Friday, April 17, 2009

Johnson Brothers Prince Of Wales Pattern

It's taken me a week to put Easter away.

Have I ever shown you our "wedding" china? We bought the dishes at an auction for $20.

I soon realized that my wedding registry was not in keeping with our future lifestyle. Ten years later, I have no regrets about making this (beautiful) budget choice!

29 comments:

Tiffany said...

What a beautiful pattern! You guys were obviously off to a great start with wedding china for $20. Smart people!

Sandy said...

I'm still using my wedding china from almost 20 yrs, but it wasn't $20 :) I did pick a pattern that was classic and would last for years - and of course solid white.

Happy Weekend!

lizzykristine said...

Great find!!!

We didn't register for any china, either. Since we didn't own anything, we preferred gifts of things we really needed in order to set up housekeeping. You know, like pots and towels. :) I don't regret that choice at all.

Instead, I ordered a pretty Corelle set. It is durable enough for daily use while being nice enough for special occasions. The only thing I would change in retrospect would be to choose a solid white set instead of patterned. Solid white offers a lot more flexibility.

Anyway, in this tiny apartment kitchen, I seriously don't have room for china. I was looking at a wedding registry recently and it seemed the quantity of things registered for would fill up their mothers' kitchens... how is it going to ever fit into an apartment kitchen?? :)

Roxie700 said...

When I married 37 years ago I did not get any china. We used plastic dishes as we were students. I did not 'need' china. Now over the years I have a big collection of Jadite green pieces and a good size collection of Hall's Fall Leaf. I also use Corelle for every day. I live very close to a factory outlet store and can get the Corelle pieces very cheap.
I think your pattern is very pretty. I enjoy seeing other people's china and such. I think you can tell a lot by the patterns people pick.

Betsy said...

It's beautiful.

I'm the crazy one that registered for 3 patterns of china. I rotate them out with the seasons (one is Christmas). They are all "everyday" dishes from Noritake/Mikasa. My friends and family couldn't have handled a fourth set, but one day, I'm going to get a set so that I can truely have one for every season! LOL

Michelle @ Give a Girl a Fig said...

So pretty...I love the edge detail. When we married I didn't register for china...I went for the practical stuff. I don't regret it, either...I rarely have an occasion to use anything fancy anyway! BUT...now I will keep my eyes open for something second-hand...who knows? Maybe I'll find a nice set... I love your silver, too...gorgeous. You make such a beautiful home with so little...always an inspiration.

Anne Marie@Married to the Empire said...

Very attractive! I like Johnson Brothers' stuff. My MIL has a few pieces that I think are just beautiful.

I wasn't going to register for fine china when we married because I already had my parents' wedding china. (They're china nuts and had something like 14 sets at one point, so they gave me their wedding china.) However, my mom talked me into registering for my own. We've hardly ever used it.

I'm at the point now of just using the dishwasher for my fine china because I finally realized one day that it never gets used otherwise. Now my parents' old china is everyday stuff for us, and it gets washed in the dishwasher all the time. The platinum band on it is holding up just fine. I've even put my own set in there. My friend who was over for dinner at the time was appalled. Not sure why I'm telling you all this. ;-)

Workin' MAMA! said...

Loving the china, Meredith! PRETTY!

So since I didn't put China on my bridal registry, but opted to go with punch bowls, stonewear, luggage and crystal, I ended up ordering a TUSCANY magnolia china pattern - 70 pieces - including serving dishes - from HSN after we were married - I popped up off the couch and said, 'HONEY, LOOK AT THIS - THIS IS WHAT I WANT!'

Dillards and JCpenny - Just didn't have what i liked - And since I was living in the Northwest, and was born and married in the South, wanted to have a commemorative of who I am -my hubby too... MAGNOLIAS - I LOVE MAGNOLIAS!
It's a beautiful red/green/white china magnolia pattern - with 14K trim - We had been blessed with so much money from friends and relatives - I flipped it and bought what I wanted - It has been worth every dime! We'd been married 2 months! Looks like I might need to get the camera working!
Besides, the best china I've ever bought has come from estate and yard sales! Yellows and Blue patterns - White lace and red -

Where did I put the camera, Meredith?

Latrice
Workin' mama...

Meredith said...

I love white Corelle! We stayed at a friend's cabin recently, and the cupboards were stocked with plain white Corelle. It was so simple and thin and easy to put back in the cabinets...thought about giving up my various mismatched sets myself!

Anne Marie, I think you're doing a great thing by using those dishes.

Workin Mama, that's a great story!

Meredith said...

I also have to add, I probably wouldn't have bought this at all, knowing what I know now! At the time I thought $20 for dishes was a steal. Now I would have found some more blue-and-white china to mix with the simple set my mom gave us (used).

koreen (aka: winn) said...

Just have to say, love your ideas. Especially Elise's painting. Soooo much better than the other one. Beautiful!

Unknown said...

I love it. I did not get wedding china, as my Great Aunt was going to give me hers. But I love china and think it is neglected often because people don't want to be bothered.

You have excellent taste and are frugal!!!

Cynthia

Joan said...

