The T-Cozy

My Hall China Teapots

Do you like to collect vintage teapots? Then I'm sure you know that some of the most collectible teapots were made by the Hall China Company of East Liverpool, Ohio. Over the years as an antique dealer, I have bought and sold a countless array of Hall teapots. But my favorites, pictured below, are the keepers.

In the early 1940s, Hall came out with a "Victorian Style" teapot line. There were six in all; the Murphy (blue), Benjamin (green), Bowknot (pink), Birch (blue), Connie (green) and Plume (pink). However, this series had lackluster sales, so Hall decided to add gold decorations to make them more popular. They still didn't catch on and the line was dropped by the end of that decade. 

I used to have all six of the Victorian teapot line. Since I'm not that fond of pink, I sold the Plume and Bowknot ones at my tea room several years ago. I kept four lovely pots in celadon green and light blue. I prefer the simple, undecorated teapots. The ones with gold are a bit gaudy for my taste.

In the early 1950s, Hall released six new teapots that were probably intended to replace the Victorian series. Called "Thornley Teapots," they were designed by the noted J. Palin Thornley. This line was produced two ways: undecorated and with gold designs and glass rhinestones imbedded in small pockets formed in the body of the pots. Talk about gaudy!

I came across one of the Thornley teapots at the Elephant's Trunk Flea Market a few years back. Shown below, it is undecorated and called the Apple. I paid $12 for it and have since learned that it's one of the most difficult Hall Thornley teapots to find. Score! 

Here is a view of my Connie Victorian style teapot.

This one is the Murphy.

The Benjamin, below, is my all-time favorite teapot.

And this pretty one is called the Birch.

Did you know that Hall still produces china for the foodservice industry as well as the retail trade? Once while John and I were visiting family in Cleveland, Ohio, we took a two-hour drive to East Liverpool to tour the Hall China factory. It was really interesting. They even had an outlet store called The Hall Closet filled with newly-made pieces. After checking out Hall's website, I discovered that a few of their classic teapots are still in production today. They can be found online at Hall's eStore here.

Hall China's teapots are well made and super sturdy. I guess that's why so many vintage ones are still around today. Plus, they brew a great pot of tea.

Susan

More Sweet Tokens of Love

With Valentine's Day fast approaching, I wanted to share more samples of my vintage valentine stash with you. This year, I searched far and wide for the very best valentines to offer for sale in my Etsy shop. I found a large lot of darling cards, most dating back to the 1930s. (You can see additional ones here.) They have sold well; out of over 50 cards, there are just 16 left. Click here if you'd like to see what is still available for purchase.

Vintage valentines are fun to use in mixed media and scrap-booking projects. Or give them to your children and the love of your life. With a couple of weeks to go, there is still plenty of time for them to arrive to you before Valentine's Day. 

For me, cards like these conjure up memories from the 1960s of brown paper bags decorated with heart-shaped paper lace doilies hanging in a row below a grammar school chalk board. These bags were waiting to be filled with valentines and lollipops from my classmates — and hopefully even that boy I had a crush on since first grade.

Susan

I Know I Had a Picket Fence Around Here Somewhere

Enough already. These snow storms are really getting out of hand. Mountains of snow. Walls of snow. Too much snow! We are starting to run out of room to put it all. Good thing I'm not claustrophobic. 

In the twenty years that we've lived here, we have never had so much snow that our picket fence all but disappears. Is this what it would be like to live in North Dakota? Canada? Alaska? Siberia?

Guess I'll try to make the best of this crazy weather. What other choice do I have? At least the snow is beautiful. Here are a few views from my walk this morning . . .

I love the photo of the house, below. It already had a white-on-white theme. Now it looks like some sort of enchanted snow castle.  

While snowbound once again yesterday afternoon, I found myself dreaming of vacation. So I curated another Etsy Treasury.

Entitled "More snow? Get me out of here!", this Treasury is filled with wonderful travel related items offered for sale by members of the Etsy Vintage Team. After a winter like this one, who wouldn't want to escape all of this snow?

