Plenty of Plates!

Okay, I admit it, I went a little crazy thrift shopping this weekend! I've been looking for

  white dinner plates to use for my Christmas House table setting.

 ( That's the community fundraiser I help with every year.) After searching Homegoods, Ross and Marshall's and coming up empty handed (hard to believe, but true) I headed off to Goodwill.

 Oh my! It was a dish jackpot!

 I have loved this pattern for years. It's called Blue Danube by Lipper. Of course, it's a knock off of the famous Blue Onion pattern by Meissen. The Meissen plates sell for over $100 each. I paid $1 apiece for 6 of these. I think they're a pretty good substitute!

 Next I found 6 of these great ironstone plates made by Adams/Wedgwood . The Adams Company was acquired by Wedgwood and manufactured the ironstone line. Wedgwood china is my all time favorite and I own 4 different sets. I guess make that 5! By the way, this pattern is called Empress.Replacements sells these for $28 each. I paid $1.

 Now here's what I found for my Christmas table setting. Another favorite china manufacturer of mine is Portmeirion. While not as historic as Wedgwood, Portmeirion is another English china maker with a great reputation. They are best known for their Botanic Garden pattern with each plate painted with a different botanically correct floral design.

This set however, is a nice blend of traditional and contemporary. They are designed by Sophie Conran and have a wide rim and very subtle white on white concentric circles. As you can see, they are brand new with the label still attached. One of the plates even had a Macy's receipt taped to the back. They retailed for $22 each. That's right, I paid $1.

 How about these white on white salad/dessert plates? I found 4 of them. They'll make great mix and match extras for dessert buffets. The pattern is Trellis.

 These were just too cute to resist. Two Stafforshire salad/dessert plates with a tiny blue flower called Petite Fleur.

 There's more! I also found 6 of these wood chargers in perfect condition. Won't they be fabulous for Fall table settings? I splurged and paid $1.50 apiece.

Rounding out the stash are some random serving  pieces and smaller plates and bowls.

I found ALL of these gorgeous pieces at one location! 

Lucky me!

Tablescapes featuring the above dishes will be sure to follow :)

Kid Cuisine Cooking Camp!

 Every now and then I turn my kitchen into a Petite Cordon Bleu and teach cooking classes to kids in the neighborhood. We had a great time this week learning cooking techniques and making a variety of dishes from around the world. Here's just a sampling of a few of the kids' favorites.

This is the filling and rolled out dough for our Cheesy Chicken Pinwheels.

 The mystery ingredient  is fruit cocktail in the cake batter!

 Ingredients for Yogurt Parfaits and Picture Perfect Breakfast Squares.

The kids loved choosing their favorite fillings.

Mmm, Lazy Day Lasagna made with frozen ravioli got rave reviews!

Happy Campers!

We even had time to fit in some lessons on etiquette and table manners. Merci Beaucoup!

English Chippendale Tablescape

I thought I'd revisit one of my earliest blog posts and share it this week as I thought it could work for Valentine's Day!

One of my favorite set of dishes is English Chippendale made by the old English china manufacturer Johnson Brothers. It boasts lovely red chrysanthemums (or are they peonies?) scattered on a white ironstone background.  I found this set antiquing several years ago and couldn't resist adding it to my dish collection!

I started with a red and blue toile table topper that I made last month. I plan on posting a tutorial later in the week on how I made it! Next I added a red charger as a base for the dinner plate, then layered a Wedgwood White salad plate , an English Chippendale bread and butter and last a little fruit bowl.

 I found six glass hurricanes at the Goodwill for $2 each and filled them with broken china pieces and a white chunky candle.

 Blue Country French napkins add a nice pop of color. And this is the vintage silverplate flatware I found a month or so ago , 8 place settings for $25!

 Mmm, some fruit tarts for dessert!

I love red geraniums and they alternate with the hurricanes down the center of the table.I think it all makes for a pretty summery tablescape!

Tablescape Thursday @ Between Naps on the Porch

Summer Quilt Project

When the temperature hits the triple digits for weeks on end here in Arizona, that's when it's time for indoor projects.I do not consider myself an expert quilter, but I do enjoy it, so here is my summer quilt project.

 I have a cupboard  full of fabric saved and collected over the years. I decided on a turquoise and brown color scheme.I did buy the polka dot and aqua swirl fabrics at an estate sale for 50 cents a yard, the rest I already had in my stash!

 This pattern is called Garden Trellis from the book Jelly Roll Quilts.

 All done!

The quilt adds a splash of color to my wing chair.

This was last years summer project - as you can see I've got a lot of turquoise and blue in my fabric stash to use up!

Ironstone Tureens

Not only do I have a weakness for domed cake plates, I can't resist an ironstone tureen either.

 I found this beauty at the Goodwill yesterday. As you can see it has a lovely underplate, a ladle and the lid had a charming fruit finial.It's in perfect condition and I'll be taking it into the store soon.

 I've had this antique English covered dish for years. I use it at Thanksgiving filled with buttery mashed potatoes!

 This is a little Italian creamware piece I found antiquing in Atlanta a few years ago. I love the basketweave detailing on the lid.

 I can fit a whole chicken in this large covered baking dish made by Arabia of Finland! It is one of my favorite pieces that I found at an estate sale in New Jersey some 25 years ago. I really splurged by paying $25 for it, but have seen it selling for much more. And I love my little floral embossed mini tureen that I  use for chocolate or strawberry sauce for ice cream buffets.

My ironstone really stands out against the mahogany sideboard and red walls of my dining room!

Please come see me at Merchant Square Antiques where I always have more pieces of ironstone available for you too!

Tenille's Collection

We had such a lovely visit with our kids in Pennsylvania. My daughter-in-law Tenille has a weakness for  blue and white pottery( like me!) and we had some fun antiquing and hitting the garage sales.

 Tenille found this charming piece of Wedgwood at a garage sale for $1!

 She wasn't sure what to do with some of her random pieces so we took a cue from Nancy at 

Nancy's Daily Dish and decided to hang them over her breakfast nook window. It's hard to tell, but the walls are painted sage green which makes the blue and white really pop!

We've both also got a weakness for Polish Pottery and Tenille has the start of a nice collection. Our only problem when we go shopping together is who spied the treasure first! 

Antiquing in the heart of Pennsylvania

We've had a little family reunion in State College, PA where my son Nat, his wife Tenille and their two little children Grant and Sadie live. Our daughter Megan and her friend Brian joined us from Georgia, and our son Josh flew in from Utah. So we were all together for the 4th of July.We've done lots of eating, watched several movies, stayed up late chatting, watched the fireworks - a typical family get together!

 Of course, we had to leave time for antiquing! These are just a few of the treasures I found, I'll post more pictures later!

 I love the little Austrian teapot and the Lladro dancing girl.

 This is a plate from the Johnson Brothers Heritage series featuring a castle.

 I found a full set of silverplate and couldn't resist!

I also found lots of vintage lace and linens.

We're here for a few more days so hopefully will get  a bit more shopping in!