Mini Mugs

collection of pottery espresso coffee 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 are some more handcrafted loveliness!

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

Amongst them were these sweet espresso coffee mugs.

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 wonderful in the hand.

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

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’.

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

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

Some examples are quite rare and attract strong prices.

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…

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

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

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

Amongst the collection are these fabulous love mugs.

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

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

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 own any Hornsea Pottery items, we founded a Hornsea Pottery Collectors group on Flickr that you can sign up to!

Mug shot

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!

H is for Home Harbinger

Tag: mugs

Mini Mugs

Mug Shots

Flavour of the Month

Mug shot