...this blog post is adapted from a piece I just prepared for "The Collector" ...the members'
magazine of the North American Torquay Society.
I am hoping by sharing
it here on this blog, I may generate more interest in the Society and
our beloved Torquay Pottery...
(click these links read more about the North American Torquay Society -- NATS and the British Society's info pages on Torquay Pottery)
Anything that can be held
in the palm of the hand has a certain playful, toy-like charm. My
madness for small things and minis began a long time ago.
I was the
little girl that lovingly decorated the dollhouse made for me by my Dad
(Jim Graney fellow Torquay lover and NATS member), dreaming that one
day, I would have my own home to decorate. I loved tiny things…and still
do.
Look above at the image of a display within a display filling a tiny doll house sized hutch
within another hutch…these are all less than 1” in height.
(Look at the large dresser tray peeking out from behind the display for scale)
But most of my minis are the size of these below....
none of these items is more than 2.5" tall...
The mottos on the minis
are those short and sweet adages that speak with such common
observation. With little space on the surface to decorate, the quips and
mottoes are direct and often the ones cited most within our vernacular.
Here are a few on a shelf that Sue Parker gave me...
and some more in a tiny cupboard...I love that I can fit them in here and there!
Conversely, I love the HUGE grand LARGE pieces of my collection, but as the shelves fill — even as I move and play and re-do arrangements in cabinets — I can never say there is not room for one more mini. Indeed I have had a tough time passing up any I have had the chance to buy. They are a wonderful, tuck-in size and I love them for being small, affordable and utterly adorable!
What’s also fun is that they get me to look at patterns and shapes I would not otherwise pursue. You can see among these photos a variety of patterns not elsewhere in my collection…the cockerels, cottages and even tiny toby jugs and the only commemorative pieces I have in my collection.
As a toy collector as well, they seem to blend in well with my other displays. The tea sets make great companions to Jody Battaglia's folk art monkeys sitting in a child’s hutch in the guest room.
And I owe a big thanks to my great gal pals, Kathy Nuttall and Kathy Collins, for the find of my new wall hanging “mini shelf”.
We found it in a booth at Brimfield and it wasn’t until I got it home that I realized how perfect it was to host them all. I am grateful that they encouraged me to buy it and lug it through the fields back to the truck.
Well worth it! I had had the minis among some different cabinets before,
and now have my faves in one place...
You can learn more about Torquay Pottery at the upcoming NATS CHATS at the Country Living Fair... see the BLOG post of 10/9 for full details...
...xxoo Jen...
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