Wednesday, September 25, 2013

An Apple For The Teacher



Cuisine Kathleen's 
September Challenge
Apples

Although many schools in Texas begin 
a new school year in late August,
I always associate September with
 Back To School.

An Apple For The Teacher
My table is a tribute to teachers everywhere.

Centerpiece Simplicity
~ Faux Apples in a Basket ~


APPLES
by Helen H. Moore
Apples, apples, what a treat,
sweet and tart and good to eat.
Apples green and apples red,
hang from branches overhead,
and when they ripen, down they drop,
so we can taste our apple crop.

~ The Stack ~
Vintage Quilt ~ Irish Chain
Quilted Placemat
PB Chicken Wire Charger
Arita Tartan Charger
Rainbow Gate Apple Slice Plate

Vintage Mother of Pearl Flatware
Woven Water Vine Napkin Ring

Apple Green Glass Stem

Sweet Treat ~ Apple Pie
Trader Joe's

~ An Apple For The Teacher ~
The beautiful apple slice plate above 
was an end of school gift from my class in 1998.

Rainbow Gate Ceramics 
are handmade and painted in Santa Fe, NM.
Visit their site HERE to see the 
beautiful ceramics they offer.




Thursday, September 19, 2013

Dishing About Texian Campaigne Transferware






Tell me, have you ever heard of 

Texian Campaigne Transferware?




I had not until I visited the 

Texas Governor's Mansion this past spring.




The Texas Governor's Mansion, 

designed by the prominent Abner Cook in Greek Revival style, 

was built in 1854, and has been home 

to every Texas governor.




Situated in downtown Austin, 

across the street from the Texas Capitol, the Mansion

was badly damaged by an arson fire on June 8, 2008.  

Fortunately all the contents were safely 

in off site storage because the Mansion was undergoing

a major renovation at the time of the fire.





Among the historic treasures and period antiques 

within the Texas Governor's Mansion,

is a collection of Texian Campaigne China.

It is believed that James Beech in Staffordshire, England, 

first produced this china in the 1830s or early 1840s 

in commemoration of the Texas Revolution 

and Texas' independence from Mexico.  

With the designs unchanged, the china continued 

to be produced from 1844 - 1852 by Thomas Walker, 

and by Anthony Shaw after 1852.





The transferware patterns of this china depict 

various military scenes with borders that alternate 

images of the Greek Goddess Ceres 

and a vignette of draped flags over a drum.

Produced in six different colors, 

blue appears to be the most common.




Pieces can also be found 

in purple, green, black, brown, and red.

The red is rare and more expensive.

The back side is marked "Texian Campaigne

within a fan shaped cartouche.  

The initials or first name initial with last name 

of the potter are below and help in dating a piece.





Within the past couple of decades, 

Texian Campaigne was produced by Mottahedeh

as a reproduction for the Dallas County Heritage Society 

and later for The Friends of the Governors Mansion.

These pieces are clearly marked as such.  




Relatively rare and highly collectable, 

Texian Campaigne, made as dinner services 

and tea sets, can demand high prices.

In addition to the Texas Governor's Mansion,


Collections of Texian Campaigne are in the following museums:

The Bayou Bend Collection, MFA, Houston
The Witte Museum, San Antonio
Texas A&M University, College Station
Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, Dallas
Star of the Republic Museum, Washington-On-The-Brazos



Source: http://governor.state.tx.us/mansion
If you are ever in Austin, TX, 

I highly recommend a tour of this historic home.

Tours are available most  Tuesdays - Thursdays 

from 10 - Noon with reservations.

 Mansion.Tours@tspb.state.tx.us.

More detailed information and additional photos 

on Texian Campaigne can be found on the following links used as reference:

http://fortbendlifestylesandhomes.com/photographs-through-time/

http://antiquescouncil.com/antiques/index.php?page=out&id=260

http://www.internetantiquegazette.com/pottery
_porcelain/2539_texian_campaigne_pattern_transferware/


Joining


Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Dinner On A Tray






More often than not,

dinner here at HFTS is served on

a tray rather than sitting at the dining room table.




