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Wednesday 24 July 2013

BURLEIGH IRONSTONE

Good Evening to you,


As a rule I chat to you in the morning, but today, the day has been slightly different.

The reason is, earlier this morning, I had a lovely, unexpected, Skype chat with Natasha, which lasted about an hour or so. 

Then, I  decided I would boiled some new potatoes ready for lunch.  

Once I had done that, I fully intended coming straight to my sewing room, to chat with you, but as I was placing the potatoes into the pan of water, I stopped to look out of my kitchen window, at the new border which we had dug. Well to be truthful, George did the heavy digging and I followed behind with the hoe, breaking up the soil.  I had heard the weather forecast earlier in the morning and the weatherman had told us to expect rain later in the day. So I asked George if he fancied digging in some plants with me before the rain arrived. Luckily he said yes, and I am so pleased he did, because with both of us planting, it got the job done much quicker.

When we finished,  it was the middle of the afternoon, so we had a bite to eat and I made us both a cup of coffee. I came upstairs, ready to catch up with you and now that I have finally managed to sit here and talk to you, the rain has decided to arrive, so please excuse me for a moment, as I have to dash around the house, closing all the open windows.

..... the windows are now all closed and the rain is tumbling down.  I had a quick look at my newly planted plants and they are very happy, as they are receiving a good watering.

All of this means, I am quite a bit behind today. I know you will understand, as I'm sure this has happened to you as well,

but I am now going to make you smile, as look what I found in my local Charity Shop,


This fabulously huge Ironstone Cheese Dish.


It is a lovely size and whilst it is perfect for cheese, do you know what George has put on the dish...... chocolates.  Yes chocolates.  Actually, it is supposed to be George's hiding place for chocolates.   Let me explain, I am not on a diet, I am cutting back on my portions, to lose a couple of pounds, and at the moment I am not eating chocolates, but you know me, I love chocolates and I find it difficult to ignore them, if I know there is some in the house,  they seem to call my name. George isn't watching his diet, so I cannot deprive him of chocolate. George said he would find a hiding place for them, which was a great idea, but where did he put them..... right under my nose, in the kitchen, which was not a good idea. George said, he thought that was the last place I would look, as it was a cheese dish, but I said, the cheese dish had a cover, which was a perfect place to hide the chocolates, so it was the first place I looked. Anyway he has now moved them to a new hidey hole.... I can't help wondering how long it will take me to find them again.


Oh dear, I am going off on a tangent again, let's get back to the Ironstone cheese dish.  This cheese dish is made by Burleigh, which is based in Staffordshire, England. 

Do you see the small round marks? These marks are where the dish has been supported in the kiln. Plates are supported in three places with pins.  This suspends the plates and prevents them from sticking to each other in the kiln.

The glaze which is used is like a thick glass jacket (don't you just love that description), that covers the pottery.  

I am really pleased with this find and I promise you, I do intend using it as a cheese dish and not a chocolate dish.


Now, this is an interesting tablecloth.  When I first saw it at a distance, folded up, I thought it was green cross stitch.


but when I moved a little closer, I could see that it wasn't, it is actually hand stamped.


The material is linen and the stamping is beautifully done,


although you can see in this section, where some of the stamping has not taken cleanly, but I certainly don't mind as it adds to the charm.


This is the tablecloth opened out, for you to see.  I am sorry about the iron creases, but the material is linen and it has been lightly starched and beautifully ironed and before I wash it I need to find out the ratio of starch to water to give this tablecloth a slight crispness.   I feel this tablecloth has a certain Christmas quality about it and will be lovely on my table, so I am going to fold it back up and I promise you, when I have a moment, it will be hand washed, starched and ironed, ready to be used on my table.

I have managed to find some other wonderful things when I was out and about..... but those I will save for another time.

Take care and I will see you later in the week.

This week I will be joining,






17 comments:

  1. Sounds like a delightful day to me! Glad you got the plants in before the rain. Perfect timing! Wonderful finds, bot the ironstone and the lovely cloth. I'm drawn to ironstone pieces with words on them. Chocolate or cheese......it's a beauty!

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  2. What a beautiful and unique tablecloth. I love finding neat things when I shop. I've had a quiet day today....nice to sit here and read about your fun! Hugs!

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  3. Your tablecloth is so attractive, and has a definite Christmassy air to it

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  4. Daphne, I love your linen table cloth. It will look very nice on your Christmas table.

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  5. Lovely finds! The cheese dish looks like it would be the perfect size......LARGE! :)

    I too cannot keep chocolates in the house and my hubby does not care for chocolate so there is never any laying around!

    The tablecloth is just lovely. I seem to be quite fond of old linens.

    Have a wonderful week!

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  6. Lol that is funny, my husband always asks why I never bake or bring sweets into the house. They would have to be hidden or i'd eat them all. And I love the cheese dish. I love cheese!

    -Brittany Ruth

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  7. Daphne, your finds are marvelous and very unique !
    It always feels so good to get the young plants in the ground just before it rains. Like a mama tucking her little ones in !!

    I'm with you...eat anything I want, but cut those portions ;)
    Rose

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  8. Daphne, Your finds are wonderful! LOVE LOVE the cheese/chocolate dome. Good timing for the rain on your newly planted border. What did you plant?

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  9. It's always fun to see what treasures others find while out and about
    sometimes I get jealous of the found treasures LOL
    and want them so bad

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  10. Hi Daphne ! love your cheese dish is just beautiful!

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  11. That is both a pretty cheese dish and tablecloth. Hope you are having a wonderful summer, Daphne. My granddaughter has been keeping me very busy as I babysit her all week while my daughter is at work. I love it, but it means much less computer time. She is napping now--nice to have a few minutes to catch up with you!

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  12. Hi Daphne, Looks like you bought a wonderful cheese dish and a beautiful tablecloth. I thought it was funny that George was hiding his chocolate in the cheese dish.

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  13. beautiful "chocolate" ironstone. I wold use it for cheese, as I always have a large piece of Parmigiano cheese in my fridge

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  14. Hi Daphne,

    What special treasures you stumbled upon; lucky you! I so miss the thrill of the hunt with garage sales, antique markets and second hand shops! I can relate re: the chocolate temptation; trying to 'ignore' all the goodies around here, which isn't that easy to do!

    Happy Weekend,

    Poppy

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  15. Dear Daphne, I love your linen table cloth!!!
    And your cheese dish is very beautiful too!!!
    Have a lovely weekend my dear!
    Dimi...

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  16. I LOVE that cheese dome. I have a thing for cheese domes, but can never seem to find one that I like. When we lived in Oxford for a while, I searched all of the shops for one, but came up empty every time. What a fabulous find!

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  17. Such a lovely cheese dome. I have missed seeing you and your lovely posts. I hope all is well with you. xo Linda

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Dear Friends,

It is so wonderful to know you enjoy reading Ivy, Phyllis and Me! Thank you so much for taking the time to leave me a comment. I really do appreciate it.

Best wishes to you.

Daphne

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