An instant hit: vintage coffee time with E Hughes & Co
Sometimes vintage china can be challenging to photograph. Pale patterns, in particular, can looked washed out in photographs yet be beautiful in person. As much as I like a challenge, […]
Celtic memories: From the heart of Wales to the new world
I’ve been looking back at some of the photographs that I took when I first started Nancy’s Tea Shop. I love looking at photos. Before the digital era, I used […]
Chapels and graffiti hearts: Vintage wanderings in West Wales
On a sunny weekend in May I visited Carmarthen, a market town in West Wales. It’s sited on the lovely River Towy and lays claim to being the oldest town in […]
Archway to my heart: Shelley’s timeless rose garden tea set
I wasn’t planning on writing another post about Shelley china but last weekend I stumbled upon a gorgeous tea set that I wanted to share with you. The tea set […]
Shelley and its ‘Dainty’ styles
In contrast to my previous post about the many forms of Tuscan china, today’s post is about another Staffordshire company that produced china where much of it is distinctive enough […]
The many faces of Tuscan china: the real test of an expert
After over a year of collecting and selling tea china, I’m getting better at recognising china makers such as Royal Vale, Colclough and Paragon but others still surprise me. I’ve […]
Ballet stars: Colclough vintage china gems
When I started buying Colclough china the first sets that I bought were from the Ballet and Harlequin ranges. These simple and elegant tea sets were the first examples of […]
A man with a tea mission: Herbert Colclough
Last time I told you how my passion for Colclough and Vale china began and promised to tell you a bit about the man who started the Colclough company. Herbert […]
Bright coloured china for the masses
Wow, the days are flying by and it’s time for another blog post. I’ve been enjoying preparing my next few posts because they’re about some of my favourite china: Colclough […]
More Royal Albert beauties: from hand-painted flowers to marbled effects
After a few months of only being able to find relatively common pieces of Royal Albert, I struck on two designs that I hadn’t seen before… One is this gorgeous […]
