Red Transferware

Anyone who has known me for a while - okay, maybe not even that long - probably figured out fairly soon in our relationship that I love white.

White walls, white furniture, white china.

I simply like white.

So it kind of goes without saying, that aside from fresh greens and mercury glass and maybe a bit of rust and wood, that nearly all of my Christmas decor is a shade of white.

Quilted cream stockings. Kraft paper packages with white ribbon.White Poinsettias.

There is however one bit of Christmas decor that isn't white. 

Over the past couple years, I've collected bits of red transferware to display during December.

They have a lovely traditional Christmas feel to them.

 I've actually sold quite a bit of my collection, as it was simply too much to display. What remains were a few of my favourite pieces, and place settings for four.

These Mason's teacups came from an older lady who brought them with her when she immigrated from Europe. She only had one saucer in tact, so they're paired with a newer version.

The dinner plates are Johnson Bros., and are a fair bit newer.

But that's the beauty of transferware. Different patterns mix well, and in my opinion, look more flattering together.

You can see in the photos above that another hint of red that comes out at Christmas is a beautiful stitched tablecloth made from old European grainsacks. It's three lengths stitched together, and it has that thick, worn-soft from use, feel to it.

Christmas Shelves

Before a very busy weekend full of cookie exchanges, Christmas parties and birthday celebrations, I was finally able to put away my brown transferware for another year, and take out my collection of red.

My collection of red transferware is quite a bit larger than my collection of brown. It includes place settings for six, as well as an assortment of serving pieces, small pitchers and various platters. I simply can't fit it all on my shelves.

So I just pick out my favourite pieces for a nice mix of patterns.

They look so beautiful against off white walls, especially with bits of greenery tucked here and there. 

Trimming Our Christmas Tree

The house is slowly starting to look like Christmas.

The trees are trimmed, our Christmas lights are hung and I'm ready to make my garland and change my shelves.

This year, with our dining room table now in the sun room off the kitchen, we have plenty of space in our small living room for a large tree.

I love Christmas. 

The house just feels so warm and cozy all decorated.

Yes, I've even begun wrapping my Christmas presents.

I added a burlap runner to our buffet. I will add a few boughs to the shelf, but I haven't got that far yet.

I'm also ready to put away my brown transferware and replace it with my red.

Each year, I like to add a few new decorations to my collection.

This year I found this beautiful mercury glass finial from Pottery Barn, as well as the pine cone and other ornament below. The rusty bells were part of a collection I sold at my sale.

I also added some burlap ribbon and twig balls.

A Collection of Red Transferware

I'm so excited to finally get to share with you some beautiful pieces of red transferware that I've been assembling over the past couple of weeks.

I have quite a large collection of white ironstone pitchers, as well as a few tureens and serving dishes and until now, I've kept my dish collecting to just those few pieces.

However, every time I browse through an antique store, I can't help but be drawn to the pieces of transferware in their pretty shades.  Putting together a collection would be quite hard in this area and though there are so many lovely pieces online, shipping can be so expensive.

Then I came across an ad for a collection of transferware in the local classifieds and immediately inquired. A son was selling his late mother's collection from her estate as the family no longer had any use for the china. Most of it (the "Woodland" pattern by Woods and Sons) was purchased here in Canada, but a few pieces (the Mason's "Vista England") that are worn and old, but still lovingly cared for, are what is left of her set that was brought over from Germany almost 100 years ago. Though I'm always hesitant to believe the history of any piece I buy (I'm sure it wasn't quite 100 years...), I still found this one to be a charming idea.

Regardless, I couldn't be happier with my new collection. I can't possibly keep all of it as there were over 80 pieces altogether, but I have set aside a set of 6 and a few extra serving pieces.

I've begun listing the remainder of the estate in the shop which you can purchase here.

THE GROWER'S DAUGHTER

The platter in the back is one of the old Mason's transferware pieces, along with the small pitcher to the right. 

Set of Four Demitasse Cups and Saucers - $20.00 

Set of Six Bone Dishes - $25.00

Set of Two Serving Bowls - $35.00

Set of 4 Soup Bowls - $30.00

This was one of the most exciting parts of the collection. There was a set of four serving platters (see the platter in the top photo). There is a small, medium, large and extra lager platter in the set. These are the four patterns depicted on each starting with the smallest (top left) to the largest (bottom right). They are stunning and would make a gorgeous wall display!

Do you have anything in particular you collect, or would love to start collecting?