As a child, it was often my job to entertain my Great Grandmother, who in her declining years was confined to her wheelchair or bed. One of her favorite things to do was talk about cooking, entertaining; and, especially, her dishes. She would have me fetch specific dishes from the china cupboard, and she would regale me with stories about their use. She and Granddad were not rich by any means as they were ranchers and farmers on the prairies of Colorado, but she was a bit pretentious when it came to entertaining. She was born in the Victorian era, when they had a different dish for every food. Among her favorites were the butter pats, the bone dishes, and her olive dish.
Some of the dishes in this post, I inherited from her; others I have just accumulated.
Below are G. Grandmother's Sunday dishes from Austria. She had plain white ironstone bone dishes she used, but I don't know what happened to those. The Meakin bone dish was given to me by a friend.
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| CHINA - ROYAL JNNSBRUCK, JHR and CO., AUSTRIA BONE DISH - J and G MEAKIN, HANLEY, ENGLAND |
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| PLATE - "TONQUIN", ALFRED MEAKIN, ENGLAND; BONE DISH - "TONQUIN", CLARICE CLIFF, ENGLAND; BUTTER PAT - LS and S, ENGLAND; CUP and SAUCER - CLARICE CLIFF, ENGLAND |
The red transferware are my 'Sunday Dishes'.
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| PLATE and SALAD BOWL - JOHNSON BROS., ENGLAND; BONE DISH - ROYAL STAFFORDSHIRE, ENGLAND; BUTTER PAT - WEDGWOOD, ENGLAND |
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| PLATES: JHW and SONS, HANLEY, ENGLAND; BOWL - ALFRED MEAKIN, ENGLAND BONE DISH - FURNIVALS, HAMPTON, ENGLAND |
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| HAND PAINTED NIPPON |
I came across this picture of a complete formal place setting.
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| Picture from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AFormal_Place_Setting.jpg |
It would be the "PITS" to do all of these dishes and silverware without an electric dishwasher. G. Grandmother said that was what grandchildren were for. And my mother always said G. Grandmother could dirty every dish in the house, too. I think my mother was the grand daughter that always did those dishes!!
A plethora of inspiration can be found on the following:
The Dedicated House for Make it Pretty Monday
Confessions of a Plate Addict for The Scoop Tuesday
A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday
Knick of Timse Interiors for Knick of Time Vintage Tuesday
Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday
Savvy Southern Style for WOW Us Wednesdays
Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday
Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday
Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday
Nancherrow for Fridays Unfolded
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
A plethora of inspiration can be found on the following:
The Dedicated House for Make it Pretty Monday
Confessions of a Plate Addict for The Scoop Tuesday
A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday
Knick of Timse Interiors for Knick of Time Vintage Tuesday
Ivy and Elephants for What's It Wednesday
Savvy Southern Style for WOW Us Wednesdays
Between Naps on the Porch for Tablescape Thursday
Have a Daily Cup for Share Your Cup Thursday
Common Ground for Be Inspired Friday
Nancherrow for Fridays Unfolded
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home Friday
24 comments:
LOL- I LOVE It! You have so many lovely pieces. I have a couple pieces of brown transferware and I LOVE my red transferware that I have.
My hubby's grandmother was raised in a very formal home and oh-the dinner parties she threw. We had so many formal dinners there over the years. It was intimidating at first but so much fun. Even our kids at a young age were sitting at a formal table. I do that with my grandkids when they are here, too- although not to the extent of the formal table you show here! lol No way am I putting that many GLASSES on the table! xo Diana
Oh Sally how I love your transferware....the brown is so lovely but I love the red too...but the best in this post is that olive dish with the tiny fork and the two pit plates...wonderful..
Hi Sally! Oh, my goodness! Look at these wonderful pieces. How sweet to have all of the precious memories of the talks with your grandmother. You just don't see those bone dishes much anymore - yours are beautiful.
Be a sweetie,
Shelia;)
I collect the Clarice Cliff Tonquin in purple...I really like the brown, though.
The olive set is really pretty...and I was always the one to do the dishes, too...no more standing for hours, the dishwasher does a wonderful job while I sit and read or play on the computer!
Have a great week, Sally.
What a lovely post. I have my grandmother's dishes and would hesitate to put them in the dishwasher. I'm afraid something might happen to them in there and I'd be so sad. Standing and washing by hand is so much safer and I don't mind occasionally. (I've never seen/heard of olive dishes.) Thanks for sharing these. Vicki in Louisville KY
Thanks for this post! I had never heard of bone dishes, butter pat dishes, or the olive set. So happy to learn something new!
Kathy
What special times you had with your grandmother.
Although I have an olive dish and a proper fork, I must admit, I've never even heard of dishes to hold pits.
Impressive!
Oh I just loved this post! So many lovely and delicate dishes! What treasures wrapped up in memories!
Wonderful pieces you have....so pretty!
Such beautiful dishes -- you are lucky to have both the dishes and the memories!
Beautiful pieces you have. Enjoy them as they are very special.
Have a wonderful week.
Such a wonderful post. Love the stories about your family and love the dishes!! I do enjoy Victorian china, but I am wild about the silver. They did have a piece for everything - I wish I had one of everything, although, I do not serve terrapin often (I mean "never") and probably would have no use for a terrapin fork - lol!!
Hey Sally, your Brown transferware is so pretty, but than again, I always say that about ALL transferware colors, lol! Formal settings are simply lovely and are very used here in our social group. My hubby's Mil always sat gorgeous formal tables and I trully enjoyed them and learned so much. Thanks for sharing this inspiring post.
FABBY
Oh I love all of these pieces Sally! The story of your G. Grandmother having you fetch dishes and her tell tales about them made me smile. I would have loved to have had a grandmother to do that with. All of mine had passed before I was old enough to remember them. Thanks for sharing with SYC.
hugs,
Jann
This is a wonderful post. Priceless memories. I have an older sister that is a fabulous cook, but oh my gosh she dirties every dish she owns when she cooks. And she does not clean as she goes. Sorry for telling tales on my sister, but I was overcome with memories. :)
What a great post! I love ALL of your transferware but the olive dish (and those PIT plates) are my favorite!! What a great collection and wonderful memories!!
LOVE this post! Such a cute title and filled with information. So cool that you have the dishes and wonderful story to pass along! Thanks for sharing.
Hugs,
Patti
Beautiful! Love the tansferware!
What lovely pieces you have, and the brown and transferware are favorites of mine. I have two bone holders from Vietri that I bought on eBay but I've never used them for bones. LOL I enjoyed the story of your Great Grandmother asking you to fetch dishes. I think that will be me someday ;o)
What a fabulous dish collection and wonderful memories! I love the brown transferware!
Karee
Love this post ! A pick of the Week for sure! Fun and informative - and love the why you weave information into a memory. Really pulled me in. Could imagine the scene perfectly. Have a great week.
Thank you so much for sharing your treasures. I had heard of bone dishes and butter pats, but never olive dishes (with a place for pits, too!). Your collection is lovely, but made even more special by the connection with your great-grandmother! Wonderful..... Rosie @ The Magic Hutch
I love your brown transferware and I love the stories about your family. Your great grandmother would be pleased about you making sure her lovely pieces still have a home in her family.
gorgeous place settings, amazing how they used all these wonderful pieces!
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