Oh, Betsy, I don't think you are crazy at all! Go for the 4th set! I absolutely love dishes and if I had unlimited space, I would own several patterns. I delight in setting a pretty table and a great china pattern makes my heart sing! However, since my storage space is limited, I use Wedgwood Nantucket (plain white with basketweave border) as my main set and I pick up just 2 place settings in pretty patterns when I find them inexpensively so that I can set a table for 2 in the china that matches my mood. And, there is no such thing as too-good-for-everyday-use china in my opinion.

Echoes From the Hill said...

Last month, at Goodwill's half-price sale, I found seven dinner plates, ten bread-and-butter plates and ten small bowls in a pretty Haviland china set from Bavaria. The price for all of it was fourteen dollars. I was thrilled! I don't mind that there were no cups and saucers, because the men in the family refuse to use "dainty" cups! As infrequently as good china is used, it is crazy to pay a fortune.
Your china is simple, but elegant.

ancient one said...

That is pretty!!

Shell in your Pocket said...

I have a beautiful Lenox china set from my wedding...I have never ever used it...isn't that terrible???
sandy toe

Joan said...

What pattern did you register for when you got married?

NeedANap2 said...

We received 2 place settings of our "wedding" china, my husband made me return it for stuff we actually needed like a lamp (no light in the living room, who ever heard of doing that???) and a comforter. I was a little heartbroken but knew 2 place settings wouldn't cut it! After we moved 4 times in 4 years, I was very very grateful we didn't have china to pack and move. :) We have Corelle but are slowly losing pieces (I think our kids put things in the trash trying to be *helpful*) and wish I'd bought more of our pattern. Maybe someday I'll buy some china, hopefully it will be low costing and beautiful like yours!

Nancy said...

Love the pattern. Looks like something you'd see on a table set for royalty. Such a nostalgic look.

I love dishes. This apple didn't fall far from the tree; that's my mother's downfall too. My cupboards are full but they get used and they are loved so I figure that makes it ok.

I love what you do on such a budget. So inspirational.

Anonymous said...

That is a beautiful set :). I knew I didn't want fine China to start as I figured children, etc. So I asked for Corelle. Originally I picked a plain pattern but since I loved pansies at the time my mother suggested that I go with what I loved.
I turned our gift money into enough settings of the pansy pattern for 20 people. Over time I think I have about 12 complete sets left? I did the same with our cutlery.
I love that I can have dishes for most people when they come over. But I do wish now that I had gone with the plainer setting. I love the pansies still but my decorating style is much more simple and in different colours. Either way my table always looks bright and sunny with the pansies! I've augmented the set with a few plain white Corelle pieces, example, an in between plate size [6], divided dishes [6] and a few extra bowls.

Oh and I always let children use the dishes, hence the divided plates. I don't set out plastic and the Corelle has bounced wonderfully through several children's self-feeding disasters.

If I had loads of space I'd so something that I heard was done in the earlier times, and have each place setting unique. In similar colours but that each guest had their setting. I figure it would look lovely, and you wouldn't wonder to whom this cup belonged! And since I'm particular this way, I'd try and get them *their* set each time they ate at our home.

Anonymous said...

I love that pattern!! Great bargain!
Have a blessed weekend.

Blessings,
Julie

Tubo Family said...

Very pretty! I did not think I'd use fine china so registered for Fiestaware in green and yellow. At the time they hadn't bought back most of the vibrant colors so they are more pastel than I woud ultimately prefer. Started out with 8 placesettings plus a dozen yellow & green patterned plates from the Dollar Store so to have enough to entertain. Nine years and two kids later (we ditched most kids plastic several years ago so they use the small plates and cups from the set and also Anchor Hocking custard cups and 2 cup storage style bowls) have about 6.5 placesettings + the dozen patterned left and have been wanting red Fiestaware to mix in for FOREVER. Never have found any at thrift stores or garage sales but I do occasionally find the Anchor Hocking pieces and also "working glasses" and jelly jars with lids that we use casually and for storage. Sorry so long-winded!

Christina said...

Great post Merideth! Your dishes are beautiful. I did register for China---a very expensive place setting at that-- btw, not because it *was* expensive, but because I liked it. I returned what little we received and bought a much less expensive and more classic pattern. Looking back I would have not registered for china at all and gotten something more sensible. We now have Mikasa's French Countryside as our everyday and while I should have gone cheaper, now that we have those place settings, I love to have more. I am generally too cheap to buy more myself though. That is what I should have registered for. : ) My sister has JB Blue Willow. It is such a classic and she was able to get much of hers through a grocery store that sold place settings at a steal. So classic and smart.

Christina said...

Didn't mean to spell your name wrong, but I have no idea how to change it. : )

Susan (Between Naps On The Porch.net) said...

I've never seen that pattern...it's gorgeous! I can see why you still love it after all these years! Susan

Anne N. said...

I love that pattern!!

Unknown said...

I love the pattern. How gorgeous! Do you think you could still find something like that for $20, on http://www.gatheringguide.com/ec/party_favors_decorations.html or something, or was it a one time thing?

debbie bailey said...

Johnson Brothers is my favorite maker of dishes. I have several of their patterns; not full sets just random pieces picked up here and there. I like yours too!

Anastasia said...

:)This is so pretty!
My "wedding china" was $7 at the Salvation Army store. Its a Noritake pattern from the 60's and I love it.
We use it for everyday dishes because my husband believes that dishes are dishes. And he refuses to pamper something that came in a cardboard box for less than a Big Mac meal.