Silver Pieces - The Strange and Peculiar: 2012-01-15

The Story Behind this Blog

Being from the South, Silver is a very big part of my life. It doesn't have anything to do with wealth. Although those with more money - old money, tend to have more of it. New money tend not to spend their money on Silver. They do not have the appreciation for the warmth of the metal, the beauty of the patina, the story it tells of the generations past who have used it. A true southern girl comes of age when she chooses her silver pattern, long before she chooses her mate. If she is smart, she chooses that of her mother, grandmother, or favorite great aunt who in their benevolence will pass their silver on to her. It is the pieces in those sets, the pieces on our tables, along with the pieces we find in the corners of the displays in antique stores that prompted me to start this blog. They are beautiful, they are odd, but what are they, and what in the hell do you do with them?

Friday, January 20, 2012

Sugar Sifter Ladles

This is a piece that is a mystery. In most patterns, there are large and small sugar sifters. However, I can only find two references for Sugar Sifter Ladles and both are different than the other Sugar Sifter pieces in their respective patterns. They do seem to have a more curved shape to the bowl than the other "sifters". So I present to you the two examples of the Sugar Sifter Ladle:

Blackberry Vine By Tiffany(7 1/4 inches)

Colonial By Gorham (5 3/4 inches)

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Various Chocolate Pieces in a Pattern

I have posted about Chocolate Spoons and Chocolate Muddlers previously. Oh, but should it be so simple. Upon further research, I have found that there can be more than one size of a Chocolate Spoon in a pattern. To complicate matters, they just don't have "Large" Chocolate spoons and "Small" Chocolate spoons. Some patterns have "Large" and "Small", some have "Long" and "Small", some have "Large" and "Long", or any combination of the above. (And some just have one size.) Of course don't forget the "Muddler" which is found in most of the older patterns. To bring clarity to this or maybe muddle the subject even more, here are some examples of the different Chocolate pieces in several patterns.

Lancaster by Gorham

Chocolate spoon (4 1/8 inches)

Long Chocolate spoon (4 3/4 inches)

Muddler (8 1/4 inches)

Violet by Watson

Large Chocolate spoon (4 1/8 inches)

Chocolate Muddler (8 inches)

Bridal Rose by Alvin

Large Chocolate spoon (4 3/4 inches)

Muddler (8 1/4 inches)

Georgian by Towle

Large Chocolate spoon (4 inches)

Muddler (8 1/4 inches)

New Vintage by Durgin

Long Chocolate spoon (5 1/4 inches)

Large Chocolate spoon (4 1/4 inches)

Fairfax by Durgin

Long Chocolate spoon (5 1/2 inches)

Pointed Chocolate spoon (4 1/2 inches)

Frontenac by International

Small Chocolate spoon ( 3 3/4 inches)

Chocolate spoon ( 4 3/4 inches)

Monday, January 16, 2012

Phoebe by Watson-Newell

In the tradition of Watson-Newell, Phoebe, introduced in 1895 has the very detailed motif of a nearly nude woman on the terminal. There are small flowers and berries at the top of the stem and (what looks like) a small medallion just above the shoulder. The patina of the olde pieces really enhances the beauty of the design.

Olive Fork (5 3/8 inches)

Orange Spoon (5 3/4 inches)

Small Gravy Ladle (6 inches)

Fork (6 7/8 inches)