BACKGROUND
Well, until today I had never heard of any Laura Ashley chinaware's (and I have had a LOT pass through my hands via my wife of late) The usual references online do not shed much light and certainly there seems to be no references to a standalone works in that name. I strongly suspect these were produced by a well known works and branded for Laura Ashley.
Not all that old (although I have seen "others" call these "vintage or antique"! Goodness me, vintage used to mean 100+ years not a measly 25 years), compared to much of the chinaware my wife has collected, she used this trio for everyday use only but it really didn't stand the test of time! See the description further down for details about this ...
This offering is actually a trio BUT you can purchase any individual piece or the complete trio together (discounted when purchasing them together)
Use the 'drop down' menu to select the piece you would like to have ... if an option doesn't appear that means it has already been purchased!
LAURA ASHLEY - Teaset Trio (Teacup, Saucer & Side Plate)
Made in Staffordshire, England but the original maker is unknown. It clearly states that this chinaware was made FOR Laura Ashley, not by them.
I have underlined "Made in Staffordshire, England" because many English works had taken their production off-shore by the 1990's in order to reduce production costs. This is genuine English product.
Trade Name: Hazelbury
1990's period (Yes, these are "youngster's" in the world of English chinaware!)
NOTE: On the backstamp is printed MCMLXXXX which initially looked like a Roman numeral except the Roman numeral MCMLXXXX does not exist! Too many X's - I guess this was some sort of coding Laura Ashley used but it should not be mistaken for a date coding or similar.
Opaque China
This means that when a piece is held to the light, you cannot see the shadow of your fingers through the china
Transferware
The base colouring of all pieces is White.
Pattern (name is not indicated on the pieces but the teacup does have the trade name Hazelbury. The design is a multi-coloured floral chintz with all pieces having a pale Blue rim.
While not steeped in "history", this trio is pretty at least
DIMENSIONS:
TEACUP (STANDARD ENGLISH ONE CUP)
86mm mouth x 73mm height
Teacup handle is your "standard" shape, not a high back, with fluted sides
SAUCER
144mm diameter (scalloped rim)
SIDE PLATE:
173mm diameter, also with a scalloped rim
BACKSTAMP DETAILS:
Here is a photograph of the teacup backstamp, the saucer and side plate have identical backstamps
COSMETIC CONDITION:
This report applies to all three pieces, with any specific flaws I observed being mentioned also ...
USED
CLEAN
NO cracks
NO discolouration to the brilliant White body on any piece
NO discolouration or fade of the colour decoration(s)
NO wear is apparent to the pale Blue rim decoration on any piece, this is often an area that will show wear after a lot of use
HOWEVER ... quite suprisingly, possibly due to being put through the dishwasher (the backstamp does state "dishwasher safe") there is crazing evident. After just 25+ years I would not have expected this.
Crazing is light and NOT discoloured, meaning that little nasties have not gone to live underneath the glaze, small mercies!
Crazing on the teacup is extremely minor, but crazing can be seen around the handle area and the underside where the backstamp is.
Additionally, light crazing can be seen on both the topside and underside of the saucer and the side plate.
Now none of this crazing is particularly severe but the fact is, it is there. So much for dishwasher safe!
The other flaw that I noticed is fleabites, again these are not severe nor discoloured but they exist! The saucer has just one but the side plate has four of the little critters.
While many may consider this teaset trio to be "fine", I am guilty of being super critical about these things, especially in china that is so "young" but I do however admit this is one very pretty little thing to put on the table for a cuppa
