According to German legend, a delicate little blossom was almost forgotten when God was naming all the flowers. “Forget me not, O Lord,” cried the little flower. God decreed, “That shall be your name.” How charming!
Wikipedia describes another tale that explains the pretty shade of blue. As the Creator was assigning colors to the flowers, he heard a soft whisper, “Forget me not.” The only color left was a little bit of blue which was given to the small flower. As the story goes, the flower was delighted and so are we as we admire this lovely midcentury pattern created in its honor by Myott & Sons of England.
I first saw this pattern at Elma’s Copper Awning in Mebane. In a previous post, I mentioned that she and Scott bought this set of china for me at an auction as part of our bartering arrangement. I immediately fell in love with the creamy color, the swirl around the rim and the color of the delicate flowers. With these features, it’s perfect for mixing and matching with some of the other vintage patterns at Southern Vintage Table.
Let’s start with the dinner plate. Here are several different looks this charming pattern can create with other lovely vintage patterns!
Whether on the outside as the dinner plate, or inside as the salad, the “Forget-me-not” pattern is sweet!
Southern Vintage Table is also fortunate to have serving pieces in this lovely pattern. With such a beautiful color and pattern, Forget-Me-Not on your table will help make your gala affair unforgettable!
No doubt, we all love weddings, birthday bashes and anniversary parties. We get to spend time with friends and family, eat delicious food and celebrate an important life event with the people we love. But perhaps the sweetest and most special family celebration is a baby shower, when we honor a new mother-to-be and her new baby.
When friends and family learned Lindsey and Chad were expecting a baby everyone was thrilled. Then the news got even more exciting – they were having twins, a boy and a girl! How sweet is that? Her party-planning friends at RSVP-Events along with her sister, Marylee, were so delighted to plan a shower for one of their own and this celebration was going to be wonderful!
With the theme, “Sugar & Spice, Twice as Nice”, a peach/blue color scheme and food provided by Catering Works the party plan was in full swing. Tammy sewed buntings in a variety of peach and blue fabrics and strung them across the mantle and the gift table. With fabric covered hoops and beautiful flower arrangements, she created a dramatic mantle display for this special occasion.
To continue the theme, mini buntings decorated the spectacular cake and a vintage rusty child scooter on the front porch to greet guests. When I saw this scooter at Lockhart’s Trading Post, I knew it would be perfect at a baby shower. Rudy, the owner, said he saved it from becoming scrap metal. Thank you, Rudy! Isn’t it charming?
To set the table, Southern Vintage Table provided a beautiful mix of vintage clear glass plates, milk glass compotes, silver dessert forks and blue Mason jars. Lindsey’s favorite drink was chilled in a vintage pink enameled baby bath tub and, with the themed straws, the drinks were served! I have to share the story of this tub – it was a gift from a friend and was actually her baby tub. She thought it would be great to use to chill drinks and she was so right!
After feasting on deviled eggs, spring vegetable and roast beef rolls, vertical crudités, fruit kabobs and cinnamon straws, guests were invited to pose for a picture at the photo station that was stocked with vintage hats, hat boxes and a table mirror provided by Southern Vintage Table.
Put on a vintage hat, don a pair of silly glasses and the smiles keep coming! Tammy set this up with her iPad, printer and a couple of huge balloons for a backdrop. After the photos were printed, they were displayed on the vintage bamboo ladder for everyone to enjoy. At the end, guests left with a photo memento of the special occasion. What a terrific idea!
Vintage hats, crazy glasses and silly mustaches are ready for the photo booth!This is my favorite photo of the day – Lindsey, Honey and Marylee. Honey is Lindsey’s and Marylee’s darling grandmother.
Next came gift opening. After many oohs and ahhhs when the adorable baby clothes and gifts were unveiled, it was cake cutting time.
Isn’t this an amazing cake with the two baby peas on top? What was inside delighted us all – raspberry cream cake on the top tier and chocolate cake underneath. Yummy! We all had a hard time deciding which we liked best but what a delicious dilemma!
