Transferware

I've always loved transferware and thought I'd do a little history

on these pretty dishes.Transferware is a pottery decorating

process invented about 200 years ago.

Potters learned to transfer a pattern from an engraved

metal plate to china. When the item is heated in a kiln

the pattern ingredients fuse with the surface and the

pattern becomes a permanent part of the china.

The variety of colors and patterns are endless. British potters invented the transferware process and had the market tied up for all of the 1800s because no one else could compete on quality and price. Their potteries were exported to America in vast quantities... as much as 250,000 pieces in a single shipload. The fraction that survive today give us a unique physical link with our forebears. Staffordshire Romantic transferware, with classical, oriental, and scenic themes is the most sought after category and was mostly made in the 1830's to 1850's. I have collected mostly blue transferware but would like to have more brown and red. There is green, also, which is very pretty. Flow Blu, pictured above, is simply a modified transferware process. The molten pattern ingredients were encouraged to bleed into the surrounding areas to form a halo effect. It was attractive as well as hiding minor faults. Flow Blue is avidly collected in the USA. The first picture at the top is Mason's Blue and White China sold by Crabtree & Evelyn. I have a china cabinet full of it! Not antiques, but I love the pattern of old cabbage roses. But my favorites are the old, old pieces...the ones that have yellowed and aged with time and use. :) info wiki, ebay and google.