Treasure Hunt: Vintage Arabia of Finland Dinner Plates

Treasure Hunt: A pair of vintage
Arabia of Finland dinner plates

A huge part of the fun and excitement, for me, of strolling through antique stores and charity shops is the idea, the hope, and once in a juicy while, the reality of stumbling across an item priced at a steal that you know is worth a lot more...especially when other people obviously don't.  Case in point:  these two Arabia of Finland vintage dinner plates.

As the daughter of a native Finn, I grew up around various Finnish brands, all well known in Finland but some more obscure elsewhere than others.  Iittala, Hackman, Marimekko, Aarikka, Fiskars and Arabia were both the wares of the everyman and also the fine glass, kitchenware, cloth and clothing, jewelry, scissors and cutlery, and dishware (respectively) that you collected and coveted.  Not to mention Nokia.  I had Nokia rubber boots as a child - yes, that Nokia...it started off as a rubber factory.  But I digress...

To me those brands are second nature and I know their collectable value, but to many people in old Blighty, Arabia plates are no more special than the ones you get at Sainsbury's or Target.

And because of that, I nabbed a bargain!

These two vintage Arabia plates were at the local charity shop for £0.99 each!  That's right, folks.  £1.98 for the two, the equivalent of about $3.50!!

So what?

Well, most Arabia plates, even modern ones in the junk shops in Finland, rarely get sold for less than few euros each.  If you look on eBay, most vintage ones sell at least in the £10-£20 range for a single plate.  Obviously they go for more depending on the pattern and the style.  Arabia made both basic, work horse plates for daily use and fine china, so the prices will significantly vary. 

Arabia of Finland maker's mark - used from 1964-1971

While I have not been able to identify the pattern specifically, there have been various factory maker's marks Arabia has used over its 139 years and the one stamped on the back of these plates dates from 1964 to 1971.  The style and shape of the plates appears to coincide with that date as well.  There is a rice grain-sized firing mark in one of the plates - a small flaw on the plate that occurred in the kiln during the firing process.  You know it's a firing mark because it's under the original glaze, not a flaw that happened afterwards.  But otherwise both plates are in very good condition.

In recent years, some of the main Finnish brands, including Fiskars, Hackman, Iittala and Arabia, have joined forces and become part of the Fiskars Group conglomerate.  The lines that used to define the brands have somewhat blurred - you'll now find Iittala cutlery as well as glass and Arabia glassware as well as dishes, but the group's quality is maintained.  For someone who's into modern, Scandinavian design, all of these brands are worth a second look.

And definitely worth my £2!

Favorite Junk: Traditional British Pudding Bowls

Favorite Junk: Pudding Bowls

Of the many things I've come to love since moving to England, one that has become almost an obsession, is my collection of pudding bowls.  Pudding in the U.K. is used to mean any dessert, not just the typical American Jello-O pudding, but specifically pudding bowls, sometimes called pudding basins, were traditionally used for steaming various cake-type desserts, like a traditional English Christmas pudding.  The batter was poured into the bowl, wrapped and steamed instead of baking.

A ginger syrup steamed pudding

I picked up a couple originally at a boot sale for a few pounds each and since then it's become almost a problem.  I have eight of them so far...I love the elegant, clean lines as well as their usefulness, stackability and practicality.  There are slight variations in shape and ornamentation depending on the makers, but they all serve the same purpose.

There are a number of traditional makers of pudding bowls, two best known being T.G. Green and Mason Cash.  While you can get modern ones....and in my collection are a number of each, the largest one in particular being a Mason Cash....I do prefer the ones that show a little aging and quirkiness.

A medium T.G. Green stacked inside a larger Mason Cash
paired with some old wooden sieves...

There are many variations as well - a couple weeks ago at a flea market I stumbled on a vintage one marked for the British shop Fortnum and Mason, and I've seen many in the style of Cornish ware, the traditional blue and white striped dishes.  So far I've held out for the shades of cream, ivory and beige in the basic simple style, but if the problem progresses....you never know....

Repurposed & Renewed: ABBA "Super Trouper" Single Record Clock

One of my favorite repurposed clocks -
the back is a pizza tin, some middle piece
and then the center egg boiler. 

