll in this little can. In the photo you can see the can in my lap and the ribbon of bills all over me!