Thursday, January 08, 2009

A Jam-Packed 200th Post - Plate Mysteries Revealed!



We'll get to the picture of the dog, and why she appears so content, in just a minute.

I have information for you about those plates! From no less a personage than the president of the Transferware Collectors Club. (I am adding a link to the Blog Roll on the sidebar). But, and I know the suspense has got to be nearly unbearable, first here are some pictures I took today with my NEW CAMERA. This is like your relatives making you flip through their snaps of their vacation before they will give you dinner.

A word about this camera and its origins.

Whusband was informed (by me, of course) that I wanted a new camera for Christmas. Christmas morning, when he was embarrassed by the fact that he had no present for me to open (my Dad and stepmom were here so there was an audience for his badness) he said he had bought "us" a camera "to share." This is code for, "I bought myself a camera and I am pretending in the presence of your family that I got it for you." Well, the joke was on him because it came while he was away and I promptly popped in a memory card and took it up to Jay Peak for a hike, but not before I took pictures of Maisy sitting in the forbidden chair. (She's not even supposed to be in the living room, but, as I say, Whusband was away. Oh, and I turned up the heat too).

So, our first photo today is Maisy in a mellow mood in a comfy chair in a warm house.

Below we have, again, (sorry) the woods at Jay Peak, as they appeared at around 3 PM today. Cold and snowy again here today. In fact, it was so cold that the MP3 player that was pumping out aerobically motivating music stopped working about halfway through my walk, frozen apparently. The camera kept on, however.





Plate News

Thanks to all those visitors from the Transferware Collectors Club who dropped by to take my plate identification challenge (see the last post). I know from my stats that we had lots of people come and look at the last post, which set forth the challenge, but only one answer came. Fortunately it was a really good answer and it is from Loren Zeller who identifies himself as president of the TCC.

Hi Susan (he meant "Kim"), I tried posting this comment on your blogger site, but it didn't take. As an old New Englander transplanted to Arizona, your lovely winter woods pix makes me nostalgic, not enough to move back, but to wish for a short visit!
I am responding to your transferware posting on our TCC site. The patterns on your pieces are what we refer to as Romantic patterns and would have been made during the mid 1800's. Many of them were made for export to the US and Canada. It's not my area of collecting focus, but a quick pass through some of my reference books has helped me to identify all but the last platter. So, here is what I can tell you:
Plate # 1 is "Carrara" made by John Holland, Clay Hills Pottery, Tunstall, c. 1852-54.
Plate # 2 is "Pagoda", by Enoch Wood and Sons.
Platter # 1 is "Friburg" by William Davenport, although the pattern was also made by G. Phillips.
Platter #2 is "Isola Bella" by William Adams & Son.
These were all "series" patterns meaning that the central pattern would usually be different for every different shape (platter versus plate versus veg. bowl, etc.) What is consistent in series TW is the border and often the border is the easiest way to identify these patterns as they are often similar to others.
Enjoy your auction purchase! Do join our club and enjoy all its benefits like the pattern database and the bulletin! And, stay warm.
Best, Loren Zeller, TCC President.


Thanks Loren. Send me your email address and I will send you the PRIZE. Which will be this:



Just a teacup - maybe a coffee cup? Perhaps Loren knows. The pattern is "Minuet" by WM Adams & Son England. I think it is very fetching and since it has now served as a prize it can be known as the first Woolfoot Transferware Identification Cup.

If anyone knows what that last platter is, weigh in and maybe there's teacup in it for you too.

Here it is again:



Show the Dog Again!

OK, OK. Here she is.