Twelfth Night is Here!

Twelfth Night ends the 12 Days of Christmas... I can hear you humming it now...

And refers in Christian calendars to the 12th night following Christmas, traditionally viewed as the time it took the Magi or Wise man to reach the Christ Child.

 In non Christian England, the traditions were instead related to the solstice, and in the early church, after 12 days of prayer, good deeds and charity, the 12th Night was viewed as an end to restraint.

The above boar's head tureen from the 1770s made by the Chelsea Pottery in England, was probably made for use during 12th Night... immortalized by Shakespeare in his play.

 Revels and theatricals were part of the day.

 also a part of the festivities were costumes, assigning of roles to play, masks and the appointing of The Lord Of Misrule who's commands had to be obeyed.

Needless to say, there was much spirits and license, and many were appalled by what occurred, really in contrast to a religious observance.

Often roles were reversed... servants becoming gentry and gentry becoming servants, or parents being subject to children for the day or evening.

 The above is an engraving of the Lord Of Misrule at the Crystal Palace in London during the reign of Queen Victoria

And the Yule log, brought in on Christmas eve, needed to stay lit until Twelfth Night to insure good luck for the family.

Games were played in Regency and Victorian parlors like Snapdragon above... snatching raisins from a basin of flaming brandy and hopefully not burning fingers to badly. 

Another was Bullet Pudding, but I couldn't find an illustration of that. It consisted of a mound of flour with a bullet on top. Players cut away a slice of flour with a knife until one player's cut dislodged the bullet. Then that player had to grasp the bullet from the flour with their teeth...and a much floured face... to earn the prize.

 Twelfth Night cakes were and are very decorative and reflect the 3 Kings...

The above is from the National Trust and is an exact replica used in a Tudor kitchen

 So wishing you a wonderful Twelfth Night or Epiphany.

With all the lights and decorations put away, it will certainly be dimmer and lack sparkle around here for awhile!

Just want to mention that Time Was Antiques is still having our SANTAFORGOT 15% OFF coupon sale.

On now through January 9th.

Royal Stafford Edwardian Teacup, Downton Abbey and the Darning Mushrooms

Welcome to our Thursday post. I am joining

Miss Spenser ~ http://missspensersblog.blogspot.com/

Teacup Thursday

Coloradolady  ~ http://coloradolady.blogspot.com/

Vintage Thingie Thursday

Because I want to talk about Downton Abbey again (see my last post for a Downton Abbey quiz and Dpownton Abbey paperdolls) I have chose an Edwardian period teacup by Royal Stafford, England that I love.

I love the pattern...and it's blue and white, which I love. I can just see this at afternoon tea at Downton. For more info on the cup and saucer at Time Was Antiques, click on the photos.

 I don't know if any of you noticed this scene while you were watching Downton Abbey, with ex housemaid Ethel cradking her son Charlie. Sorry the photo isn't very good, but it was the best I could do.  Charlie had a toy he was playing with through most of his scenes, but did any of you guess what it was? Because it wasn't a toy but a common Victorian and Edwardian domestic gadget. Can you guess what it's for?

These are what are called a darner or darning mushroom, and are used to mend socks...you know, like you do every day, right???!!! Well, in the Edwardian and Victorian times you did mend them. The USA preferred the egg shaped darning egg but England has always favored the darning mushroom. Over the years, I have sold them made of ebony, ivory, sterling silver, celluloid, maple, oak, mahogany, china, rosewood and one of my favorites is below:

 This mushroom darner is made of confetti bakelite. Cool!  Darners were even featured in the March 2012 issue of Country Living magazine. How fun is that! 

 

So if you re-watch Downton Abbey, look for Ethel and baby Charlie and his toy!  The darning mushrooms above are from (all except the 1930s red painted one like a real mushroom) the Time Was Antiques archives. To see our current stock (what's left since the Country Living article, that is) here is a link to our DARNING MUSHROOMS.

Have fun visiting the wonderful teacups and Vintage Thingies!

English Toasting Forks For Vintage Thingie Thursday,QEII in Australia

Hi and happy Thursday! I am joining Vintage Thingie Thursday at Colororadolady today with a fun part of vintage English thingies...a toasting fork!

 Toasting forks came into being because of the need to be able to toast things over open fires...before toasters as we know them as counter top appliances were invented. The bread slice, muffin or crumpet was pierced by the fork end and held to the fire to toast on one side then turned and toasted on the other. Toasting forks were still used in England into the 1940-1950s when most fireplaces were replaced with 3-4 bar electric heaters. But folks swore...at least our families did...that a crumpet toasted by the fire had a far superior taste than those toasted in the new fangled toasters or under the grill of the kitchen cooker. The toasted goodie was then buttered and eaten with the rest of your tea.

The toasting forks were usually made of brass or with brass fittings and a cast iron shaft. The finials cover the gamut. The funny looking one is called the Lincoln Imp for a local Lincolnshire mythical creature. The stag was an early Victorian piece and exceptionally well made. Fun, huh???

I still find them periodically when we are in England on a buying trip. They don't last in the shop though. These photos are from my archives of past items at Time Was Antiques. 

