SIX TIPS FOR FINDING RAE DUNN POTTERY
Today I am sharing everything I know about Rae Dunn Pottery, including where to find Rae Dunn and how to start your own Rae Dunn collection.
Let’s face it. Have you ever found yourself in the parking lot in front of Homegoods at 9:25 am waiting for them to open? Have you ever followed people into TJMaxx convinced they are heading to the “white dishes aisle” too? Or have you noticed that every recycled bag you own has a TJ Maxx logo on it?
If you can answer “yes” to all three of these questions then you are truly a Rae Dunn addict.
I have no idea how Rae Dunn pottery became so popular but the buying frenzy surrounding these white pottery dishes with handwritten black letters on them reminds me a lot of the Beanie Baby craze in the late 1990’s. In both cases, women all over the country were lining up to buy a very inexpensive item that was high on demand and short in supply.
Trust me, I know all of this because I am right there with you. I love Rae Dunn Pottery. I read all of the “Rae Dunn B/S/T” group posts on Facebook and used to check the Mercari app on my iphone daily to check the prices of the “hard to find” items.
A lot of people don’t even know who Rae Dunn is. Rae Dunn is a California native and resides in the San Francisco, Bay Area. She has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Industrial Design and worked in graphics and fashion design for several years before discovering clay, which has now been her passion since 1994.
Rae Dunn pottery (with the big letters) is currently sold primarily at HomeGoods, TJMaxx, and Marshalls. There are a few products on the Magenta website but most of them are Rae’s other pottery designs (not the big letter ones). The supply has been way less than the demand and unfortunately, there used to be a lot of “shelf cleaners” who travel from store to store to buy all of the product and then resell. Sadly, a lot of these “resellers” have made arrangements with the stores where they can call and have all of the items held for them. They infiltrated the stores, got to know the employees and basically were able to buy the product before everyone else. Although there is a lot of Rae Dunn pottery available for purchase, there are way more buyers than inventory.
It seems that things are changing. Apparently corporate at TJMaxx is aware of the problem and they have told stores they are no longer allowed to respond to calls about their Rae Dunn inventory and also cannot hold the Rae Dunn items for anyone. It also seems there is a bit more inventory on the shelves.
Where have I found Rae Dunn dishes and Rae Dunn mugs? TJ Maxx has been my best source for my Rae Dunn Collection. I usually shop the aisles quickly at TJ Maxx looking for new Rae Dunn items anytime I am in the store.
I have also found a lot of Rae Dunn clearance items in the stores. Be sure to check the clearance aisle because you just might find Rae Dunn on sale!
I often get asked if I use my Rae Dunn collection. Of course, I do! I love to set tables with my collection and I even wrote a blog post titled How to Set a Table with Rae Dunn.
I used my Rae Dunn for a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner.
Look at this adorable Christmas table I set with these holiday-themed Rae Dunn dishes!
I also use my canisters every single day.
If you are wondering why I have two coffee canisters, one is for regular and one is for decaf.
So far I have only been able to find one mug with my boy’s names on it. If you see a mug for Andrew and/or Matthew let me know!
Over the years I have been really lucky and have found quite a bit of Rae Dunn dishes on the shelves (hence the photos above). But I think I have been smart about my shopping and I am happy to share my tips with you.
S I X T I P S F O R F I N D I N G R A E D U N N
- Follow the Rae Dunn Facebook groups so you are aware of what products are being released in the stores. That way you will know what to look for! When the flower pots first came out a lot of collectors were only looking in the dishes aisle and they missed them! When the office products were released the same thing happened.
- Talk to the people who work at your local store. They will tell you which days and times they receive shipments. This will help you to determine the best time to shop.
- Check for the pottery in the store aisles but check more than once. I can’t tell you how many times I have walked right past canisters and flower pots!
- Check the merchandise carts. I have found at least half of my collection on the carts in the aisles!
- If you are looking for mugs, be aware most stores stock them in three to four different places. Check everywhere as you just might find them where you least expect it.
- Don’t just shop when the store opens. I have found some of my best items when stopping by a store in the afternoon. One time I happened to glance through the door to the stockroom. Sitting right there in plain view were two teapots on the shelf of an empty cart. I waited patiently and when a stock boy came out I nicely asked him if I could buy them. He happily loaded them into my cart. (In hindsight, I now realize that the two teapots were probably “on hold” for someone since they were sitting there all alone. Oh well, sorry about that!).
Good luck with shopping. I hope you don’t get frustrated if you can’t find what you are looking for. Keep trying and you just might find that RaeDunn unicorn!
I also had a personal conversation with Rae about how to take care and use her pottery. You can find that blog post here.
For more real-time updates, follow me on Instagram @My100YearOldHome
I work for TJMaxx and our managers do not allow any associates or customers to hold Rae Dunn. We have to be on break or lunch and the item has to be on the shelf before we can purchase it. They said if we cant hold for external customers, we will not hold for internal customers either. I realize that every store is different but at my store, we want it to be fair and fun! The hunt makes it so much more exciting. Happy hunting, everyone!!!
I have a question, as a newish collector what fb pages do you suggest following to find out about the release of new products??
There is a facebook group called Rae Dunn Newbies. You can also join your local Rae Dunn groups for your state or city.
I would love soup/cereal bowls. Anyone seen any recently?
