Better Late than Never

Sometimes I think that Freud would have a field day probing my collecting habits......
When the old, brown, mummified with gaffer tape, boxes from eBay are deposited in the wheelie bin by our Postie, I'm usually pretty sharp at fishing them out and cutting open the wrapping. The contents usually sit on my desk for a few days, before being photographed and squeezed onto an over full shelf somewhere around the house.  And then very proudly, I'll post a photo on my blog.
But sometimes real gems get lost in the process and here's one that's been with me with me for a year now.
Keeping anything anal to the end: It's a really lovely example of a mid-sized TY (sweet pea) pattern, baluster vase shape 198, Painted by Gwen Dry in the early 1930's.

Strange

Delphis vases marked as shape number 83 come in all sorts of shapes. From simple cylinders to what appear to be more traditional Poole, John Adams inspired, shapes.  To my mind, this cup and ball shape is the most bizarre, and I really can't decide whether I like it or not.  Painted by Lorretta Leigh in 1970.

Gently Art Deco

This recent eBay purchase, in a shape (no.112, five inches tall) that I have in other patterns, and a nice gentle Art Deco pattern (YW) that I have in in other shapes, makes a fine addition to my collection.  Painted by Iris Skinner in the early 1930's

Age of Jugs

Do jugs want to be used? While vases seem happy just to exist and look pretty, don't jugs have an obvious functionality that demands to be tipped and poured.  It's such a shame that this once essential kitchen accessory has become redundant.
Until this jug appeared on eBay a couple of weeks ago I'd not seen this barbed wire (XW) pattern before, so I was really pleased to win it.  Shape number 484, it probably holds a couple of pints, and stands 20 cm tall.

Newark Jam Pot

This TR or Grapes Pattern jam pot was painted by Ruth Paveley.  At £20 I thought it was a real bargain last week at Newark and brought it home with me.  Unfortunately having got it home I've spotted, what is, a very good restoration to a chip, on the lid, by the spoon hole. 

Fairs are quite tricky at times for this. As everything is sold as seen and it's hard to check in such detail, especially as sometimes, when I see a pot I like, I'm too excited to check condition well enough.  In many ways eBay is safer in that the onus really is on the seller to describe any faults, and if not you can seek some redress.  

Pottery Gazette and Glass Trade Review

I've been leafing though back issues of the Pottery Gazette and Glass Trade Review looking for the adverts that Poole Pottery placed back in the 1930's.  My finds so far I've posted on a new webpage here www.robspoolepottery.co.uk/poole_pottery_adverts.  Not too many of them as yet, but it's a work in progress and I'll add more images as I find them. 

Newarked

It was an early start to beat the crowds to a chilly but dry second day at the Newark Antiques Fair yesterday.  This little, 3 inch tall,  LD pattern, shape 657, jug didn't come from there, but there were a few reasonably priced Poole pots, one of which I came home with and will post on here once I've and a chance to take a photo.

Bokhara Storage Jar JB

I like to think that my quest to collect a complete set of these Robert Jefferson Bokhara jars is slowly nearing it's completion, though in truth finding the last few missing pieces is taking ever longer.  These pots don't come up on eBay that often and when they do they are increasingly one that I already have. This one is shape 659, and at 16.5 cm tall, it's the largest (I think) of the 4 sizes made.