Dare I say it…tricks to serve your treats for Halloween! Halloween is here, and it’s time to get out the china and dinnerware with motifs that feature spooks, spiders, ghosts, goblins and other spooky creatures. Some tea from the cauldron will go great in a mug like my favorite Poultrygeist scary rooster mug. There is [...]

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Beautiful old maps – reproduced for home decorating on wallpaper, fabrics and other accessories – can bring richness to your dining room as well. What dinnerware can you select to create your table setting in a dining room based on an antique maps theme, without overpowering the look? We have several avenues to suggest: Use [...]

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Hot summer weather seems made for ice cream sodas and root beer floats. A scoop of vanilla ice cream, some good root beer (favorites are Stewart’s and IBC at this house) and you are in business. Just be sure to make them right before you’re going to enjoy them. In Michigan we also have a [...]

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It is so nice to hear customer stories about how much they are enjoying the vintage dinnerware we helped them find. Sometimes they are finding the pieces to complete a collection. Other times, to start a new one. A box of vintage dishes in the Blue Orchard pattern went on its way this week, to [...]

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My Christmas shopping goes all year round. When the summer garage sale “hunting season” comes around, it’s time to check my list for the things I’ll need for the fall and winter holidays. One of those items on the shopping list is the 12 Days of Christmas dinnerware set, designed by Debbie Mumm for Sakura. [...]

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Souvenirs can come from many places, and be just about anything that brings back sweet memories from our travels. I’ve got some Irish pottery mugs that do that for me. I like to get out my collectibles and enjoy them. Mugs are practical, small to pack, and easy to use. In 2005, I made my [...]

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Fiesta by Homer Laughlin: What better dinnerware can you bring out to use for your Cinco de Mayo party? Or any party, for that matter. Fiesta means party in Spanish. Introduced in 1936, this dinnerware is a perennial favorite, with many fans and collectors. It was grandma’s china, or even great grandma’s china. When it [...]

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Enjoying china has one downside: It can be difficult to choose one pattern to be your own. If you love them all, how do you choose? Eventually Summer Chintz by Johnson Brothers became my everyday contemporary china. This dinnerware was made for more than 20 years, and there are many pieces to add to this [...]

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Mix and match dinnerware has lots of interesting possibilities. Charming and creative table settings are often born when different patterns are combined. Same holds true for glass. Yesterday I saw a blog post today about creating collections of mixed glassware. Oh yes, a vintage lover after my own heart wrote this, and chose the glass. [...]

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Many of my dishie friends love glass as well. Then the challenge comes up: identifying glass. Most glass is not marked. Learning the makers and patterns takes time and experience. There are many wonderful books, but they will only get you part of the way. We are fortunate here to have our local Great Lakes [...]

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