Congratulations, Lindsey and Chad! We are so happy for you and can’t wait to meet your new babies!
Invite Southern Vintage Table to help you with any of your family’s special life events. From vintage dishes to vintage decor, we have lovely hand-selected items to make your event unique and memorable!
The first time I stepped into her shop, I didn’t meet Elma but I did meet her daughter who was minding the store for her. It was on a Saturday afternoon and my friends and I were on one of our many adventures together. Our agenda this time was to start at Dick & Jane’s Martini & Tapas Bar for lunch and well, a martini, and then browse the eclectic shops on Clay Street in Mebane. When we walked into Elma’s shop, The Copper Awning, I realized that I couldn’t slow my friends down to give me time to look through her interesting collection, so I made a mental note to return the next week to see what vintage things I could get for Southern Vintage Table.
Elma was there on my next visit and I explained to her that I was looking for miscellaneous vintage china and tableware. She told me she had some terrific finds in her back room but she needed to get it organized before I could take a look. One peek at that back room and I knew she was right – I would come back later.
The following week I returned and when Elma saw me, she smiled. “Well, I haven’t had a chance to do much back there but I’ll make a path for you.” More than a few things were moved out of the way and then she left me to look. I started making a pile of a few things – a wooden box, milk glass goblets, vintage books – and as I am surveying the room filled with stacks, boxes and bags of “stuff” as Elma calls it, my plan came to me. I walked back into the front. “Elma, I said, “you need help getting that room organized and I would like to offer my services.” I suggested a bartering deal – my organizing skills for vintage things. She loved the idea and so did I!
I’ve been there several times, sorting, organizing, opening boxes and cleaning in that back room and basement. We have carried things from the back room to the basement and from the basement up to the showroom. We have moved cabinets, shelving and bins. I’ve been there one week to return the next to find a room in the shop totally restaged. This past week she had a gorgeous wedding dress displayed on a table complete with matching shoes and bouquet!
So what treasures have been added to our vintage inventory? First, we have more beautiful goblets – milk glass, crystal, pink and blue – and a few dainty teacups. We also now have a nice collection of vintage tins to add to a tablescape – love these!
My favorite addition, however, is a gorgeous set of vintage china called Forget Me Not by Myott china. This set is perfect – cream colored with a swirl rim and sweet blue flowers. I love the pattern but mostly I love how they came to Elma’s shop. Scott and Elma bought them at an auction for me. Such an act of kindness! Look for an upcoming “mixing & matching” blog with this beautiful pattern.
This chance meeting has flourished into both a business arrangement and a friendship. I’ve met her husband, daughter, granddaughter, son and daughter-in-law when they have stopped in at the shop as well as her friends and helpers, Scott and Patsy. I have learned that her story is even more interesting than the collection of “stuff” she has in her shop – she’s a retired civilian Marine, she volunteers at her granddaughter’s school, she sings in her church choir and she was in the Pentagon on 9/11.
Check out The Copper Awning on Clay Street in Mebane. Not only will you find something you will love, you’ll meet the delightful, generous Elma. Be sure to say hi for me!
I came across another beautiful set of china that fits perfectly with the vintage china collection at Southern Vintage Table. This vintage set belonged to Grandmother Belle and, according to her daughter in law, was used on special occasions. I can imagine how delighted Belle must have been when she set her table for her guests with her fine china! This pattern is by Grace China and called Formal Garden. Discontinued in 1939, it was made in pre-war Japan which means it’s at least 75 years old!
This pattern is truly beautiful, but I think the sweet floral design stands out even more when mixed with other vintage patterns. Here’s a collection of place settings featuring the Formal Garden dinner plate with a medley of salad plates. Some patterns are contemporaries with Formal Garden and others were manufactured decades later. Such historical richness in a place setting!
Here are a few photos with the soup/salad bowl and the dessert plate. Charming!