Susan

Meet Kip and Sis

Remember paper dolls? As a kid, I spent many happy hours playing with sets like this one. 

I'm not sure why, but I particularly enjoyed cutting out the clothes. Once I had them all cut out, it was such fun to mix and match the pieces to create different outfits. I never felt as well dressed as my paper dolls.

Such a simple concept. Inexpensive and fun, paper dolls kept me busy on many a snowy afternoon like we're having today.

Kip and Sis were purchased in my Etsy shop and are headed down under to Australia. Lucky dolls! It's summer there. Good thing they packed their bathing suits. 

Susan

Worldwide Vintage Love

Whew! Time for a breather. I've been an Etsy listing machine lately. I wanted to start the new year off with some wonderful new items in my Etsy shop. So I've been working away for the past two weeks photographing and listing these vintage goodies.

Some items are already on their way to new homes. I've sent packages across the country to Washington State and California, down to Texas and way up to Canada. Today I mailed off things to Italy and Singapore and last week an item headed to Australia. Now that's some worldwide vintage love!

Susan

Some Kind of Wonderful

I played curator again this morning. Here's my latest Etsy Treasury.

I so love the colors in this one. They make me long for spring. (Enough snow, don't you think?)

I hope you'll stop on over at Etsy for a closer look at my Treasury called Some Kind of Wonderful. While there, please leave a comment and let me know what you think. Then tell a friend and help spread the Etsy love. Thanks!

Susan

A First Apartment

Do you remember your first apartment? Mine was back in college. What a great feeling it was to have my own place to decorate. Even back then, I filled it with vintage finds.

My family and I spent all of last weekend helping Hannah get settled into her first place. It's a typical college apartment in an older building with lots of character. Unfortunately, the main elevator was out of order, so we got quite a workout trudging up and down the stairs to Hannah's fifth floor apartment for three days! But we made a lot of progress and by the time we left for home on Monday, the place was looking pretty good.

We headed to IKEA because Hannah needed a dresser and a desk. Most everything else was purchased from the apartment's previous tenants or we brought from home. Jacob and John spent an entire day putting together furniture. Jacob was in charge of the dresser; John tackled the desk.

All the hand-me-down couch needed was a few IKEA throw pillows and a classic Milton Glaser print from my poster collection. We found the bird prints, below, at Target.

Hannah loves to cook, so she brought along her favorite cookbooks. She's so excited to have a fully-outfitted kitchen.

Her bedroom has a bohemian-chic vibe that is colorful and cheerful. The picture above the bed came from Pier 1 Imports.

We made the nightstand out of three stacked wicker baskets topped with a vintage tray.

Here is the desk John put together . . .

In the corner below is the dresser Jacob made.

We brought (and bought) a lot of stuff, but everything seemed to have a place in the spacious apartment. You should have seen how packed our car was! In fact, it was so full that there wasn't room for me and Jacob. The two of us took Amtrak while John and Hannah drove down to Baltimore in the car! But it all worked out because by the time our train pulled in, Hannah and John had unloaded the car and cleaned the entire apartment. I arrived just in time to help with the fun stuff.

I'm so glad Hannah is finally settled into her new place. She and her roommate will continue to feather their nest over the next week before classes start. I'm sure they will enjoy living there.

Susan

One for Me and One for You

Time for another "Look what I found" moment . . .

Aren't they the cutest? This pair of vintage toy sewing machines are both KAY-an-EE Sew Masters manufactured in Germany post WWII. I think they are super sweet, especially because they both have charming floral decal embellishments. Toy sewing machines are wonderful to display in a craft room, studio, or little girl's room.

In the instruction manual that came with the red machine, these useful toys were touted as "a durable precision built single thread chain stitch children's sewing machine. It is simple and safe to operate and can be used to repair dolly's wardrobe as well as other minor repairs on regular clothing and various household articles." Both are manually operated by turning the wooden handle. Can you imagine trying to do some household sewing repairs on these tiny machines? That would be a challenge!

