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/

I'm Back. Duchess Of Cambridge and Queen Elizabeth II View Royal Wedding Dress Exhibit

It's been awhile since I've blogged here...have been dealing with my Honey's heart problem and my other blog at http://antiquesandteacups.blogspot.com/. I am going to try to keep both going...sometimes it's like juggling...trying to keep all the balls in the air!


But just saw something I wanted to share. The British Monarchy just posted a link to a Flikr photo album of Queen Elizabeth II and Catherine or Kate, Duchess of Cambridge touring an exhibit of Royal Wedding dresses that was quite fun.

The exhibit is part of the summer opening of Buckingham Palace which takes place when the Queen goes to Balmoral. I have toured the Palace during that time and it is incredible...especially if you are a china lover like me. WOW! 


Every year there are special exhibits during the opening and this year the exhibit is of Royal Wedding gowns and it includes Catherine's as well...of course!

The cake is included as well. There are lots of close ups of the gown. To see the entire slideshow, visit
The British Monarchy Wedding Gown Slideshow at Flickr


And for more info visit The Royal Collection

Queen Elizabeth II Celebrates 300th Birthday of St. Paul's Cathedral

Here is the official video of the event. She just turned 85 and she's still out there working! Doing her job extremely well. You go girl!
 

Report on Trooping of the Colour For QEII 85th Birthday Celebration

Last Saturday was the official 85th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. The Queen actually turned 85 on April 21st, but it is always publicly celebrated on one of the first Saturdays in June, and this year it was on June 11th. 

We were taking our son & daughter-in-law back to the airport so I didn't post. We rode the Bainbridge Island Ferry over to Seattle, and kissed them goodbye as they took a taxi to SeaTac airport. We boarded the same ferry on a turn around sailing in the sunshine and back we went. Sigh...miss them already!

But...back to the Queen's birthday celebration. The Queen inspects the troops at Horseguards Parade in London after riding from Buckingham Palace. Queen Elizabeth II used to ride sidesaddle on a horse until a few years ago but for the last few years has been riding in one of her wonderful carriages. 

 

She looks quite happy, doesn't she?  This year her grandson Prince William, the newly named Duke Of Cambridge joined his father Prince Charles, great uncle the Duke Of Kent and his aunt Princess Anne, the Princess Royal on horseback accompanying the queen. The queen then stands on a platform and reviews the troops as they serenade her with a horseback brass ensemble and manuevers are done...every man spit and polished to perfection in honour of her birthday.

I included the photo below because it's the Coldstream Guards...my husband's old regiment, participating in the show for the queen. He said it was great fun but a bit stressy as everything was expected to be perfect.
 

The carriages which carried the Duchesses of Cambridge (Catherine wife of Prince William), Cornwall (Camilla, wife of Prince Charles) and Wessex (Sophie, wife of Prince Edward) as well as other members of the royal family back to Buckingham Palace for a photo op on the balcony with a fly over. My husband was particularly nostalgic at the colored smoke jet pass.

source of all photos: Oli Scarff via Getty Images

I must say the Queen looked very happy with her family and the crowds gathered to wish her well on her official birthday.
God save the Queen!!! And happy 85th Ma'am!

Prince William and Catherine Canada Visit City list released

The upcoming post Royal Wedding Canadian tour for Prince and Princess Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will include visits to Ottowa, Montreal, Quebec City, Charlottetown, Yellow Knife, Calgary and more from June 30 to July 8th when they will fly to Los Angeles, California.


To see more of the itinerary for the visit go to their website:

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's Tour of Canada

Memorial Day, Gloustershire Cheese Roll

I have been AWOB...Absent Without Blog... for a month. Had to take a break after the Royal Wedding hoopla. I continued blogging on my other blog, Antiques And Teacups blog, but couldn't manage 2, so this one had a break!

I want to remember Memorial Day today and the sacrifices of those who are responsible for the freedom and way of life we enjoy. The postcard is courtesy of CardCow.

Thank you!

Today is also a famous...or infamous day in Gloucestershire England.  The annual competition of rolling cheddar cheese rolls down a hill in Gloucestershire has been being done for years until health & safety concerns got into it last year and it was banned last year. This year, an unoffical rolling took place. Can you imagine chasing after a large wheel of cheese weighing 7-8 pounds plummeting down a bracken laced STEEP hill? You got it! 

There are several websites and this one is especially fun to click through, see the videos and read what is required and what led up to the cancellation. The videos are too much!

Cheese Rolling Website

Hope you have a great day. If you are looking for English antiques and collectibles, visit our website Time Was Antiques. We have over 2,000 items including British Royal commemoratives, mottoware, knife rests, teacups, antique and vintage jewelry and all sorts of English related items.

Cheers! And don't forget to roll the cheese!