Another gorgeous vintage china pattern in our vintage china collection ready for you to share with your guests! Contact Southern Vintage Table for more information about our event packages with our lovely, vintage wares. We look forward to hearing from you!
It’s time to catch up with some of our new additions to our inventory here at Southern Vintage Table! We have found a little bit of everything and we know you’ll love them all!
We added three new teacups to our growing collection of lovely china. This one is gorgeous, inside and out, with its purple flowers and gold trim. This vintage set is by Royal Sealy China of Japan.
Here’s a version of the Blue Willow pattern that I had not seen before. This pair of teacups were made in Occupied Japan, making them a bit of a collector’s item, and this dates them between 1945-52. I didn’t notice that detail until I brought them home because I was taken by their beautiful cobalt blue color with gold trim. What a nice surprise!
It was an amazing week as far as pink glassware! I found three Jeannette Glass Cube footed tumblers from the early 1930s. The pair of pink embossed goblets are a little less vintage. The pattern, Arbor by Noritake, was discontinued in the late 1990s.
The next three finds are now in our vintage decor collection. One is a vintage jug that would be perfect for a spray of flowers and the another is a vintage flour sifter. They belonged to Belle and they are probably from the 1930s-40s. The vintage wooden box is from a thrift store nearby – I love the rough, darkened wood!
Found this trio of charming dessert plates at a flea market. I love the hand-painted dogwood, something I can’t walk away from since the dogwood is our state’s official flower! The pattern is Dixie Dogwood by Joni and although they’re a bit crazed, I appreciate their beauty.
We added to our milk glass collection with these three vases. Their regal design is a new one for me!
Perhaps my favorite find is this beautiful, hand crocheted lace overlay. It’s incredible! I found it at a local thrift store so I do not know anymore than what I can see – but that’s saying a lot!
These and other unique vintage items are now available at Southern Vintage China. Add a bit of beauty and history to your next happy occasion!
This elaborate china pattern features a very popular Godey print!
I love flowers on vintage china patterns – pinks, blues, yellows and greens in floral motifs are beautiful to behold as you sit down to your dinner meal. And, although flowers are lovely, I also appreciate non-floral china patterns decorated with images of roosters, funky shapes and people. As I looked through our inventory at Southern Vintage Table I realized that we had quite a few “people” patterns and decided it would be interesting and fun to see these all together!
Let’s start with the Godey print china patterns portraying Victorian life. I researched this Colonial couple a while back and discovered that this print actually came from a magazine called Godey’s Magazine and Lady’s Book. According to Wikipedia, the magazine was printed from 1830-1898 and the editor during most of that era was Sarah Josepha Hale, the author of “Mary Had a Little Lamb.”
The magazine is best known for the hand-tinted fashion plate that appeared at the start of each issue, which provide a record of the progression of women’s dress. Publisher Louis Godey showed off that in 1859, it cost $105,200 to produce the Lady’s Book, with the coloring of the fashion-plates costing $8,000.[15] Almost every issue also included an illustration and pattern with measurements for a garment to be sewn at home. A sheet of music for piano provided the latest waltz, polka or galop.
Wow! Can you imagine how exciting it must have been to get this magazine every month with the hottest fashions, a dress pattern and the latest music hit? Well worth that $3 a year subscription price, right? Read more about the influence of this magazine on American culture – I learned that wearing white on your wedding day, putting up a Christmas tree and even the celebration of Thanksgiving became popular traditions because of this publication! Get more details in the Wikipedia article – it’s a fascinating read!
Godey Print by Salem
Godey Print by Salem
Godey Print by Harker
Apparently this print featured above was very popular when you consider how many different china companies used it as their center design. I looked on a popular china replacement website and found at least 37 different china patterns with this one print! Companies like Limoges, Sebring Pottery, Homer Laughlin, Canonsburg, Harker, Cronin, Stetson, Sheffield, Royal, WS George, Salem and Crooksville all had this print on at least one pattern – in fact, several had it on multiple patterns. I wish I knew how all these china companies ended up with this one Godey print, so if anyone out there can enlighten me, please do!