I love repurposing bits and pieces, giving them a new life, and one of my favorite ways to use them is to make clocks.  They're simple to make, extremely fun and require really just a little glue and some imagination.  I've made clocks out of old saw blades and gear pieces, though one of my favorites is made out of an old pizza tin and an egg boiler.  It sounds like a strange combination, but it's visually interesting and gets many comments from visitors.

To prove just how easy clocks are to make, I picked up a 45 single of ABBA's Super Trouper the other day at the charity shop.  Vinyl records are almost literally a dime a dozen these days, particularly if you're not fussy about what band or song it is.  This one cost me a mere 50 pence (about 75 cents).  I didn't set out looking for an ABBA album, but it was the first one that seemed interesting. 

The only other things you need then are some glue and the clock mechanisms.  You can buy battery operated clock mechanisms on eBay fairly cheaply, for around £2 each plus shipping.  I bought a bunch from a place in Bulgaria mainly because they had a better selection of clock hands.  The other thing I used to do in the states was go to Goodwill or Salvation Army and find battery operated clocks there that I liked the hands and then take them apart.  Though bring a battery in that case to test whether or not the clock actually works.

You can make a clock out of almost anything that has a hole big enough for the mechanism to go through (or that you can make the hole big enough) and that will allow the mechanism to clear so the hands can go around.  Which mostly leaves fairly flat items unless you specifically purchase clock mechanisms with a longer center thread.  I haven't looked for them myself, but I'm sure they exist as I've seen them on second hand clocks I've purchased.  Clock hand sizes vary as well in length so pick the right one for your project.  Some mechanisms tick, others are noted as "silent movement", so also think about that when purchasing.

Repurposed & Renewed:  That's a Super Trouper!

For this ABBA clock the center hole was slightly too small for the mechanism, so I wore away at the center a tiny bit with a file but in the end just ended up forcing it through.  I put a little bit of standard white PVC glue between the clock mechanism and the back of the record to keep it in place.  You could use an epoxy type glue as well.  Once the mechanism is through, you simply pop the clock hands on the front and, voila, there you have a clock.  A picture hanger also needs to be affixed to the back using glue (a super glue type or epoxy is better here) so that the clock can hang on the wall.  Depending on the size and shape of your clock you can attach the hanger to the clock or to the back of the mechanism - in this case it was glued to the mechanism.

Put a battery in and you're done!  A fantastic, one of a kind clock.

Simple, easy, crafty.  Gotta love it.

Treasure Hunt: 1930's Still Life Watercolor

I live in a dangerous part of Bath.  Oh, not the way you'd think.  The crime rate is low.  It's quiet and peaceful and the worst felonies in this part of the city are some of the outfits you see the students wearing on a Friday night out on the town. No, I live in the dangerous part because I live around the corner from two of the best charity shops in the city.  I walk out to the grocery store or a restaurant and can't restrain myself from popping in to see what new treasures they have for sale.  It's good for the soul but bad for the wallet.

Today was no exception.

Treasure Hunt: Want some fruit?

This afternoon on the way to meet some friends I picked up this lovely watercolor for £9.99 (about $15).  While I'm not normally attracted to still lifes, I really love watercolors.  In this case in particular I love the workmanship and clear skill of the artist.  I particularly like the way the light glistens off the corner of the jug and the detailed coloring of the apples.  And, as I'm a sucker for anything from the '20s and '30s, I was a gonner when I realized it was signed signed "G.O. Palmer 1930".

Sold!

Oddly enough, I just read a small column in Homes & Antiques Magazine this afternoon about how still lifes are out of fashion and commanding much lower prices than in the past, but that they're likely to increase.  It's difficult to value this one, though I can imagine it's at least worth the price I paid.  I found some still lifes by a "G. Palmer" that have sold Christie's in the hundreds of pounds, but without pictures of the art and the signature on those it's difficult to detetrmine if it's the same artist.  If anyone reading has a suggestion where to find out, please send me a note!  He could be a nobody or he could be from the family of the Palmer Baronets.  Who was this obviously talented artist?

The mystery is almost as enjoyable the painting itself....