Posts Tagged ‘mugs’

Mini Mugs

Monday, October 24th, 2011

"Mini Mugs" blog post banner

collection of pottery espresso mugs hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe

Following on from all the wonderful stuff in our recent Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair blog post, here’s some more hand crafted loveliness!

pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe

Justin’s brother, Damian is a very skilled potter and he dropped off some of his new designs on a recent visit.

pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe

Amongst them were these sweet espresso coffee mugs.

pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe

We love the tall narrow shape which still fits under most coffee machines and retains the heat of a small espresso very well.

He’s experimented with a few different glazes – various colours & textures – and they feel really good in the hand.

pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe pottery espresso mug hand thrown, glazed and decorated by Damian Keefe

 Small certainly is beautiful!

If you’ve got any favourites or feedback please leave a comment here. We’ll be sure to pass them on – Damian’s always interested to hear what people think – especially about new ideas!

Mug Shots

Friday, May 27th, 2011

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collection of vintage Hornsea Pottery mugs

We posted a blog recently featuring the ‘love mug’ series produced by Hornsea Pottery in the 1970s.

The company is famous for their mugs – so we photographed a few more examples whilst we were sorting through our ‘Hornsea box’.

vintage Hornsea Pottery mug with newsprint toucans vintage Hornsea Pottery Libra mug

They feature a vast array of designs and commemorate all manner of events.

vintage Hornsea Pottery mug with buildings vintage Hornsea Pottery World's Greatest Fisherman mug

The love mugs were the work of Kenneth Townsend, but the main name associated with Hornsea Pottery is John Clappison. He’s certainly the name that collectors look out for.

vintage Hornsea Pottery mug vintage Hornsea Pottery mug with fish

Some examples are quite rare and attract strong prices.

vintage Hornsea Pottery mug of knight with shield vintage Hornsea Pottery mug with witches

They’re now often kept safe as display pieces and you can understand why. The company has long since closed down, so the number of surviving pieces can only decrease.

You have to be quite brave to use them for your everyday brew…

vintage Hornsea Pottery mug with newsprint owls vintage Hornsea Pottery mug with owls

…but if you do, they’re sure to give you a bit of pleasure with every sip.

vintage Hornsea Pottery Aries mug

Justin has his Aries star sign mug. He doesn’t take any notice of his horoscope, but he loves this fabulous design… and being reminded of all of his positive traits at the start of each day!!

Flavour of the Month

Friday, May 20th, 2011

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group of vintage month mugs produced by Hornsea Pottery

We’ve been sorting through a huge box of Hornsea Pottery that lives in our loft.

 

vintage "April" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery detail from a vintage "April" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery showing sweethearts  on a park bench

Amongst the collection are these fabulous love mugs.

vintage "July" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery detail from a vintage "July" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery showing a man and a mermaid sunbathing

There are 12 great designs – each corresponds to a month of the year and show a young couple in a characteristic scene from that month – bonfire night for November, rain showers for April etc etc.

vintage "November" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery detail from a vintage "November" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery showing a girl pushing a wheelbarrow holding a guy on Fireworks Night

They were designed by Kenneth Townsend for Hornsea Pottery in the 1970s.

vintage "December" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery detail from a vintage "December" mug produced by Hornsea Pottery showing a couple riding a reindeer

We’re adding to the set gradually – an even bigger box might be required… or more shelves!!

You can find out more about Hornsea Love mugs on the official Kenneth Townsend website. Oh, and if you have any Hornsea pottery items, we founded a Hornsea Pottery Collectors group on Flickr that you can sign up to!

Mug shot

Saturday, March 21st, 2009

We picked up a lovely little item this week that we wanted to share with you.

It’s a set of four vintage 60s/70s Staffordshire Potteries mugs… complete with original carrying tray & lids. Not only do we love the design & colours of this set, it’s the fact that all its bits are intact – a rare survivor!

They’re great for cups of tea when you’re working in the garden – the lids keep it warm until you’re ready to drink,  keep the flies out (and are the perfect place to put a biscuit or two!). They’d also be good for the office – you’ll need to use the whole set when it’s your turn to make a brew.

We normally come across these Staffordshire mugs singly – here are a few more examples that we’ve picked up.

They’re only humble everyday objects but wonderful all the same!