P.s. just bought my first RD on friday! 3 cute mugs, i didnt know anything about just thought they were cute. Now in love! ????
i have passed by 2-4 cereal bowl that jsut continue to sit on the same shelf im praying to find the Coffee canister. NJ
I started collecting RAE DUNN about 1 year ago. Mostly have cereal bowls and mugs and the Sugar and Creamer.
However, my husband hit the jackpot the other day at Homegoods. He surprised me with a TEA canister, LOAF pan, BAKE pan, larger square CAKE pan and the Dash and Pinch bowls. He was there at 6:00 pm. He spent about $60 for everything! I was so happy.
I really wanted the POUR pitcher and was not able to find it and I broke down and actually bought it on eBay. It’s amazing how much people are sell.
Homegoods seems to have more variety of RD items and noticed that that TJ Maxx store has more if the coffee mugs and cereal bowls.
I started collecting in November and my collection grew so fast because of some lovely Rae Dunn friends I made along the way. If you are a newbie to collecting please please get a “Dunn Buddy”. Make friends with other people at Home Goods that are hunting for Rae just like you. I have all the “staple” canisters , pour, tools, small sugar & cream, lots of cereal bowls, mugs, and mixing bowls because of all of the amazing people I’ve met along the way. You have to go to openings, driving during the day, and even check before closing if you are wanting to score some items. Keep checking and never give up!
I am a newbie to RD, and i am checking every other day. Thanks for your insight, it is greatly appreciated. I have so many things I want but my first choices are canisters.
If you are frustrated you haven’t been finding RD at TJ Maxx the past few days it’s because we are in the middle of getting ready for inventory and we aren’t getting any New merchandise of any kind right now! Give us poor employees a break…… please. It was a long, busy retail season. I had an customer give me a hard time about RD the other day. She acted liked we were holing it out intentionally!
we received “grandma” and “grandpa” mugs for Christmas. We absolutely luv them. But now I find I am bit by the bug! Lol. My daughter collects Rae Dunn and has a good collection. I bought my first pieces from mercari and thought I was doing good, but now I realize there is quite a mark up on the prices. It is kind of disheartening to think there are so many people wanting the products and so many people are black marketing pieces. I can overcome, after all, I overcame the “cabbage patch” phase! Lol. Good luck to all you newbies out there, we will make it.
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I’m not your typical ” Dunner” . I love the simplicity of the collection. I’m not into farmhouse, I’m actually into modern, but Dunn works everywhere! I have found items at the usual stores and have seen the shelf clearers, they are vicious! But I get excited when I find my little plate or mug or container. My collection is small but it fits my home, the space and my personality, it’s Dunn right and I guess I’m not Dunn either!!
I’m not your typical collector.i My collection is small but I love it. I’m not into farmhouse, I actually love modern, but the simplicity of the pieces work in my home. I’ve seen the “shelf clearers” and they are vicious! I look at my tiny collection and think ” I’ve Dunn good” and “I’m not Dunn “!
Try https://www.peachybeeboutique.com/ for boutique RD items you can’t find in the retail stores. Pricing is fair and customer service is great. New items are added all the time.
I love your collection!! I’m a bit confused though. I have seen some pieces stamped with an “M” at Homegoods. I know this is for Magenta, the parent to Rae Dunn. My question is…if it just has an M on the bottom, how do I know if it’s a Rae Dunn piece? I saw a tray today that has erasers on it and I believe it was a RD piece, but couldn’t be sure bc it had “Magenta” with the M on it. Help please! Thanks!!!
I just started my small collection; which has way too many mugs (that’s about all I get to choose from by the time I make it there) right before Christmas. I have all I can fit in my limited space, but still need the creamer (I bought “pour” and when I got home the font is smaller and what I need to go with my sugar is cream), the coffee and tea canisters, and I’d love to get the three mixing bowls then I’ll be all dunn (snicker). I noticed you have extra cream, coffee, and tea…if you ever want to sell, please contact me! I’m convinced the resellers or their agents get to my TJMaxx when doors open. The sales clerks are always telling me, “We had some earlier…” I don’t get off work until 4:30 pm…
Can you tell me how much a mug typically costs at Homegoods? I’m not sure how much is too much to pay when I find one on Amazon, because I’ve never been able to find any pieces in stores. Thanks!
A mug is 4.99. I find that the markup is considerably higher on eBay and Amazon. I feel that Mercari has more reasonably priced items. I was totally against paying an upcharge, but i really really wanted 2 LL Meow canisters and a LL teapot, so I ordered. Even at 19.00 plus 7.00 shipping, it’s a relatively inexpensive collecting habit to have.
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The stores in my area are charging $4.99 and up for mugs. I think the Happy Spring one with yellow interior was either $5.99 or $6.99, so the prices are increasing. I didn’t buy the mugs. I saw 2 last week. Actually the last RD mug I bought was in the local thrift store for 44 cents. I really just want the cookies canister, and a few more cereal bowls. Then I will truly be Dunn.
What’s the price range for the coffee canister and the Tea one. The small size?
Rae Dunn is available on Amazon. Prices are good.
If everyone would stop paying these ridiculously high prices people are charging for Dunn pieces I can guarantee you would be able to easily find her pieces. People would stop clearing the shelves if they knew they couldn’t make a fortune off doing it.