No room for a pretty stack,

just a simple dinner plate.




Printemps

by Sigma for Tastesetter.





Cotten linens

 from the South of France.




Little pockets 

to hold the flatware.




Blue glass stem

for a glass of wine.





~ Simple Healthy Dinner ~

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Brown Rice

Grilled Salmon With Preserved Meyer Lemons

Recipe Here

Even dinner on a tray can be pretty!




Tutorials, Tips, and Tidbits @ Stone Gable

Think out of the box 

when you are out shopping.

These cute little flatware pockets 

are actually potholder mitts.


Joining

Monday, September 2, 2013

Still In Love ~ 38 Years & I'd Do It Again



Favorites on the 1st
with Alison @ The Polohouse
This Month's Theme ~ Favorite China Patterns

Still in love and
happily married for 38 years!
All these years later I wouldn't change a thing,
including our choice of fine china which we
selected together when we registered for our wedding china.

Richard Ginori ~ Palermo Brown
We selected this pattern for its simplicity 
and the touch of chocolate brown.
Our crystal selection was by Denby 
in a rich amber brown with clear stems.  

Richard Ginori china has been produced since 1735.  
As with many of the porcelain 
and china factories in the UK and Europe,
Ginori experienced financial difficulties. 
The company declared bankruptcy in January 2013.

In April 2013, Ginori was purchased by Gucci with plans to improve the factory in Florence and continue to produce 
the high-end products under its name.

Palermo Brown has been a discontinued pattern since 1988, but one can still find it through eBay and online retailers.
This pattern was also produced in several other colors.
~ rust ~ green ~ yellow ~ blue ~ black ~

As you can see, this is a very versatile pattern.
It's easy to mix it with a variety of linens,
chargers, and patterned salad or dessert plates.
Here it is paired with an inexpensive salad plate, 
Classic Tidings Tartan from Target.

Here with another fine china,
Olde Avesbury by Royal Crown Derby
and Italian pewter chargers.

The colorful Birds of Paradise and Oriental Pheasants 
in Olde Avesbury are taken from an original embroidery.
This pattern was first produced as above in 1932,
but now one can purchase many other color variations
 that have been derived from this pattern.
The green charger is by Zrike.

Our colored crystal by Denby 
compliments both of these china patterns.

Last summer I loaned our china to a friend 
for an alfresco dinner party.
She set an elegant table with gold chargers 
and white linens with an added touch of burgundy.
I just may copy this idea for our November Thanksgiving table.

I'd be a real copycat right down to the Bosc pears 
and the gorgeous rose bouquets in urns.

Or I may do something totally different 
and use the set of Mottahedeh Sacred Bird and Butterfly plates 
that were a gift from Cherry Kay @ Entertaining Women.
You can view the complete post on this table here.

I paired them with the set of 
Walbrzych salad plates that were a thrift store find
and woven rattan chargers from Pier One.

Alison gave us permission to share favorite
china patterns that we own or ones we wished to own.
She called it "wishful thinking"!
I was curious to know what other patterns might work with 
Sacred Bird and Butterfly. 
Off I went to a local shop that carries this pattern
 to see what might be a nice compliment
 to this beautiful rust design.

~ Royale Limoges ~
 Carolle Paprika Dessert Plate w/ Thin Gold Filet
Danielle Presentation Plate w/ Gold Band on White Porcelain
I'm adding the Carolle Paprika dessert plates 
to my "wishful thinking" list.
What do you think?

If you enjoy pretty dishes you should hurry on over to 
Link up you favorite china patterns and see what 
others favor for their personal table settings.

Tutorials, Tips, and Tidbits @ Stone Gable

My tip for selecting a china pattern, is to select a simple rimmed white plate that will easily coordinate with other pieces.  It's fun to mix things up with accent pieces, pretty linens, glassware, and flatware.