The Museum of Salt and Pepper Shakers

You know I couldn't be in Gatlinburg without visiting the Museum of Salt and Pepper Shakers. We visited for the first time in 2009, and then again in 2011. It is just as fun every time! The museum is right off the main strip in Gatlinburg and is just three bucks to get in! It is a MUST for any vintage/kitsch lover. We have a salt and pepper shaker collection, so that makes it even better! I've got around 50 sets now, but I didn't see very many of them in this over 20,000 they have at the museum. It is such a fun thing to collect because there are endless sets to find out in the world.

I took almost 100 photos inside! But I narrowed it down to around 30 for you. It helped that I took tons of pictures of things I took pictures of the last two times I was there! Haha, there are some motifs I just can't resist!

 Corn with amazing mustaches. 

 This kind of gives you an idea of what the cases look like. So amazing. They are organized in categories. It is really fun to play I Spy and try to stump the other person.

 I love those weird little pepper babies! And look at the freaky eyes on the little pea pod guy in the bottom left! I didn't notice that one until I looked at the pictures later.

 Travis likes it there too. Really! 

 Viking cats.

 I want a cute set like this, with paprika and cumin, since we use those a lot. 

 That mouse coming out of the cheese kills me! I think it is his little legs.

 I can't decide which duck couple is the cutest.

 Ugggggh, this makes me want to built tons of little shelves and color coordinate my collection.

 I would LOVE to have a set like the JFK on the chair. How cute is that?

 A great little walnut craft section. Oooh look at those! The fish! And the squirrels!

 A little section of flocked sets. I have the orange pig set!

I like all the Florida vacation sets together. I really want a flamingo set but I haven't seen one in all my vintage shopping that wasn't super expensive.

 I thought the clasped hands were so pretty!

 The big headed deer are another set I would LOVE to have! They were big, probably six inches tall.

A shop near me has that great skull set for sale! But it is over 50 bucks, and my limit for shakers is about 12. But I would love it in my collection!

 I love their sweet expressions. And that mouse who looks like he is judging them. 

 Those donuts! One of my favorites in the whole museum.

I wish I could have gotten a clearer picture, but look at that mad bowling ball! It is in a weird spot too, so even funnier. He looks especially cute next to the dopey pin.

Though most of the museum showcases the figural sets, there is a section of classic shakers. Lots of jadeite and depression glass and metal ones. I just breeze by that section usually. Give me things with faces!

They have these maps up with pins showing where their visitors are from. The big pins you can see are for collectors, there are tons more thinner pins for everyone else. I was happy to put up our collector pin! If you are in the area, you have GOT to check this museum out. It is fun every time, even though not much changed. Last time we were there it was for sale, but the signs weren't up this time. How amazing would that collection be to have? Maybe someday I'll have my own crazy museum filled with my personal collections.

Museum of Salt and Pepper Shakers!

Did you think I was done with vacation photos? No way! I hope you aren't tired of them yet. I actually hate that no one who blogs ever posts much about their vacation. Maybe they do more relaxing than I do. Maybe they don't take pictures? I don't know. I LOVE seeing people's vacation photos so I can get ideas for my next trip. (which happens to be to florida in february for a wedding, which means, WIZARDING WORLD!) So anyway, one of the places you HAVE TO go to in Gatlinburg if you love vintage and kitsch is the Museum of the Salt and Pepper Shakers!


we went last time we were in town and it was just as awesome the second time.

so you can kind of get an idea of what it looks like.

this is the personal collection of the owner! over 20,000 sets!! they are organized in loose categories. that is one of the vegetable cases. even with that many shakers i saw barely any of the ones that I have in my collection.  You could probably collect them for your whole life and never collect all the sets that are out there.

these little dudes were in the ocean set. i'm not sure what they are supposed to be but i love them.

this shelf made me think of betty crafter!

so many owls. and squirrels.


LOVE those bostons! i wish all the sets were for sale.

dog section.


vacation sets, and cats! the cats were probably the cutest there.

i love the little blue and orange ducks, and the ducks with the long intwined necks!

did i mention one of my best friends, dana, came and joined us for the day? so awesome! we were in teh museum for a few hours. you can kind of play i spy with each other. and take a million pictures.

map of visitors. the big pins are for collectors.
So the Salt and Pepper Shaker museum is awesome! It only costs three bucks! And that goes towards any purchase in the gift shop. But she has the sets priced REALLY high in the gift shop. The museum is actually for sale now! So if you feel like you could make it your career...

Collection 1: Salt and Pepper Shakers

i love looking at the things that people collect, so i thought it would be fun to share my collections! First up, my salt and pepper shaker collection.this is most of it. there are a few new shakers that aren't pictures, but my collection is mostly about vintage (and animals apparently.) I find it really easy to tell when shakers are vintage vs. modern but when i try to explain it i have a hard time. you can just tell by the way it is made. but if you flip them over you can find some easy clues:

 made in japan and cork bottoms will almost always guarantee a vintage find.  occupied japan is even better.
 i don't look for valuable/rare stuff, i just pick up stuff that i like. like these little owls painted like parrots. i usually only like to pay a few dollars a set as well. you can find all kinds of cute sets at antique malls. i don't find many good ones at thrifts or estate sales


you don't have to pass up a shaker just because its mate is missing. just make a cute new set. i loved that cat, and the donkey just kills me. what a sweet pair they make!

a friend gave me this pair as a thank you for watching her boyfriend's dachshund! isn't that cute? chloe might be staying with us again soon! i can't wait!

another gift from a friend. i love that they are obviously squirrels (check on the acorns in their hands) but they were painted like skunks, with halloween cat eyes! i actually saw these a few times at a favorite antique mall but always resisted. then i got them for christmas! perfect!

 i love vacation/tourist sets too! i have a few from florida.  orange flocked pigs with magic wands make you think of florida right? so that is part of my collection! i think we have around 30 sets. we display them on little house shaped shelves in the "cat hall" (where the litter boxes are) very glamourous. if you like salt and pepper shakers, and find yourself in gatlinburg, tennessee, definitely check out the salt and pepper shaker museum. there are THOUSANDS of vintage shakers all arranged by theme. a whole huge case of food! and holiday! and travel! and owls! we will definitely be back on our gatlinburg trip this fall.