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Monday, April 21, 2014

Tuesday Cuppa Tea, Birthdays And Royal Bits

Good morning! I am a bit later than usual with my Tuesday Cuppa Tea post.  I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend...Ours was quiet...we are anticipating major surgery for our dear daughter in law on Tuesday morning, so we are praying and preoccupied. Plus, we are set for visits to friends and family with a buying trip added in starting later in the week, so...a bit scattered. But...on to Tuesday Cuppa Tea!



Because of today's theme, this is my teacup for today...as William Shakespeare's birthday is April 23rd...



so my teacup is the ubiquitous and perennial favorite design theme of Anne Hathaway's Cottage in Stratford-Upon-Avon, England, which is quite close to my husband's birthplace.



As you probably know, Anne Hathaway was William Shakespeare's wife and lived in this thatched cottage in Stratford...which has become so synonymous with Shakespeare, and is now a museum...



The design of the cottage has been has been used in one form or another for centuries, and has been popular in this particular decal design since the 1950s...



The decal was designed by either a person called Capper, or a design firm called Capper...I have been unable to figure out exactly which...and is sometimes's marketed by various manufacturers as Capper's Cottage...



This particular example, with the Royal Sutherland is from the 1980s and is a small potter who developed in the major pottery house changes that left gaps for small potteries to immerge...



The following Shelley cup and saucer in the Stratford shape is from 1959-1966 and is also a decal from Cappers. The pattern design is Capper's Rose. It was the only other Capper's design I could find quickly.



For those who don't know about china making, a decal sheet is applied to a bisque, or dried and fired china body with water and a tool. Then the item is kiln fired. Which is why on decal pieces you can sometimes see a missing pattern line, a slightly darker line, a pattern miss or whatever, as the pattern decal is applied to a round item. Like trying to fold a piece of paper around a ball. It is actually skilled work. They are now designing machines to do it...we'll see.

So now you know why you see the same design sometimes by several makers. The best potteries also employ their own designers, but as that is expensive, many of the small firms buy their decals from a separate design firm. Transferware was similarly made.



Okay...back to birthdays! Happy birthday to Queen Elizabeth II who is 88 today, April 21st. This is the artist Jane Perkins fab portrait of the queen done for her Diamond Jubilee last year of found and recycled bits, using one of her 1953 Coronation photos as a model. It is amazing.



This is Queen Elizabeth's official Diamond Jubilee portrait...



This is another official portrait unveiled in New Zealand last week by William and Catherine, Duke & Duchess of Cambridge who are representing the Queen on a visit to New Zealand and Australia. And for the Prince George watchers, here is the plush Wombat sit on toy given him by the Governor...



Also interesting to me was when Kate got off the plane in New Zealand, she was wearing a Diamond fern brooch...



The brooch was presented to Queen Elizabeth on her first visit to New Zealand in 1953-1954...

And she wears it often...



and it is in the official portrait...as well as used as a design element in Kate's dress...



These are Getty images from Google...I love the history of jewelry...that's from being married to a Diamond setter...I call him my English Setter...for 40 years!

For more info on the teacups at Antiques And Teacups, click on the photos.  I may be a bit late responding to posts this week with the surgery and preparations, but I so look forward to what creative and uplifting things you all have to share! It's a privilege to have you all friends! Here is the linky for you tea related posts. Have a wonderful week!





17 comments:

  1. Happy Easter, Ruth! Your teacup with the cottage is truly charming! I adore teacups adorned with motifs like that. Hope your week goes well and you enjoy spending time with company too. The Lord bless your DIL as she undergoes surgery.

    Blessings,
    Sandi

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  2. Hi Ruth!
    Hope you had a lovely Easter. I love your RS dishes. That Royal famly is so pretty, specially the Little prince George, just too cute! Thank you so much for hosting this sweet tea party for us! Have a wonderful week.
    FABBY
    FABBY

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  3. A wonderful, informative post - as always! Happy Birthday to Queen Elizabeth and William Shakespeare! Your teacups are lovely. Ann Hathaway's cottage was one of our stops on our Globus Tour of England, Scotland and Wales. I pray all goes well with your daughter-in-law's surgery. ~ Phyllis

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  4. Hoping your Easter was lovely! I always enjoy to English Royalty posts.

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  5. I love the Anne Hatheway cottage teacup. And interesting facts about the diamond fern brooch that Catherine is wearing. Maybe brooches will come back in style again. Have a lovely week.

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  6. Hi Ruth,
    Thank you for your history lessons. One of these days, I'd love to find a teacup with the cottage design on it. Thank you for hosting and best wishes for your DIL's surgery tomorrow.

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  7. I hope your DIL's surgery goes well Ruth. An interesting post about Shakespeare's cottage and the teacup with an image of it.
    So what you do think about the fern pin? HRH gave it to Kate? I like Kate's black dress with the fern appliqué .

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  8. I just love your darling cottage teacup! The history of the teacups is so interesting and also how transferware is made. Thank you for hosting and have a good week!
    Nancy

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  9. Dearest Ruth what a lovely post celebrating Queen Elizabeth's birthday and darling teacups you have shared. Thank you for hosting. Sending positive thoughts and prayers that all goes well with your DIL's surgery and she recovers fully and quickly. Hugs and Blessings, C. (HHL)

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  10. I love your pretty cottage teacup and also the one from Shelley -- again, I wouldn't have guessed that to be Shelley! Just said a prayer for your DIL that everything will go well in the a.m. with her surgery. Sending love and prayers to you all!

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  11. Hi Ruth,
    I love Anne Hathaway's cottage and your teacup is so pretty! I have a framed photo and teacup too. Also I adore that Shelley teacup. The saucer is such a beautiful shape. Thank you for hosting Tuesday Cuppa Tea! Have a wonderful week! Karen

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  12. Lovely post!
    I am thinking of your daughter in law this morning as she goes through her surgery. I am praying for her safe and excellent recovery.
    Your tea cup is wonderful! I love this pretty scene.
    Hugs,
    Terri

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  13. What a good eye for you to spot that brooch! It is lovely indeed. Thanks for hosting!
    Sherry

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  14. Thanks for such an interesting post! It was so interesting reading about decals. I had wondered why I've seen the exact same patterns from different makers--now I know! The cottage teacup and saucer is wonderful! I wish a quick recovery to your daughter in law.

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  15. Ruth: You never cease to amaze me. I love that diamond brooch. Wish it was mine. Have a wonderful week. Praying for your daughter in law. Blessings, Martha

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  16. Hi Ruth,

    I hope you had a very joyous and blessed Easter. I'm praying all is well for your daughter in law and hoping for a speedy recovery. Your regal tea is just beautiful!

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  17. Hi Ruth,
    I have been wondering how you are. I knew your DIL was to have surgery and I hope all went well. I've missed you and I have tried to leave a comment before but I have been having some issues on certain blogs. Unfortunately yours is one of them. I'm hoping my son can fix all this when he comes home in July.
    Anyway, I just wanted you to know that you have been in my thoughts and praying all is well!

    Blessings,
    Sandi

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Thanks for visiting and we love to hear from you! We read every comment. If my husband's health permits, I love to visit andreply. Have a wonderful day and a cuppa tea always at hand! :)