Tea/Coffee

 

 

  WHEN TEA'S A CROWD

JAPANESE BLUE & WHITE ART DECO

Tea Party for Seven (7)

 

Here is a part tea cup service of 7 tea cups and saucers for your fine tea party with friends. Included is a bonus 4 saucers, which may be perfect for bon bons or wedges of lemon or perhaps to set your creamer upon.

The fine quality expected of old Japanese porcelains, the original creators of porcelain, is evident here in these beautiful Art Deco forms. Sleek clean lines and colours of the 1950s do not compromise their translucency in direct light. This set makes a splendid table setting for that perfect tea party.

Maker ………. Unknown
Year …………. ?1950s - MCM (Mid Century Modern)
Origin ………. Japan
Mark ……….. Back-stamp: Horseshoe & Clover
Item ………… Tea Cups & Saucers
Style ……….. Art Deco, linear trumpet body, footless, angular handles, edged pin stripes, blue & white.


Size & Condition:
CUPS ………….. to come: H: cm, D: cm, Handle to handle: cm.
Very good condition with a little wear to pin striping, no cracks, nicks, chips or repairs that I can see.
SAUCERS …….. H: cm, D: cm,
Very good condition with a little wear to pin striping, no cracks, nicks, chips or repairs that I can see.

More Info:

A back-stamp of horseshoe and clover is possibly a generic mark used by one of the numerous porcelain factories which set up in Japan during its recovery post World War II. I have been unable to determine from which factory they were produced but simply admired their fine quality.

(reposting/sharing of this item requires link back to this page, thank you)

This set is from my own personal collection of fine porcelains and have dearly enjoyed using them but it is now time to allow another admirer a little time to relish their quality and beauty.

IN STORE NOW

 

A BLOCK ON A TEA

JAPANESE EGG SHELL PORCELAIN & WOOD BLOCK PRINT

Kyo-yaki  -  Akae  -  Kakiemon

What the? I hear you say. And that's exactly what I thought when I saw this gorgeous little tea cup and saucer. 

A quick study of the print revealed itself to be genuine wood block print...I know this from my university days as a graphic artist ( which nothing like mod kids would think - we printed on ancient machinery creating wood block, lithograph and etchings ). I didn't think it was possible - yet here it is.

So the charge for more information lead straight to the big www and this is what I found - condensed version of course.

This is a kyo-yaki, or to you and me an 'egg shell' porcelain, as thin as egg shells if you like. An amazing type of porcelain which was first used in Japan during the Edo period of 1603 - 1868, some have been so thin that no light is required to test its transparency. Also during this period was the introduction of printing on porcelain with the aid of a hand carved wood block. I'm not sure how long this style of decoration lasted as many makers would have found it difficult to leave a perfect print due to the enamels (paint) lubrication between both surfaces resulting in slipping during printing. Enamel decoration on porcelain is referred to as 'Akae'. Without a exceedingly steady hand this may have been often. Information regarding this style of printed porcelain is quite limited and rarely mentioned, if ever.

Then there is also a style of Japanese porcelain produced by the Kakiemon family company. Often referred to as 'Kakiemon' itself, it features quite delicate designs with enamel decorations sparsely applied so as to emphasise the beauty of the milky-white porcelain. Another of their features is a fine red lip, which you can see quite easily here.

After what I have just related to you all, you could be forgiven for believing you are looking at an Edo Period porcelain - but alas, you are not. How do I know? Simple. I turned the cup over to find a red romanji (alphabetical writing) mark stating "MADE IN JAPAN" and although this backstamp of red dates from the 1940s and the 1950s there have been numerous exceptions to this date with items as early as the 1920s baring the same mark.

If like myself, you enjoy tea from beautiful cups, then I believe this to be more than worthy. But surely something this wonderful is on someone's wish list for a special occassion, or to add splendour to a collection.

IN STORE NOW

HOSTESS WITH THE MOSTEST

RARE ROYAL VINTAGE 5 PIECE HOSTESS SET

No longer available .....

How I delighted in this amazing find. Again, I had no idea what I had. Yes, it was Royal Albert, that was good. Yes, it was a complete set, that was also good. And yes, it was named "American Beauty" as it was clearly marked in the floral backstamp. Many nights ensued trawling the vast 3w's (www.) to uncover some very interesting facts about Royal Albert's mysterious Five Piece Hostess Set (for that it was called). A few select sight knew of its' existence yet no one could actually tell you of what it consisted.

