Just two more egg cup posts – we’ll finish our tour tomorrow. This annual tour has been a bit of an enabler; I spotted an egg cup I’ve always wanted on Etsy and it is now on its way to my mailbox. No, you guys are the enablers…that’s it. I’m going to blame it on all of you.  After all, you asked for this tour and I complied and then I took pictures of all of my egg cups and then I got excited about all of my egg cups and then I started looking at my reference book and then I started looking at eBay and Etsy and then…I bought one.

Here we go: Egg Cups, the Sunday Edition.

1.  The adorable egg cup on the left was a birthday gift from Linda, one of my dear blogging friends. (Linda also collects egg cups.) I am crazy about that face! I’ve included two photos so you can see that the tail functions as a salter. There’s a stopper at the bottom of the tail to keep the salt in. The sticker on the front says: Our own import. And marked on the bottom with another sticker: Japan. It’s in perfect condition. And that aqua is my favorite color!

2. The cup on the right isn’t really an egg cup. It’s an egg coddler and it was a gift from my mom. Beautifully decorated with one bird on one side and two birds on the other, it’s marked Royal Worcester Porcelain, England.

1.  I found this egg cup at my favorite shop in San Diego, Vignettes. You do see why I had to buy it, right? Those are my favorite colors! And the design is delicate and lovely. It’s unmarked. I keep it in the den china cabinet with a tiny little bird nest that I found placed at the top of the cup.

2.  This goose egg cup is a favorite. Marked: Sarreguemines France with the letter A. Sarreguemines is an area in France where faience and majolica was made. It has a lot of crazing and is vintage. I found it, much to my delight, at a local antique shop a few years back. I’ve never seen it anywhere else.

1.  Oh, this guy…he was the result of a bidding frenzy on eBay many years ago. I had to have him. He’s very tall. I didn’t realize until last year, when I saw them offered on Etsy, that he is one of a pair that function as egg cups/shakers. There are supposed to be holes in the top of his hat for shaking the salt onto the egg, but there aren’t, which makes this piece even more intriguing. There is a hole at the bottom of the head for a stopper. The egg cup itself is revealed when the head is taken off the body. I love his face, his rosy checks, the clothes he’s wearing, everything. Marked: Ardalt 6343 Occupied Japan. The Occupied Japan mark means that the piece was made during the American occupation of Japan after WWII, which lasted from 1947 – 1952.

2.  Humpty Dumpty, made by Mansell in Great Britain. I usually put a decorated egg from Prague in the egg cup, so that his poor head is intact. Crazy about this one. I saw one on eBay the  other day, so you can still find this guy. Marked: Collectible Porcelain. Mansell Print Ltd. ©

It’s sunny today and the temps, though chilly, are rising. This may be the day that we open up the big corral for Scout. The remaining snow should be gone by mid afternoon. She’s going to be very happy.

Happy Sunday.

And the egg cups keep coming…

Yesterday I spent time online – both on eBay and Etsy – checking out egg cups. This can be a long, laborious process because there are lots and lots of them listed, which is probably why I don’t do it very often. There are indeed less and less vintage figurals, but I do  see them, so if you’re thinking of starting a collection, go for it. The great thing about egg cups is that they are very affordable and are usually priced between $5 – $10, depending on the age and rarity. Might I add that they take up very little space?

Oh, I almost forgot. I investigated freezing Mallomars and guess what? They can  be frozen. Guess where we’re going later today?

Here we go:

1.  A mama duck and her babies. I love the colors used on this one. It’s particularly sweet.  Marked Made in Japan.

2.  A Scottie dog egg cup. I’ve seen this egg cup in a white glaze, but I really like the yellow glaze and the blue collar, so I lucked out when I discovered this one. eBay, I believe. Marked Made in Japan.

3.  A bunny in front of a blue egg cup. Slightly mischievous look in the eyes, don’t you think? Marked Made in Japan.

4.  Egg cup with Bunny peeking around the side. Looks like he’s hiding from someone! Marked Made in Japan.

1.  One of my favorites. I’ve never seen it anywhere else, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not out there. Two dogs holding up an egg cup. I love the dogs, of course, but I particularly love the detail at the top. The vertical lines and dots are very Art Deco in feeling. Unmarked.

2.  A cute little pig with an egg cup on her head. Adorable. Marked with the number 10 in a circle and Japan.

3.  A particular favorite and another win after a crazy bidding war on eBay. This one is so lovely. A duck and a rooster on either side of the egg cup which is sitting on green grass. The colors and glaze are beautifully done. Marked Made in Japan.

These egg cups usually sit on the little shelves in the den and are some of my very favorites.

1.  I absolutely adore this one. A pig, napkin around his neck, ready to dine on an egg. Made for Tiffany by Elizabethan Staffordshire in England. Look at that face!

2.  The egg cup that has the greatest monetary value in my collection. There was a whole set of these egg cups made in the late thirties for Walt Disney Enterprises. They are very hard to find nowadays. My friend Nels, who has an unbelievable collection of egg cups, told me yesterday that a few years back, in the beginning days of eBay, the entire set of seven dwarfs and Snow White might sell for up to $2000. Nowadays, they usually go for $80 – $100 each. Nels also told me that these cups were giveaways in Canada to coincide with the release of the Disney movie – whether they were giveaways here, as well, I don’t know.

Anyway, I found Doc several years ago on eBay and I think I got him for about $50. I would absolutely love to amass the entire set. Maybe I will one day! Marked ©1937, W. D. Ent. Made in Japan.

3.  A little boy dressed as a cowboy. I love this guy. That face with the rosy cheeks is so sweetly painted. A reader once suggested that this one might actually be an English character instead of a little boy, so I checked my reference book (which is sort of the egg cup bible, if there is one) and it’s definitely a little boy with a cowboy hat. The same description is also to be found on other reference sites. (I love researching this stuff.) Marked Japan.

I lost him for a year or so, but didn’t know it. After an unfortunate incident where I hit my head on the shelves in my bedroom – the same incident that resulted in the broken Holt Howard rooster egg cup – this little guy rolled under our bed. But I didn’t know it at the time. A year later, I realized he was missing and began to search for him. It wasn’t until several days later that I thought to check under the bed, where he was found patiently waiting for me to put him back on the shelf.

Everything has a story.

Happy Friday.