Since I have two of these darling relics, I've decided to share. I'll be listing the smaller blue model in my Etsy shop later today.

Susan

Vignettes of the Vintage Variety

Here are some peeks of my studio for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!

Have a spectacular Sunday!

Susan

A Serving Tray With A Story

To those of you who ever dined at my former tea room, this vintage aluminum tray may look a little familiar.

I acquired it back in 2003 from the landlord of my former shop when he was clearing out his father's estate. The tray then went on to a prominent spot in my tea room. For five years, it sat on the white buffet, below, and I used it to serve each and every happy tea patron. Needless to say, it "served me well."

This tray with a story, and loads of good karma, can now be found for sale in my Etsy shop here. For sentimental reasons, I kept it for the last 2+ years since my store closed. Now it's time for this tray to find a happy new home. 

Susan

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

Time for our weekly snow storm. What a massive amount of snow! And yes — I'm just crazy enough to take my morning walk at the crack of dawn while it's still coming down.

Actually, it was one of the most pleasant walks I've ever had. So quiet and serene; I was the only one out there, aside from a few brave souls shoveling their driveways, like my husband John, below.

Here are more views of this morning's snowy stroll . . .

Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, stays me from the swift completion of my morning walk! Perhaps I have a future as a postal carrier? ;)

Susan

Pucker Up!

With Valentine's Day a little over a month away, I've curated an Etsy Treasury with that LOVE-ly holiday in mind. 

Just sharing the Esty love! For a closer look at my latest Treasury, click here: Two Lips.

I can't ever say enough good things about Etsy. I'm such a fan, I even have a bumper sticker on my car that promotes it!

The Etsy site is well designed, thoughtful, and so easy to navigate. There you'll find the most interesting and artsy sellers around, with shops featuring an amazing array of fabulous things. Encompassing handmade wares, vintage items, and supplies for creative endeavors, there really is something for everyone. It's the best!

Susan

Keeping Busy on a Snowy Afternoon

Wow! The snow is coming down fast and furious today. So while Hannah works on her huge Spain photo album project, I'm working on new Etsy listings. Here's a quick peek at some of the vintage goodies I've added to my shop . . .

Fun stuff, don't you think?

Since we're snowbound today, Hannah and I have big plans for later. We will be popping popcorn and watching old episodes of Glee! Maybe we'll even light a fire in the fireplace. Should be pretty cozy.

Wishing you a warm and wonderful weekend,

Susan

A Norma Kamali Coat Named Bertha

Thirty years ago in the bleak mid-winter, I used to wear a super-long, ultra-warm coat that seemed to have a life of its own — so much so that I named the coat Bertha! Designed by Norma Kamali, this is the signature item she became famous for. 

The story goes that Ms. Kamali was on a camping trip in 1975. It was mighty cold so she wrapped herself in her sleeping bag when she went out of her tent. After she arrived home, she cut up that sleeping bag and fashioned a coat out of it. Called the Sleeping Bag Coat, it became the winter uniform of the late 1970s and 80s. A version of it is still produced today and can be seen on the streets of Manhattan every winter.

I purchased "Bertha," my Kamali coat, at Bloomingdales in New York City in 1981. It is, by far, the warmest coat I have ever owned. Even though Bertha kept me toasty for years, she's still in perfect condition. And since I haven't worn her for a couple of decades, I decided it is time to give Bertha a new home. So my rare, vintage Kamali coat is now for sale on eBay.

Hannah was kind enough to be my model for the listing's photos. She's such a good sport. Thank you, Hannah!

Susan

EVT's January White Sale

At this time of year, daylight is at its shortest. So my buddies and I on the Etsy Vintage Team are having a white sale to help brighten up January's dark winter days. 

I've just listed these pieces of vintage milk glass in my Etsy shop.

Aren't they pretty? 

And here are three lovely Treasuries that showcase more winter white items from the Etsy Vintage team: When she wore white she was very, very good... ; Time for January White Sales ; and Refresh and Renew with WHITE.

Susan

Vintage postcard image courtesy of The Graphics Fairy.