We also have four china patterns with a similar look from that same time period – the first is a Godey print and the other two are very similar.
Pattern by Salem
Pattern by Salem
I think this is a Godey print but not sure.
See the lamb in her lap and his hand on his heart? Sweet…
Homer Laughlin pattern
This look was popular through the mid century. I found a Salem China’s advertisement from 1945 featuring the Godey print pattern with this comment.
“Every meal becomes an “occasion” when your table is set with Salem’s Godey’s prints. Faithful color reproductions with all the charm of Godey’s Lady’s Book.”
Now let’s take a look at another view of American life in this series of “people” patterns that were popular mid-century through sometime in the 1980s. Farm and rural life are depicted in many china patterns; perhaps the most well known are the Currier & Ives patterns from Royal China and Scio. The landscape scenery is the main focus but there are folks in there, too! The blue pattern is made by Royal China, the green by Scio and the last one is by Metlox Poppytrail, All three china companies were once thriving industries in America – Royal China and Scio were located in Ohio and Metlox was in California.
Currier & Ives by Royal China – the old grist mill is featured on the dinner plate.
Royal China – Old Grist Mill scene on dinner plate
Royal China’s Currier & Ives series had a harvest scene is on the bread & butter plate
Royal China’s Currier & Ives series had a harvest scene is on the bread & butter plate
Currier & Ives by Scio
Currier & Ives by Scio
Wayne County by Royal China
Wayne County by Royal China
Homestead Provincial by Poppytrail bread & butter plate
What I love about these rural series is that each of the china pieces in a pattern have a different scene so the entire set works together to tell the story – a multi motif pattern. For instance, the blue Currier & Ives has an Old Grist Mill on the dinner plate, the salad plate has an image of Washington’s birthplace and the cereal bowl shows a schoolhouse covered in snow. How delightful! Here’s one resource that you might enjoy about Royal China and the Currier & Ives series. By the way, I learned from Wikipedia that Currier & Ives were not the artists of the prints; they owned the printmaking firm that produced the artwork.
The final “people” plates are two that portray early American History. The Liberty Blue series is also multi-motif with the dinner plate showcasing Independence Hall and the other is called Old Church Tower Jamestown Blue by Adams China. It features images from this settlement and portraits of John Smith and Princess Pocahontas!
Liberty Blue by Strffordshire
See the folks strolling on the grounds?
Old Church Tower Jamestown by Adams China
Captain John Smith
Princess Pocahontas
As I researched and wrote this blog, I became more deeply enthralled with the work of the artisans of the china and dinnerware industry. Their artistry is encapsulated in a piece of china for generations to enjoy at the family dinner table. How cool is that?
We have these patterns and others in our inventory at Southern Vintage Table! Give us a call or send an email to find out how we can help make your next gathering special and memorable!
I’ve known Priscilla for well over 20 years. Our friendship began at Culbreth Middle School – she taught 6th grade science and I taught 8th grade science. We both loved to find and decorate our classrooms with all kinds of natural things – pine cones, turtle shells, skeletons, rocks, bird nests – whatever we could find or get. As kindred nature and vintage enthusiasts, our tablescape visions for her annual Christmas party were totally in sync.
When we were planning for her party, Priscilla brought out these two incredibly huge pine cones that were at least a foot long! Of course, I wanted to know what kind they were and where they came from. Well, it turns out they are sugar tree pinecones that come from a tree that grows in California. She saw them at a science convention and thought they were amazing and wanted some for her classroom. So she wrote a letter – a time before email – to a colleague who lived in California and asked him to please send her a few sugar tree pine cones so she could share them with her students. You see, Priscilla has this way about her that when she shows you something she loves, you instantly fall in love with it, too – that’s what made her such a terrific teacher. She loved science and so did her students. Shortly after the letter was mailed, a boxful of these exquisite beauties arrived at her door and were part of her classroom for many years. Who would have known that these same pinecones would be adorning her Christmas table years later and I would be helping her set the table? As you might imagine, we shared a good laugh about it all!
