Finally, we have the thimblefuls. The origins of these oversized sewing accessories (they’re typically shot-glass sized, standing around 2" tall: Figure 13a) is obscure but they clearly existed long before they were used as an advertising medium. The unbranded versions are novelty items, fashioned to closely resemble a sewing thimble and bearing the usual inscription “Just a Thimbleful”. They can be obtained in sterling silver but the advertising variants were made from a metal alloy or more typically aluminum.

Figure 12

Many different thimblefuls survive, although in relatively small numbers. Since they’re not prone to breakage one has to assume that they were a more expensive form of getting the message out than their crystal counterparts. Company information appears on the cap [Figure 12] and many include an additional advertising line running just below the rim. For example, the Betterton thimble has a rim line that reads “JUST A THIMBLE FULL OF OLD WHITE OAK", whereas the Lancaster version assures us that "GOOD OLD QUALITY / WILL NEVER TARNISH" [Figure 13b].

Figure 13a	Figure 13b

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