A Dish-A-Holic Dishes On Some Favorites!

It's the weekend, and I'm reaching back into the past, to take a look at some of my favorite things.

Gee, can you guess?
If you guessed dishes, then you were right!


(Originally posted April 2009)

What do I have in common with Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth II, and the Prince of Wales? Read on. . . .


Pull up a chair.
I found a great bargain at a local thrift shop this week, and I've got to ... dish!

I am linking to a couple of fun weekend blog parties -- see the end of post for links.

Get comfortable. It's a long tale.
Last time I went thrifting, I spent about 5 bucks.

But now it is official. I need a keeper.

When I started my thrift shop trip this week, I figured I'd find a couple of things, spend a few bucks, come home with my modest treasures tucked into a single small bag. But . . . no.

Instead, I came home with my many treasures wrapped in bubble wrap and packed into two big boxes.

And I am willing to bet that you would have done the same thing!

Would you have walked away from Aynsley bone china?

Tatton Hall by Aynsley

My tablescape:

Tatton Hall is a discontinued pattern, but it has a very current color scheme, blue-green accented with just those bits of red, all on a border of palest yellowy-beige, picked out in shimmery gold.



Turquoise and red had some play in mid-20th-century home decor (especially kitchens) and nowadays it turns up in contemporary and cottage design. It's a variation on the classic pairing of the complementary colors of green and red.



All the dishes are like new -- no chips, no loss of brilliant gold trim, no knife marks. There was no way these pretties were staying on the thrift shop shelf!

The Bargain Barn is not the cheapest thrift shop around; its volunteers are pretty savvy about what things are worth. But this was a bargain:

4 dinner plates, 4 cups, 4 saucers, and 2 luncheon plates for $25.
14 pieces of Aynsley bone china for $25. Sweet.

Now, of course, I will haunt eBay and other sources for those missing luncheon size plates, and maybe for a few other pieces. I could get them through Replacements.com, but the cost would be way more than I would ever spend. A single dinner plate is listed for $38 on Replacements. Seriously?

Some details from today's table setting...

My grandmother's little glass dishes, nearly a century old, perfect for fruit or shrimp:

My old Georgian pattern silverplate, from various Ebay auctions:

Another eBay find, a huge, wide, hand-embroidered linen tablecloth, meticulously stitched in taupe. 12 matching napkins were included (although today I used plain white). All for less than $20, and in perfect condition.

Battenberg lace coasters. 6 for $4 at the thrift.

A cut crystal rose bowl, a gift years ago from a wonderful friend who knew how much I loved rose bowls, and that I'd never buy one for myself. (And at the time, really couldn't buy one for myself.)

Inside this beautiful bowl, glimmering turquoise colored glass, and a deep red candle for a soft glow:

So what about me and the royals? What do we have in common, other than our immense wealth and our many castles and our servants oddly called equerries?

Our dishes!

Aynsley, founded in 1775, made dishes for the two Queens and Prince Charles, although it's a safe bet the Royals didn't find their Aynsley at The Bargain Barn in Denville, New Jersey.

But then, the Royals don't have the cozy comfort of a
simple old American farmhouse in which to enjoy their Aynsley:

I am lucky. I'm going to leave this tablesetting in place, and
Howard and I can have our leftover chicken right here, tonight.

I bought a second set of dishes at the same shop, and a few other things, but I passed on a gorgeous big ironstone pitcher, vintage, brown & white transferware design -- $35, a more than fair price.

But I figured I already had enough 'splaining to do when I got home. And there's always tomorrow.

On my way home, I stopped at Dollar Tree and T.J. Maxx. They too were productive trips.

I think I better stay home for a day or two.
Or, find a keeper.
Any volunteers?

**************************Back in 2010**********************************

Now ... click on the logo, below,
to go to Bargain Hunting and Chatting With Laurie, for more Favorite Things Saturday!

And get ready; it's almost Sunday, and time for Sunday Favorites,
hosted by Chari of Happy To Design.
Don't miss it! It's the ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY of this blog party,
and hostess Chari is sponsoring a Giveaway. Go!

Visit both these fun blogs for plenty of good reads! I'm going back to watching Howard cut the grass. Isn't it just so fun to watch a man work? -- Cass