Much more research and sleepless nights revealed that my mystery was solved. I had purchased this gorgeous set as an intact, complete set. What luck! It made my understanding of the Five Piece Hostess Set so much easier.

Each PIECE is not as modern terms dictates (counting cup and saucer as two pieces) but rather reference to how many settings are contained within.  One piece consists of the tea pot, lid and under plate. Another of a cup and saucer. While the creamer and sugar bowl count as individual pieces each. Thus, in total five pieces.

This beautiful 5pc Hostess Set revels in the glory of the rarer than rare 2 cup Mini Tea Pot and the ever unheard of Tea Pot Under Plate (which at first I thought may have been the under plate to the butter keeper but was still the wrong size).

Another delight found within the set are the 'MALVERN' style tea cups. These elegant handled cups are often found with missing handles due to the fact that they rise up above the rim of the cup which causes them to be easily damaged and broken. Yet here they are in perfect condition ... as is every piece in this set.

In the back of my mind I wish that no one will buy my delightful set and I will have to keep it and use it myself, he-he-he. But, alas, I know it will go. And now I must also, to find my treasures out there in the big wide world and bring them to you.

There are more photographs and details about this AMAZING set in my etsy store RESTOREDau.

Visit me there and enjoy a stroll through my store. If you would like more information or are just curious than you can also contact me through the store.

Ever Yours - n - Earl Grey's

Camielle

NO LONGER AVAILABLE

MYSTERIOUS MYOTT

I do not profess myself to be an expert on anything really but believe research is the key to unlocking the identity to many pieces. Nothing excites me more than finding out the name of a maker or even the name of a pattern. Myott is one of those makers that has eluded and mislead me on occasion so I needed to undertake some extensive research to that end, and this is what I have discovered. Hopefully it will inspire you to seek out Myott instead of tossing it aside because you've never heard of it.

MYOTT - LYN PATTERN

MYOTT - FINLANDIA PATTERN - SOLD

So the story goes...

Once upon a time a young man from Switzerland took the trade of a potter in merry old England at the Alexander Pottery, Stoke-On-Trent, upon Wolfe Street (often referred to as the Wolfe St Pottery).

 His name was Ashley Myott. In 1898 is boss sadly passed and nineteen year old Ashley assumed control of the pottery renaming it MYOTT SON & CO LTD, making him the "YOUNGEST INDEPENDANT POTTER OF THE PERIOD".

From 1989 to 1902 Business grew at the Alexander Pottery under his intuative guidence and Myott soon out-grew its Wolfe St Pottery, so the decision was made to move to Brownfield's Works in Cobridge and extend in to Upper Hanley Pottery which was purchased from Grimwades in 1925, establishing the Alexander Potteries.

Soon came the colourful, geometics of the Art Deco, which Myott embraced and by the 1930s had artists such as Clarice Cliff and Susie Cooper among others, handpainting pieces. Myott designers & artists were not identified as the pieces were never signed.  Blue and red colours were infrequently used in the colour schemes then, but demand high prices today, if you can find them.

A grand colaboration took place between heavy weights, Myott & Goldscheider, an Austrian company, creating beautiful figurines and masks until 1950.

But alas, the world of Myott FELL TO FIRE in 1949, DESTROYING RECORDS & PATTERN BOOKS, which has impeded many a Myott lover in identifying and dating their pieces. But pottery goes on...and a move to the Crane Street Pottery was instigated but recovery was difficult.

Soon came the might of the largest United States company, Interlace, and owner ship of Myott was relanquished in 1969, yet the "Myott" name still stood as its trading name.

Everyone wanted Myott, and in 1976 the business merged with Alfred Meakin Ltd and was later known as Myott-Meakin Ltd. In 1989, Myott-Meakin added 'Staffordshire' to their backstamp, linking their wares back to its roots; as aquired by Melton Modes.

Finally, we say good-bye to what remained of Myott in 1991 as the company was "swallowed" by the Churchill Group Potteries. Many of the original patterns have been reproduced since. Which is why you will find 'FINLANDIA' pieces with many different backstamps.

Here is a sample of Finlandia backstamps.

1950s +  ???

1982 +

1982 +

1976 +

1991 +

Now as I first said, I am no expert, and if you feel the need to set me straight about some of these details which have been accumulated from sites like: Myotts Collectors Club, The Potteries.org, Collectors Weekly and others, please do. I would love to hear from you.

SEE WHAT'S IN STORE NOW