Queen Elizabeth II arrived in Australia for an 11 day state visit, having sufficiently recovered from a cold a week ago...a major accomplishment when you are 85! The visit is an early part of her celebration of her Diamond Jubilee year...1952-2012 


Here is a link to the BBC coverage of the arrival with a great video:
BBC Queen Elizabeth in Australia

Teacup Tuesday, Early Staffordshire Shell pattern, Victorian Carpet Balls or Bowls

Hello and welcome to Teacup Tuesday with these fine blogs:

Wanda Lee~ http://silkenpurse.blogspot.com/ 

Teapot and Tea Things Tuesday 
Pam~ http://breathoffreshair-paperbutterfly.blogspot.com/ 
Teapot and Tea Things Tuesday 
Wanda Lee~ http://theplumedpen.blogspot.com/
Tea For Two and Wednesday Tea For Me and Thee 
Donna~  http://thehomemakingarts.blogspot.com/ 
Tuesday Tea 
Trisha~  http://sweetology101.blogspot.com/
Tea Party Tuesday 
Lady Katherine~ http://ladykatherineteaparlor.blogspot.com/ 
Teatime Tuesday

Sandi ~  http://sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com/

Tea Time Tuesday

Ruth ~ http://antiquesandteacups.blogspot.com/
Teacup Tuesday

Today I am sharing mid Victorian Early Staffordshire teacup trio with the prettiest seashell motif. The set of cup and saucer with matching plate was made in the Staffordshire region of England somewhere between 1879-1890. The material is called soft paste porcelain and could have been made by any one of several potters in the region.

Isn't that the prettiest pattern? I really love the mid Victorian Staffordshire patterns. The design is usually classed as Aesthetic Movement, or English Arts And Crafts. I love that period! 

For more info on the Early Staffordshire seashell teacup trio at Time Was Antiques, click on the photos. 

Okay...what is this???

  

I'll tell you it measures 3.5 to 4 inches in diameter. A large marble? That's not to far off. This is a Victorian  carpet ball or carpet bowl (as in carpet bowling) which were a big fad in the early to mid Victorian era ending mostly around the death of Queen Victoria in 1901. Carpet balls were made of fired clay and decorated with many cheerful patterns and colors and were used to play an indoor game similar to lawn bowling or like curling. There was a set of 12 balls of the large size and one small white ball called the "jack". Like curling, the team closest to the house at the end of the game with their balls won. The balls usually show round dents or concoidal impact marks and are extremely hard to find. I sold the last I had about 3 months ago and there must have been a mention of them in an article of magazine because I sold the last 4 to one lady but had at least 10 other inquiries, emails & calls during the next week.  They have been used by designers in the past to heap in bowls for an interesting decorator touch and a few years ago Bombay Company carried some made in china fancy glazed ones in pretty florals.  I wish I had sazed photos of all the patterns and colors of the antique ones I have had over the years, but I still had these photos in the archives:

The plaids were especially popular as Queen Victoria was quite addicted to plaid and it became wildly popular all over England.

So that's your bit of useless trivia for the day! Have fun visiting the other blogs for Teacup Tuesday! 

August from Country Diary Of An Edwardian Lady, Teacup Tuesday, Zara's Wedding, Scotland Shelly Thistle Teacup

I am joining Teacup Tuesday and Sandi for Tea Time Tuesday today . The more the merrier...I just love seeing the fab teacups all you ladies share!

Ruth ~ http://antiquesandteacups.blogspot.com/
Teacup Tuesday

Wanda Lee~ http://silkenpurse.blogspot.com/ 
Teapot and Tea Things Tuesday 
Pam~ http://breathoffreshair-paperbutterfly.blogspot.com/ 
Teapot and Tea Things Tuesday 
Wanda Lee~ http://theplumedpen.blogspot.com/
Tea For Two and Wednesday Tea For Me and Thee 
Donna~  http://thehomemakingarts.blogspot.com/ 
Tuesday Tea 
Trisha~  http://sweetology101.blogspot.com/
Tea Party Tuesday 
Lady Katherine~ http://ladykatherineteaparlor.blogspot.com/ 
Teatime Tuesday 

This is one of my favorite books. The Country Diary Of An Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden was written in 1906 and is a scrapbook, diary and sketchbook of a lady living in Warwickshire, England close to my husband's birthplace. I love her watercolor nature sketches. She records almost daily what she has seen or observed and  quotes bits she has read or heard that catch her interest. A truly enchanting view and record of a lost time in what was then rural England. The area now is pretty much all built over.

Mottoes for August

"All the tears St Swithin can cry

St Bartlemy's mantle wipes them dry"  

Note: St Swithin's Day is traditionally July 15th, St. Bartlemy's is another name for St. Bartholomew is usually celebrated on August 24th of the Anglican calendar

"St. Bartholomew (August 24th)

Brings the cold dew"

"If the 24th of August be fair and clear

Then hope for a prosperous autumn that year"

Poetry for August

"Fairest of months!  Ripe summer queen

The hey-day of the year

With robes that gleam with sunny sheen,

Sweet August doth appear"

by R. Combe Miller

The moor cock springs on whirring wings

among the blooming heather,

Come, let us stray our gladsome way

And view the charms of nature,

The rustling corn, the fruited thorn,

And every happy creature"

by Robert Burns

And in Scotland at Balmoral Castle for her summer holiday, Queen Elizabeth attended the wedding Saturday of her eldest granddaughter Zara Phillips to Mike Tindall. Zara is the daughter of the Princess Royal, Princess Anne.

And in celebration of the Scottish theme of the week with the wedding in Edinburgh, here is a Shelley China Thistle design cup and saucer that I love.

And to go along with that, an antique Victorian silver plated thistle knife rest that is so cute! Knife rests were another of the great Victorian table top gadgets the Victorians were so fond of. Because table cloths were so difficult and time consuming to launder, the knife rest kept dirty knives off the tablecloth so helping keep it clean. There were sizes for table knives and larger ones for carving knives. A great Victorian dining gadget!

For more info on the Shelley teacup or thistle knife rest at Time Was Antiques, just click on the photos.

http://silkenpurse.blogspot.com/