McCoy pottery — Page 16

A Little Something

November 5, 2012 at 8:26 am by Claudia

The headline here at Mockingbird Hill Cottage continues to be:

MHC: Trying to Exist on an Extremely Frugal Budget of

Next-to-Nothing.

You think I’m kidding? I assure you, I’m not. And I’m sure that many of you are doing the same thing. But even a budget of next-to-nothing might sometimes allow for a wee purchase. Just a small one. I have to do this kind of thing every once in a while because it makes me feel a little better. No, I’m not shopper who buys things in order to feel better about myself and I’m not feeling sorry for myself. But there are times when I simply need to buy a little something and I set a limit of $20.00.

This month – November – is the month of my birthday.

It’s a big one – one that I’m in denial about, one that I’d much rather avoid.

It’s looming.

So I just might need a little pick-me-up. Because life has been depressing as of late and I have been immersed in a feeling of hopelessness.

I dropped off some things to donate to Hurricane Sandy relief yesterday and stopped in at a favorite antique shop.

I came home with these.

I love old glove boxes. I often see them in solid colors. These faded prints are harder to find. Marked down to $4.50.

Adorable McCoy pot in my favorite color. Actually, this is a Nelson McCoy pot which pre-dates the McCoy markings.

See the NM mark? This is a smallish pot with a nifty design. I haven’t purchased anything McCoy in quite a while, partly because I only have so much room here at the cottage and partly because I’m trying to live as frugally as possible. (See headline.) Interestingly, the day we discovered Mabel (my Featherweight ) which is my early birthday present, I had this very pot in my hand, ready to purchase. As I stood at the counter, I decided that the Featherweight was purchase enough and I handed the pot back to the owner of the shop. I also saw the glove box that day.

Fast forward several weeks and they were still there.

They were waiting for me, don’t you think?

I’m happy to say that the total price for these two items came in at well under $20.00.

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The winner of a copy of Mr. Churchill’s Secretary is Regena Fickes. I’ve already contacted her. Congratulations, Regena!

Happy Monday.

What the Heck is in that China Cabinet?

October 10, 2012 at 10:00 am by Claudia

First of all, why do I decide to do these kinds of posts on a rainy, gloomy day? Don’t answer. The truth is, taking a bright sunny photo in the den would be all but impossible on any given day. Even though there are lots of windows, the big window is tucked under the porch roof, so we don’t get any bright sun until the end of the day. So, using Aperture Priority, I’m attempting to take some fairly decent photos of this cabinet and its contents. (Note: I need a new camera.) And eliminating the television from this photo would entail moving a few pieces of furniture and that’s not going to happen. Trust me, this photo would have been a lot worse if I hadn’t painted the inside of the cabinet a pale pink.

This china cabinet, which is on the petite side, was one of the first things I bought for my apartment in San Diego. I found it in Ocean Beach, my favorite place to hunt for vintage anything. I bought it to house my collection of Fiesta, which I ended up selling a few years later. I love the different tones of wood and the inlays along the sides. I’ll never paint it. You can see the Hendryx birdcage and some of my Roseville on top. Let’s take a peek inside, shall we?

Shelf One

1. aqua bulb bowl – McCoy, 2. my great-grandmother’s syrup jug with pewter lid, 3. platter from my favorite set of of Edwin Knowles china, I wrote about them here, 4. creamer and sugar found in Orange, CA, 5. small dish from my great-grandmother’s set of Haviland China (the rest is still stored at my friend’s house in Detroit. I know.) 6. pale pink depression glass plate that I won in a giveaway 7. French china pitcher, found at Vignettes, 8. French china plate, also found at Vignettes 9. One of my first pieces of McCoy, a lovely green vase (I have 2 of them) 10. hat pin holder, 11. vintage hat pin

Shelf Two

1. McCoy bird dish, 2. McCoy vase in peach/coral, 3. McCoy pot (a present from Brenda) 4. beautiful plate, made in France, that you can’t see very well (from Vignettes) 5. Hull pitcher (a present from Betty) 6. my grandmother’s baby shoe, 7. my pink hobnail vase (found in the neighboring town) 8. a goose egg cup

Shelf Three

1. two teacups from that set of Edwin Knowles china, 2. a bowl and a gravy boat from that same set, 3. a little platter – same set, 4. McCoy vase, another one of my first finds, 5. a beautiful egg cup in my favorite colors, unmarked (I found it at Vignettes) 6. McCoy Arcature vase (one of my all-time favorites) 7. McCoy bulb bowl in aqua, 8. hat pin holder

I think I need some larger plates or platters in the back, don’t you?

I’ll take you on a tour of the kitchen cabinet (also full of china and pottery) on another day.

Thank you for all your beautiful, heartfelt comments on my post about Riley. I can never thank you enough for the compassion and love you’ve sent my way and for the love you’ve sent to Riley. Bless you.

Don’t forget the book giveaway! It ends tonight. Scroll down three posts and you’ll find it.

Happy Wednesday.

Topping it Off & Etsy

September 24, 2012 at 10:19 am by Claudia

This is the top of the white hutch in my kitchen. (Gosh, it’s hard to take good photos of the tops of cabinets and hutches! It seems to be so dark up there – at least in my house.) I used to have a rather large Fiesta collection and on the left are 3 of the pieces that I saved when I sold it. The heart is from Monica. The sheep are salt and pepper shakers that my sister gave me. I have a vintage pitcher under that wire cloche. The little guy is a fishmonger from the days when we collected the Dickens Village pieces from Department 56. Don added him to the display because he thinks the fishmonger looks like him. And on the right is an old ice cream bucket filled with dried hydrangeas.

Once I had taken that photo, I started looking at the tops of my other cabinets.

This is my hutch in the den. The birdcage on the left is vintage Hendryx. I bought it at Vignettes in San Diego. And you can see some of my pieces of Roseville pottery. I love Roseville. Hidden behind the pottery are some vintage books, including my dad’s schoolbooks.

Then I traveled on to the top of my big old white cabinet in the living room:

The ceiling in the living room is low. More pottery, mostly McCoy – the piece on the left doesn’t have a maker’s mark.

What about the kitchen cabinets?

Fortunately, our kitchen ceiling is high and I can display my pottery. On the left are two Fiesta coffee pots. The other four pieces are McCoy. That chartreuse vase is one of my favorites – very clean lines and sort of Art Deco/Moderne handles. On the other side of the kitchen you can see these:

More McCoy.

I like using the tops of hutches and cupboards and cabinets for display space. And, frankly, I need it. I have so much pottery around here that if I limited my displays to shelves and the inside of hutches, I’d be in a sorry state. Do you use that space to display things in your home?

Shop Update:

There are 2 more Obsession Scarves in the Etsy Shop – I just added them.

Update: Sold out. Thank you!

Another former student of mine won an Emmy last night – Abraham Higginbotham (Writer and Executive Producer on Modern Family.) Yay, Abe!

Happy Monday.

A Little Something

What the Heck is in that China Cabinet?

Topping it Off & Etsy

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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