Wednesday, October 22, 2008

i love pretty dishes and rosanna inc.

When we sisters were very young, my mom started us collecting dishes.
We each had a different style of depression glass that we would hunt
for in the dusty corners of antique stores and search the wobbly tabletops of
flea markets and garage sales.
But something happened with all that treasure hunting.
Somewhere deep in our DNA we became wired for dishes.
But after 4 moves I had to put the kybosh on my collecting.
Loading dish pack after dish pack can do that to you.
I had every day dishes. Wedgwood china. Depression glass. Jadeite. Ironstone.
And a managerie of McCoy pottery, english teapots, and egg cups.
I love to use all my dishes at fetes and soirees and teas and baby showers.
(All 2 1/2 of them a year...such frequent use...I'm crazy like that.)
Sometimes when I have tea and scones with my backyard neighbor, Mimi,
while the kids are running amuck, we drink PG Tips with milk out of feather light china cups monogrammed with the letter "S" that my sister, Jenny, got for me 8 years ago...because she also cannot resist a pretty dish.
So all that to say, for years we sisters have been counseling each other,
"No more dishes. You don't need a single dish more."
But a few years ago,
I began noticing some dishes that were so pretty they could not be ignored.
I saw them in Country Living. And the Williams Sonoma catalogue.
I began to read about their designer, Rosanna Bowles.
And I loved all that she created.
But I resisted purchasing...because I have a lot of dishes.
And then I saw the Christmas plates.
The whimsical 12 days of Christmas plates.

They were my undoing, tsgs. Yes, they were.
And while I do not own the Christmas plates...as of yet...(hint, hint, Scott)
every year around November-ish, I begin to dream of them.
With their pink and aqua highlights. Hello, lovely partridge in a pear tree dishes.
I also have a hankering for the new the hot chocolate ensemble....
Because it's chocolate...my love language.
But you may lean more towards the red polka dots?
Or the green stemware with "vino" etched into it.
Or parisian fare? Or the haute holiday dishes that would look fantastic paired with the red polka dot dishes?
Because who wouldn't love those. So I thought in case you hadn't heard of
Rosanna and her lovely dishes that I should point the way to her pre-holiday
so that you, too, can dream of her fanciful creations.
Make sure to check out Rosanna's blog
and the winner of their annual table setting competition.
Those girls know how to get their fancy on.
I can't lie, I feel the need for a cup of tea and a pumpkin muffin coming on.
All this dish talk has me a little peckish.
Maybe I love pretty dishes so much because I love eating off of them so much.
New thoughts to ponder.
But one thing I am sure of?
There is always room for one more pretty dish in the cupboard.


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3 comments:

Bets said...

I"m not even sure that I should thank you for this post - because, like you, I imagine I probably have 'enough' dishes - but I could truly fall in love with many from the ones you shared! I too have a bond with tableware that many just can't understand....

Carrie said...

I LOVE dishes, too! I especially love pink depression glass, and I used to collect a LOT of anqtique glassware & vases, but our budget has put the kibbosh on that for me lately. :) And having a son, I don't necessarily want to take my little tornado into an antique store!!! :)

Kim said...

One can never have enough tableware! Bring it on, baby. As with books, there's always more room for another plate...or platter...or...

I've been collecting teacup & saucer sets for many years (I think there are 26 or 28 sets in my collection now). I used to display them in a corner cupboard we had in the dining room, and I had too many to do all at once so I rotated them.

And I used them for tea parties and ladies get-togethers.

They are some of my favorite things.

But I debated on whether to bring them or not. In the end I did. Have nowhere to put them yet so for now they are safely ensconced in bubble wrap inside a big plastic bin. The hubby plans to build a shelf all along one of the longer walls in the kitchen so they can brighten up the room and be readily available for use.

Really enjoyed checking out the table setting contest and seeing all the beautiful tablescapes created with the Rosanna china. Passed along the link to the daughter and the DIL because I know they'll both enjoy too.