The Pitcher With the 1500-Person Waitlist Is Back in Stock
Of all the colorful heritage treasures stored in the Dansk archives, it’s the Købenstyle hand-wrapped water pitcher that tends to strike an emotional chord with the Danish-designed cookware brand’s ardent fans. For years, vintage shops were among the only sources for the pieces. That was until Food52 acquired Dansk from Lenox in 2021, and reissued the piece in a limited-edition drop this spring. Selling out in one day, the sale spawned a waitlist of more than 1,500 people eager to brighten their table settings with the pitcher.
The patience has paid off. As of today, Dansk has restocked the Købenstyle pitcher, and those quick enough to act might actually be able to snag one. (Though those too slow to cart can rest assured, this first-ever product reissue will be followed up with plenty more archive reboots.)
New Yorkers Martha and Ted Nierenberg, who were enraptured by the talents of designer Jens Quistgaard during a trip to Copenhagen, founded Dansk in 1954, naming Quistgaard the creative helm. The company quickly became an emblem of everyday midcentury modernism, introducing Americans to the sleek minimalism defining the Scandinavian aesthetic. The versatile and sculptural pitcher, brought to life in 1956 by Quistgaard, is part of the sturdy Købenstyle collection spanning the likes of saucepans, casserole dishes, and petite butter warmers crafted from enamel steel.
For Christine Muhlke, Dansk brand strategist, the pitcher stands out “for its rattan-inspired handle, a style that went out of production in the mid 1960s and remained a collectible,” she tells AD PRO. “It’s so iconically Dansk.”
By tapping into a trove of well-preserved archival drawings and the memory of Chris Hacker—Dansk’s former vice president of design who began working at the company in the 1970s—Muhlke and her team were able to reproduce the pitcher aligned to Quistgaard’s initial vision. Swathed in its original shades of sunny yellow, chile pepper red, teal, and classic white, the pitcher was reintroduced in the largest of the three sizes that were first brought to the market some seven decades ago.