In addition to the many varieties of pinecones around her lovely home, she also has a wonderful collection of vintage Christmas postcards dating to the early 1900s. The artwork and the handwritten notes on the back portray a time we all love to imagine. Here are just a few. I included one photo of the handwritten message and address on the back – no zip code!
With her collection of pinecones and vintage postcards, and the vintage milk glass glassware, white linens, china and silverware from Southern Vintage Table, our table design was ready. We both knew it was going to be exceptionally special!
On the day before the party, the first table we set was in the dining room. We decided to use a vintage green tablecloth with vintage white doilies to accent the rich brown of the pinecones. The vintage postcards were scattered about for guests to enjoy. What a terrific touch to this vintage tablescape!
Our next set of tables were in the living room. Here we used crisp white vintage tablecloths and with the Christmas tree as a backdrop, the end result was just beautiful!
2013
Desserts, punch and teacups were ready for guests after their delicious meal! Don’t you love the bold poinsettia pattern on the vintage tablecloths?
Punch Bowls-3
Thank you, Priscilla, for inviting Southern Vintage Table to be a part of this special day for you and your friends. Merry Christmas to all and best wishes in the new year!
Never-ending challenges for practically all of us are organization and storage. Our quandary at Southern Vintage Table, and maybe yours as well, is how to store our inventory safely and keep it visible. We have lots of stuff – china, linens, flatware, serving dishes, frames, vases, silver accessories, baskets, suitcases, candle holders, etc. Lots and lots of stuff. How do we keep it all safe, visible and organized? Here are three quick tips that have helped us and might be useful for you, too!
Tip 1:Decide your organization scheme.
Should you sort by type, style, color, pattern or size? Many times it’s a combination For example, we sort teacups by color and napkins by color and size. For dinner plates, we sort first by style then by color.
Tip 2: Store in a clear container.
To economize, we were storing a lot of things in boxes. We labeled the boxes but it still was hard to remember what was inside, especially if it was stacked underneath another box. We decided to invest in clear containers with the lid attached. Now we can see the items through the plastic and these bins stack onto of each other neatly and safely.
Colored Placemats
Tip 3: Cocoon delicates with bubble wrap and then cling wrap it!
If you have delicate china or glassware the major consideration is how to store safely yet visible. This vintage Blue Willow teapot was in a cardboard box covered with brown paper because we didn’t want it to break. Unfortunately, we also couldn’t remember what box it was in. As the adage goes, “out of sight, out of mind” but, in this case, we didn’t want to forget we had it. Now it’s on the shelf with a cocoon of protection – a layer of bubble wrap, sealed with plastic wrap.
What’s cool about using this combination is that the bubble wrap gives it cushioning and the plastic wrap acts like tape to keep it all snuggly closed. And, when you stack one on top of the other on the shelf, they cling to each other which prevents slippage. I also like that when I go to unwrap, all I have to do is to cut away the plastic wrap which separates quickly and easily from the bubble wrap. With tape, I usually have to cut the tape which also cuts the bubble wrap, making it difficult to reuse.
Pre Wrap
Plastic Wrap
Cocoon with bubble wrap and plastic wrap
Stacked, visible and protected!
These three practices have helped us keep track of our inventory at Southern Vintage Table. Keep us in mind as you plan your next dinner or party – we are ready and organized!
My first memory of our annual Thanksgiving family reunion is from the 1960s. The 9 of us, my mom and 8 children, piled into the car. With food dishes in our laps, we headed to Dunn to meet up with the rest of the Bass family. Grandma Susie and Grandpa Wiley lived in Dunn and we gathered at their church for our feast. As years passed, we have moved the location several times, from Durham to Efland to Chapel Hill and now Rolesville, but more than 40 years later, the gang continues this wonderful family tradition.
