Living Room China Cabinet

Lexington China Cabinet

Readers familiar with my blog may have seen some of my excessive plate collection displayed in my Welsh Dresser (see links below).  Today I thought I would share my living room china cabinet, which is an entirely different style.  (There is no consistent decorating theme flowing throughout my house...)

Lexington China Cabinet Top

In 2010, I was lucky enough to get a magnificent Lexington China Cabinet from a moving sale.  I practically had to pass an interview before the wonderful couple moving sold me this piece, along with a dining room table and six chairs.  (It's a good thing my house has an April Aire humidifier, for example.)  They would not sell the dining room table and chairs without the hutch.  Fortunately, my husband had previously agreed I could purchase a dining room table and chairs.  This china cabinet would be forever out of my budget (with four children and limited income) if I hadn't found it at this sale.  (The total for the hutch, table and chairs was under $1000, hardly inexpensive, but definitely a great deal) 

 

The two piece china cabinet has beautiful wood, a mirrored back, individually paned beveled glass doors on the front, and a curving arched center, with inset lighting.  The side windows are not beveled glass.  This is undoubtedly the best piece of furniture I own. (Unless the 'antique' furniture I've collected here and there are of an Antique Roadshow caliber, which I daydream about, but realize is highly unlikely)

Does your heart ever beat faster when you get find an incredible find?  I can still look at this furniture months later and smile. Often, at night, it is the only light on in the living room as we watch TV.

I think my Welsh Dresser is great at displaying an assorted collection of plates and objects that don't match, because the Welsh Dresser has no glass doors or lights to compete with the collection.  The living room china cabinet is a different story.

 

 

My living room china cabinet is better suited for the German Rosenthal china set my parents got when they married, which I was given in 2002. Because the china cabinet doors are beveled, I think it works well if the china pieces displayed inside match.  The beveled windows, the smaller panes, each work to render the display inside in a more impressionistic or surrealistic manner.  Sometimes you can't quickly make out what you are looking at with all the glass, and I think with the matching china you get a pleasant  impression of glowing color and shapes with a pattern to it.

Pink Depression Glassware

I have several different sets of stemware on the various levels.  It's hard for me to have a large piece of furniture and not use it for storage, filling it only sparingly.  If I had a larger house, I would probably change the way I have the bottom level and the glassware arranged.

Below I opened the door and took a shot inside to show you the Rosenthal china without looking through the beveled windows.

Rosenthal Pompadour china

 

 

Click on the images to see them enlarged.


If you enjoyed this post you might also like:

My Collection of all Hutch Posts!

 

   
Linking up to these memes:

Roses for Show off your Cottage Mon (I was entry 47 of 55.) 
Boogieboard Cottage for Masterpiece Mon 8 (Entry 66 of 80.)
Apron Girl for Thrift Share Monday (I was entry 58 of 59.)
Dittle Dattle for Amaze Me Mon (I was entry 178 of 207.)  
Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tues 51 (I was entry 25 of 206.)

Primative and Proper for Piece of work Wed 22 (Entry 49 of 53.) 

A Beach Cottage for Good Life Wed (I was entry 78 of 83.)
Diane for 2nd Time Around, (I was entry 1 of 17.)
Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thursday 103, (Entry 21 of 120.)
Colorado Lady for Vintage Thingies Thur (Entry 12 of 44.)  
Brambleberry Cottage for Time Travel Thur 33 (Entry 5 of 40.)
Romantic Home for Show and Tell (Entry 109 of 314.) 
Hodgepodge for Hodgepodge Friday (Entry 64 of 205.)
Common Ground for Vint Inspiration 26 (Entry 98 of 116.)
Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home 3 (Entry 21 of 42.)
Cottage Charm for Trinkets and Treasures (Entry 6 of 12.)
French Country for Feathered Nest Fri  (Entry 20 of 128.)

A La Carte for Finds Friday 17 (Entry 30 of 64.)
Chic Shoestring for Flaunt it Friday (Entry 73 of 285.) 
Frou Frou Decor for Fabulous Finds Fri (Entry 98) 
Naps on the Porch for Metamorphis Mon 110 (Entry 144 of 379.) 

How Sweet for Pink Saturday (Entry 119 of 186.)

Funky Junk for Saturday Night Special 70 (Entry 77 of 211.)

French Cupboard for French Inspiration (Entry 18)

Valentine Hutch

Valentines Day Hutch

 

Here is my hutch arranged for Valentines Day.  I have five contemporary novelty plates on the hutch that don't quite fit with the rest, but I am going to pretend that they work.   

Swinnertons Staffordshire Plate

 

I like Swinnertons "Kent" china from Staffordshire England for Valentines day.  I think they really have a valentines feel to them because of the border.

 

Otagiri Birds

 

The two cute birds above are manufactured by the Otagiri company.  I got them for $1.50, and I like their cheerful chubbiness.  They keep hanging around from plate change to plate change.

Next year I hope to have more time to arrange my hutch for Valentines Day, and include some Valentines I have.  I look at my photos now and I want to spread out the contemporary plates better.  But for 2011 time has run out.  This year I am just digging through boxes to see what I have.  (I am kind of photo inventorying my collection now that I have a hutch to display them in).

Click on the images to see them enlarged.


If you enjoyed this post you might also like:

My Collection of all Hutch Posts!

