Downton Abbey concludes this coming Sunday on PBS for us and it has been a treat! This is Lady Mary, one of the main characters, a young woman caught in the strictures of the Edwardian rules of polite society. The Edwardian Age was named after Queen Victoria's son Edward VII who came to the throne of England upon her death in 1901. The reign was marked by the upheaval of changes started by the Industrial Revolution, social unrest, coming war and changing fortunes.
The Edwardian age was the last period of Belle Epoque or the Beautiful Era before modernism and the art deco influences began to dominate. Edwardian jewelry was feminine, light and beautifully made. I wanted to show you an Edwardian faceted rainbow crystals necklace at Time Was Antiques that I absolutely love because it is so representative of the period 1900-1920 when Downton Abbey is set.
You can read more about it at this link:
Edwardian Rainbow Crystal Necklace
The Edwardian Era was ushered in by the end of the Boer War fought in South Africa, begun during the reign of Queen Victoria and concluded in 1902 around the time of the coronation of King Edward VII. The mug below is a fabulous example of portraits of King Edward and Queen Alexandra who's descendants include Queen Elizabeth II and Prince William. The back is a rare dedication to the end of the war and a commendation of the brave fights and lofty goals of the war. I really love the graphics.
I love history and these artifacts really bring it to life and evoke the ages and occasions they were made to commemorate. Downton Abbey, although fictional, has been extremely accurate throughout to details and settings and I have loved it...it's a window on a past age.
For more information and photos of the mug at Time Was Antiques use this link:
Edward VII and Boer War commemorative mug
Remember to watch on Sunday night...I can hardly wait! Have a great day.
We were away for a break with friends for a week and could not get to watch the first 2 episodes of PBS' Downton Abbey. Checking my missed blog friend posts, I found out from Jane Austen Today that I could catch up by watching online at the PBS Masterpiece website. WOO HOO!!! Life is good! Now I'm up to speed for Sunday's episode 3.
After watching, I think Maggie Smith...who regularly is a scene stealer of the best type...had some of the best lines. What a crack up and what a snobbish battleax she portays! The settings are the stars as well, down to the great period details. I love the imari teaset the dowager Countess was using and the way she properly warmed the teapot and used the slop or waste bowl...I think I have that set online at the moment...or at least some similar...
For those of you who aren't familiar with imari...the English china that appeared in the 1850s was actually a copy of the just discovered colorful design of the Imari region of Japan and were wildly popular until the 1920s when they began to wane in popularity. The colors were bright cobalt blue, rust, green and almost always had imaginitive hand painted gold accents and trim. All the major potteries made imari design of one kind or another.
You can see more examples at Time Was Antiques here is a link to our Imari china category:
Imari at Time Was Antiques
Another neat example of the Edwardian period so beautifully illustrated by Downton Abbey is the jewelry styles. Edwardian is technically from the death of Queen Victoria in 1901 to the reign of George V in the early 1920s-1930s when a more modern style with less belle epoque ornamentation came to the forefront.
This is a period example of an Edwardian lavalier necklace of 10kt gold with a genuine branch of coral and a fresh water pearl, ornamented with pink and green gold.
For more info and photos use this link:
Antique Edwardian lavalier at Time Was Antiques
I hope you have a wonderful day...and don't miss the next episode of Downton Abbey which is a tour de force of period mores, styles, attitdues and traditions as well as drop dead gorgeous scenery and ambiance. To watch online, visit:
Masterpiece Theater Downton Abbey on PBS
Greetings to everyone on this, the first day of 2011. Amazing...how did we get here so fast???
It was 20 degrees, totally clear with a hard frost this morning at 8am when I remembered to look at the thermometer. It reminded me of the January 1 post from The Country Diary Of An Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden that was published in 1906 from a combination diary and watercolour journal. The entry for January 1st reads:
Jan.1, New Year's Day. Bright and cold with hard frost.
Edith Holden lived iat Gowan Bank, Olton Warwickshire, England which is not far from my husband's birthplace. She called her diary Nature Notes and it is a joy everyday with her talented renderings in watercolor of the creatures and places around her.
I found the book in England in 1977 and have read and reread it often. The book is a joy and a comfort!
Staying in the bird theme, here is a favorite design of the Royal Worcester egg coddlers that we sell at Time Was Antiques called Birds with a single wren on one side and 2 finches, I think, on the other. It is so cute!
For more info or to purchase use this link to the Time Was Antiques website for the: Royal Worcester Birds egg coddler
They is having the Audubon Society Christmas Bird Count here in Sequim so it will be interesting to see the results later.
My husband is watching Arsenal FC beating Birmingham on Fox Soccer channel and is not a happy camper. Aston Villa is his home favorite but Birmingham his second fave, and....not going well. Hope you have good results with all the bowl games. We laughed when we discovered the Pinstripe Bowl a few days ago. Ever heard of that one? We hadn't.
Have a wonderful day, a holiday for many, and I hope you are looking forward to the year with optimism, hope and faith.