Since I started collecting plates for Southern Vintage Table, I envisioned using stoneware at a Southern family reunion. As my sisters and I planned this year’s gathering, I suggested we use this collection from the 60s, 70s and 80s to set our tables. With the array of vintage stoneware patterns in blues, golds, greens, browns and yellows, the table setting would also include vintage textured glasses, placemats and cloth napkins.
Rowena, Sandy and I arrived at the Masonic Lodge late Wednesday morning and many hours later, we transformed the rustic meeting room for our 70 Bass relatives and friends. With help from Sandy’s friend, Rose, we covered the tables with brown paper and used placemats to color block the stoneware patterns. Between the sets of 6 plates we designed a simple, natural tablescape with magnolia leaves, pine cones, sweetgum balls and moss. With the striking orange lilies from Fernrock Farm, a cluster of magnolia leaves, twigs and vintage Mason jars, our tables were ready.
Vintage stoneware dessert plates ready for pie, cake and other yummy goodies!
Here’s a collage of photos of the Bass family and friends before, during and after our Thanksgiving meal. After the meal and with everyone’s help, we quickly got the tables cleared, the dishes washed and packed, the floors swept and the furniture moved back into position. Thank you, Russ and Cait, for sharing your photos!
Since our first Thanksgiving reunion, several dear members of our family have left us and each time we get together, we honor them – Susie and Wiley, Jack and Neva, Toot and Maeline, Chester and Lois, Bill, Gerrie and Mike. To the folks visiting other relatives and to the ones who got snowed in, we missed you and hope to see you next year.
Once again, the Bass Family came together on Thanksgiving. We hugged, we feasted and we parted, feeling content and connected. ‘Till next year, Bass Family and Friends!
Planning a family reunion or a rustic wedding? Consider using our stoneware collection at Southern Vintage Table!
Wheat is a classic vintage design. As I shared in a previous post, wheat is the symbol for prosperity, love, home and hearth, harvest, spring, birth and hope, making it the perfect pattern for America’s favorite family holiday, Thanksgiving. As a special request from Jami, here is a Thanksgiving tablescape featuring vintage wheat patterns, amber glassware. linens and silverware from Southern Vintage Table!
Pinecones with tags and twine become place names for guests and leaves collected from the woods are nature doilies on the vintage lace tablecloth. (The tags are a free download from the website, Love vs Design.) I also tied the corners of the rectangle lace table cloth with twine – saw this trick at the state fair table setting competition!
Tied corners of the tablecloth with twine!
The centerpiece is a tower made from an antique sieve with a wooden distressed cake plate turned upside down. The final piece is an antique spool once used in clothing factories with an arrangement of dried flowers in the center hole. A burlap ribbon (see directions at the end of the post for how to cut a straight line in burlap). Pine cones, leaves and nuts complete the natural centerpiece arrangement.
Many of these dried flowers came from Fernrock Farm! The fresh flowers were beautiful but I also love the dried arrangement.
For practically all my life Thanksgiving has been spent with my extended family on my mother’s side. We all bring our favorite dishes and sit down to a great Southern meal – turkey, ham, dressing with gravy, deviled eggs, mashed potatoes, collards, chicken & dumplings, potato salad, field peas – and amazing desserts such as carrot cake, chocolate pie, pecan pie and chocolate eclair cake. After our feast, the older folks linger at the tables and catch up on family news and the younger crew heads outside for the classic Turkey football matchup. I’m now part of that older crowd but I do remember some great football games when I was younger!
This year, with the help of my sisters, I am setting the table with plates from the vintage stoneware collection from Southern Vintage Table for our annual Bass/Heath/Roberson family reunion. I’ll be sharing photos in an upcoming blog!
May your Thanksgiving be filled with love and joy with family and friends!
Southern Vintage Table is also fortunate to have serving pieces in this lovely pattern. With such a beautiful color and pattern, Forget-Me-Not on your table will help make your gala affair unforgettable!
Planning a family reunion or a rustic wedding? Consider using our stoneware collection at 