I am linking to these parties:
Bargain Hunting for Valentines Party (I was entry 99 of 102.)
This is my 12th entry to Mosaic Monday (I was entry 35 of 92.)
Roses for Show off your Cottage Mon (I was entry 1 of 58.)
Naps on the Porch for Metamorphis Mon (I was entry 63 of 276).
Boogieboard Cottage for Masterpiece Mon 7 (I was entry 6 of 61.)
Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tues 50 (I was entry 23 of 141.)
Colorado Lady for Vintage Thingies Thur (I was entry 11 of 39).
Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thur 102 (I was entry 1 of 121.)
Brambleberry for Time Travel Thur 32 (I was entry 2 of 48.)
Common Ground for Vint Inspiration 25 (I was entry 22 of 102.)
Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home 2 (I was entry 39 of 44.)
Romantic Home for Show and Tell (I was entry 40 of 251.)
French Country for Feathered Nest Fri 11 (I was entry 8 of 115.)
Hills are Living for Favorite Things Friday (I was entry 5 of 76)
Cottage Charm for Trinkets and Treasures (I was entry 10 of 15.)
A Picture is Worth for 2nd Time Around (I was entry 11 of 13.)
How Sweet for Pink Saturday (I was entry 118 of 186.)
Funky Junk for Saturday Night Special 69 (I was entry 53 of 184.)
 

This post and other hutch posts were featured Here!

Flow Blue China Patterns

Lugano Flow Blue Plate Detail

Some of my favorite china is blue and white.  I love the combination of cobalt blue with the clean white, ivory, or creamy off whites of the base porcelain.  This combination has resonated with more then just me, and starting in the 1800's, blue and white china from many manufacturers in many patterns were popular with china purchasing customers.

Astoria Flow Blue China

An important historical subset of blue and white china is called flow blue.  There are many sites that can describe the "how and whys" of flow blue china, but I will just describe flow blue in my own words.  Flow blue china has deep cobalt blue color applied over a white china base, and the chemistry over time has blurred the once crisp lines.  Instead of this manufacturing problem disappointing customers, the resulting dreamier blurry lines have inspired fans and collectors, including me.  

Lugano Flow Blue China

I wish my photos could show you the beauty of the flow blue plates - the beauty that I see when I hold them in my hands.  The colors from a distance command attention, and then the delicate lines, flowers and scroll work hold your attention when you examine the patterns up close.  The soft blurry lines seems to contradict the cool smoothness of the china itself -- china which is smooth and hard to the touch, and yet known to be fragile, 'breakable'.  Times has 'changed' this seemingly permanent china, and yet the touch of time has been kind.  

I can stare at a single plate for minutes at a time - time many of us rarely have the ability to take.  (OMG, strange...)  I'll point out only a few details to notice in the three photo-mosaics I have assembled here.  The Astoria china photo-mosaic shows details from two different plates on the bottom edge.  There is a large difference in the blurring between the two plates, yet I got them together and believe they were likely to have been purchased originally at the same time.  The Lugano flow blue plate has brush stokes visible in the solid blue background, which I find I enjoy.  And the Brunswick china has dots that have blurred to form the solid blue background.

Brunswick Flow Blue China plate

Another fun fact about my collection of flow blue is that most of my flow blue  plates are chipped, crazed and/or flawed.  I call them my collection of chipped and broken plates.  I couldn't/can't afford 'perfect pieces'.  Originally I collected chipped and even broken plates (usually glued together by a previous owner).  I have favorite antique dealers, who have kindly 'given' me/sold me the damaged pieces that they get when buying a set for sale.  (Many of the dealers I know don't typically resell damaged pieces of non rare china, and yet I know one or two that have a hard time throwing out the damaged piece.) 

Originally I bought broken plates, intended for mosaic projects that would get me "as close to owning flow blue" as I thought I could ever come.  I would also sometimes get chipped plates, but somehow I couldn't use them in my mosaics, and they started showing up on my plate rail or wall, chips included.  (Sometimes with another plate overlapping a chipped area)  [So, if you have a beautiful damaged or broken china plate, you don't want to keep yet don't want to toss, consider contacting me - I will add them to my collection of chipped and broken china orphans that I cherish.  I don't mind a yellow brown rind of old glue running through the center of a beautiful plate.  I can pay shipping and handling ;)  ]

May we all age as gracefully as this china, be lucky to survive intact, and in our old age find a home where we are cherished and loved. 

Click on the images to see them enlarged.

If you enjoyed this post you might also like:

My Collection of all China Posts!

I am linking up to these memes:

This is my 11th entry to Mosaic Monday (I was entry 15 of 84.)

Roses for Show off your Cottage Mon (Entry 15 of 47.)
Naps on the Porch for Metamorphis Mon (Entry 73 of 324.)
Boogieboard Cottage for Masterpiece Mon 6 (Entry 57 of 72.)
Coastal Charm for Nifty Thrifty Tues 49 (Entry 47 of 183.)
House of Grace for Twice Owned Tues 38 (Entry 12 of 68.)
Colorado Lady for Vintage Thingies Thur (Entry 8 of 50.)
Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thur 101 (Entry 25 of 124.)

Brambleberry for Time Travel Thur 31 (Entry 8 of 36.)
All Thingz for Anything Related 35 (Entry 79 of ?)
Common Ground for Vintage Inspiration 24 (Entry 18 of 103.) 
Romantic Home for Show and Tell (Entry 84 of 312.)
French Country for Feathered Nest Fri #11 (Entry 1 of 119.)

Hills are Living for Favorite Things Friday (Entry 6 of 105) 
The Charm of Home for Home Sweet Home 1 (Entry 19 of 50.) 
My Cottage Charm for Trinkets and Treasures (Entry 5 of 7.)

A Picture is Worth for 2nd Time Around (Entry 7 of 10)
Smiling Sally for Blue Monday (Entry 75 of 86.)