I’m so inspired by this autumn teacup! It doesn’t necessarily have autumn designs, but it sure has the fall vibes! Read on for more about this gorgeous cup, starting as always, with the original Instagram post.
Teacup Tuesday 22 October 2019
Welcome again to Teacup Tuesday! This beautiful autumn teacup is another from my neighbor’s collection, and it makes me think of fall and all the fruits and vegetables of the harvest. The colors are so elegant and somber, while still being bright – just like the season itself. When I set it on our satiny wood counter next to the red wall and our basket of fruits, I knew I’d found the perfect place to photograph it! Come on over to MANTELandTABLE.com for some more tidbits and history on this lovely piece, or just click my profile link. Thanks so much for joining me, and I hope you have a wonderful fall day out there!
Extra Autumn Teacup Tidbits
Oh what a gorgeous autumn teacup this is! I almost get a deja vu thing with it, even though I know I’ve never seen anything like it before. It gives me that feeling you get when you’re on your way home through the twilight of a crisp fall day. You can smell bonfire smoke in the air. And you know a basket of fresh apples, some toasty bread, and a cup of tea will be waiting for you near the fire.
I picture a cozy elegant room, with that fire already blazing quietly away. The walls are a deep red, and the wood floor and furniture is smooth and polished. Someone (not me!) is making a rich soup in the kitchen, with garlic, shallots, and fall root vegetables.
And since someone else is making it, I can sit by the fire, sipping my tea from this beautiful teacup. And if I’m really lucky, I can listen to someone else who isn’t me, play the piano until dinner time.
Manufacturer’s Info
The Royal Albert company made our lovely autumn teacup. And the backstamp tells us that they made it between 1925 and 1927. Even though it doesn’t have a name, it does have a number. It’s #6145, as you can see hand painted on the bottom of the cup. It’s in Royal Albert’s “Doris” shape, which is really elegant with that tall, swept up handle.
While I was trying to find the pattern name (which didn’t actually exist,) I did find out a lot about the design! This is in the “Imari” style, which is based off the original Japanese designs that Western merchants imported in the late 1600’s. This is a reasonably restrained version, as the originals had bright blue, rust, and gold patterns on almost every available surface.
They named it “Imari” after the city it shipped from. The style caught on, and Western and Chinese potteries started making it. They were able to sell it for much less than the authentic pieces, so the Japanese imports slowed down then stopped. Apparently, the Japanese did eventually export again, but the quality wasn’t up to its previous standard.
If you want more info on our Imari style autumn teacup, click HERE. I’ve also written about Royal Albert before, and you can find some of their history in this post
Autumn Teacup ~ Behind the Scenes
Behind this scene is our “pub” counter! We have a little area off our kitchen, which is really kind of useless. Because of the path to the staircase, you can’t put a breakfast nook or anything in it. Nobody really knows what it was even supposed to be originally. So we made it into kind of a bar that we call the pub, where I sit around and watch John cook!
One of our zillion pianos is on the opposite wall, and that just leaves enough room to make it to the stairs. The texture on the top of the wall is what we got when we removed seven (7!) layers of wallpaper. We liked it, so we left it that way.
But I digress! We have a fruit and root basket, which I moved up onto the bar from the floor where we usually keep it. I dumped out all the fruit and roots, then snugged our teacup into the pile. The fruit kept trying to roll onto the floor, but I eventually got it to stay.
And what with the basket and wood textures, the red wall, and the produce, I got exactly the cozy autumn teacup look I was after!
Teacup Shopping
If you love teacups as much as I do and want to start or add to your collection, Click HERE for the Shopping Page. Then scroll down and click on the picture of the teacup.
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Hope You Have a Lovely Teacup Tuesday!
Barbara, this is a gorgeous tea cup and you have styled it perfectly! I love it on your pub – such a cute area. For a moment, it kind of reminded me of the tea service we had recently when visiting Victoria and had afternoon tea at the Empress on the harbor. But no, its not really the same at all, although you might like the Empress pattern too. Here is a link if you are interested. They sold the pattern in the gift shop. Happy tea drinking and happy Monday my friend.
https://www.fairmont.com/empress-victoria/dining/tea-at-the-empress/
Oh the Empress!! I used to visit Victoria every summer and wandering around that iconic hotel was one of my favorite things to do! Never did have tea there, but so fun that you went! I see why you made the comparison – that sure is a beautiful pattern. Do you get out to Victoria very often? Since my relatives moved away, I haven’t gone as often as I’d like. Maybe we should meet out there one day and have tea! 😊 Thanks for stopping by, my friend!
It was my first time visiting Victoria. We had a freak blizzard (atmospheric river) while there that kept us from seeing some of the sights, like Butchart gardens. We may go back in the spring for daffodil/tulip season though, depending on how my mom is doing, and if we do go, I’ll let you know. It would be so lovely to meet for tea!!!
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Barbara, your description of the colors of the teacup and Fall are just perfect! We just arrived home after 5 days in Washington, DC. Even though it was still warm during the day, you can smell the essence of fall in the air. The trees are slowly turning and all the autumn/Halloween decorations are abundant in the historical Old Town of Alexandria, VA (where we stayed). Then to get home and read your lovely post…..ahhh. Time for a cup of post travel tea!
Oh your trip sounds wonderful Mary! A post-travel cup of tea is just the thing! 🙂 Welcome home!
Such pretty pictures and your bar spot looks fun. I need to find someone to cook for me! Miss you sweet friend!
Ha – feel free to stop by our place anytime – by husband loves to cook! 🙂 I miss you too – hopefully we can catch up soon!
I love your little pub area…I would be seated there quite often with a beer or cup of tea 😉
Thanks! We love it too – especially when I can sit there while someone else is cooking! 🙂 Happy Tuesday my friend!
Was your pub area a butler’s pantry?
Hi Marybeth! I hadn’t thought of that – maybe it was! House history is always so fascinating! 🙂 Thanks for the idea, and for visiting! Happy Tuesday!
Always look forward to teacup Tuesday friend. Love this beautiful cup and your photos are amazing. The apples made me hungry 😉 Thank you so much for sharing.
Ha – the apples were making me hungry this morning, too! 🙂 Thanks so much my friend, and thanks for stopping by – so glad you like the teacups!
I like the stealth celebration of the first day of the World Series. Very clever.
Ha! Leave it to you to notice the baseball in the fruit basket! 🙂 Lots of love up to you my SIL! 💗