
September Newsletter
Welcome to September's Perfect Pieces newsletter. The summer seems to be drawing to an end and things are certainly stepping up a gear for us. We've added an interesting selection of new pieces to the website recently, and our past stock database, which will eventually contain full details of all the pieces we have sold in the last 3-4 years, is getting fuller by the day, although there is still quite a way to go. Have a look and see what you think.
We've chosen three pieces to highlight in this month's newsletter, all of them dating from the late 1920s/early 1930s, but all nonetheless quite different to each other.
Charlotte Rhead came from a distinguished pottery family - her father, Frederick Rhead, was the Art Director at Shelley (Wileman & Co) in the latter part of the 19th century, and designed the highly collectable Foley Intarsio range, among many others. With this heritage behind her, it is perhaps not surprising that both Charlotte and her brother, also Frederick, became involved in the pottery world. While Frederick was to make his name in America, Charlotte Rhead was to become one of the best known ladies of the potteries, working at various Burslem potteries before taking up a position as designer at A. J. Richardson's in 1931, from where she produced many of her most memorable designs and was responsible for much of A. J. Richardson's Crown Ducal range.
Her work is still very popular and collectable today, especially the more unusual pieces. This Charlotte Rhead vase, in the rare Turin pattern, stands around 7" tall and is decorated in rich shades of blue, green and olive, giving it a stylish and very art deco appearance. It's estimated that less than one percent of Charlotte Rhead's Crown Ducal output was decorated with the Turin pattern - in contrast to around 10% for the much easier to find Golden Leaves pattern. (Statistics courtesy of the excellent Crown Ducal by Charlotte Rhead website.)
Another famous lady of the potteries was Susie Cooper, and while this Gray's Pottery miniature tankard is not a Susie Cooper piece, it does have the distinctive colourful floral style that made 1930s Gray's tableware so desirable. Dating, we believe, from the 1930s, this is a charming miniature tankard, about 4 inches high and decorated with a green, blue and yellow floral pattern (in fact, the same pattern as our Gray's planter).

While the first two pieces in this month's newsletter have decidedly European influences, our third piece took its inspiration from a different source altogether. The exotic mysteries of the Orient had captured the public's imagination in the 1920s, and this piece is a fine example of the Chinoiserie that became so fashionable as a result.
Glazed with a dark blue lustre, this Carlton Ware plate is decorated in wonderfully intricate detail with the Chinese Figures pattern (no. 3199). These pieces were decorated in several stages. Once glazed, transfer printing was used to apply the gilded pattern. Finally, the enamelling was hand-painted by skilled decorators. The level of detail and variety of colours is remarkable, and this plate is a fine example of the style that Carlton Ware made so successful. It's also quite an unusual shape, and displays the pattern quite differently to a vase or dish.
That's all for this month, but as ever, feel free to contact us with any questions, comments or requests and we will be glad to help.
Best wishes,
Perfect Pieces
Newsletters
Here you'll find a list of our past newsletters. They feature information on different potteries, some of our featured stock and information on antique fairs and general news from the antique and collectors world!
Happy reading!
- Happy Christmas from Perfect Pieces!
- Christmas Offers & New Stock!
- Late Summer Offers & New Stock Updates...
- A Visit To York & More Special Offers!
- Summer Is Here! Summer Antique Fairs, Special Offers & More!
- Summer Is Approaching - Antique Fairs, New Stock & A Special Offer!
- Springtime & Bunnies - Antique Fairs & New Stock!
- Special Offers, Antique Fairs & New Stock!
- Spring Antique Fairs & Rabbits Galore!
- Happy New Year!
- Merry Christmas From Perfect Pieces!
- Unique & Collectable Christmas Gift Ideas!
- Will The Sunshine Hold For September?! Antique Fairs & PenDelfin Rabbits
- Summer Continues...Retired PenDelfin & Troika Pottery Galore
- Summer Sunshine At A Norfolk Antique Fair
- Summer Sunshine & Cornish Treats!
- PenDelfin Rabbits Galore!
- Troika Pottery, PenDelfin Rabbits & Puzzling Pottery Marks!
- Are We Going To Have Snow This Easter?!
- Happy Valentine's Day!
- Welcome To 2013!
- Happy Christmas From Perfect Pieces!
- Countdown To Christmas!
- Troika Pottery - A Popular Cornish Collectable!
- Denby Pottery
- Antique Fairs, New Stock & More Rain!
- Antique Fairs, Diamond Jubilee Celebrations, New Stock & Lots Of Rain!
- Summertime News & More Pottery Marks!
- Happy Easter from Perfect Pieces!
- Spring Fairs & Mothering Sunday - It's March!
- February News - Antique Fairs, New Stock & PenDelfin Rabbits!
- Happy New Year - Welcome To 2012!
- Merry Christmas From Perfect Pieces!
- Make This Year A Collectable Christmas With Perfect Pieces!
- Happy Halloween - Halloween Treats From Perfect Pieces!
- Perfect Pieces On The TV!
- Summer Holiday Reads - Antique & Collectable Book Reviews!
- Antiques Worldwide This Summer!
- Sunshine & Gales Calls For Blustery Antique Fairs!
- Royal Weddings & Easter Eggs!
- Steaming Around York
- Bruges: Chocolates & Curiosities
- Welcome to 2011. Doesn’t time seem to fly?!
- Merry Christmas From Perfect Pieces
- Burra Bears - A Unique Piece Of Shetland
- Lord Nelson Memorabilia And Collectables
- Steaming Into Autumn
- Antiques In The Summertime
- Pottering Around Antique Centres
- Father's Day Gift Ideas 2010
- A Flying Visit To Limoges
- Spring Is Here - Time To Get Out More!
- West Country Potteries
- February, Fairs & Valentine's Day
- Only Two Weeks Until Christmas...
- Collectables Don’t Have To Be Clutter
- Seeing Double? Not Necessarily...
- Errington Reay: A Real, Live, British Pottery
- Books, Books & More Books...
- Identifying Pottery Marks - Where to Start?
- Learning About Antiques & Collectables
- Happy New Year and welcome to 2009!
- Perfect Pieces Christmas Sale & Shipping Dates
- Thanks, Jean: A Look Back At 51 Years of PenDelfin
- A Visit to Newark International Antiques Fair
- Antique & Collectors Fairs: Are They Worth Visiting?
- Carlton Ware at the NEC
- A Potted History: Charlotte Rhead
- Troika Pottery: Stronger Today than 25 Years Ago?
- Springtime from a Tyneside pottery
- Poole Pottery: Phoenix from the Ashes?
- Daytime TV, Retro Glass & Bamboo...
- Merry Christmas from Perfect Pieces!
- The Enduring Appeal of the Supernatural - Still Popular Today?
- Understanding Pottery Marks
- Three Techniques: Many Styles - A look at three important decorating techniques
- Children's Wares For Grown-Up Collectors
- A Tale From The Lakes
- The Cornish Effect
- From Buyouts To Bunnies...
- From Switzerland to Stoke: Crown Devon's European Import
- Pottery Marks Guide and Pottery Valuation & Appraisal Service
- A Lustre Alternative - Matt Glazed Wares, Art Deco Style
- Truda Carter - Poole Pottery's Greatest Art Deco Designer?
- Odd Ones Out - Three unusual pieces from Wedgwood, Pendelfin and Troika
- Antique Pottery Price Guide Goes Live, and a look at three contrasting 1930s pieces.
- Focus on Carlton Ware - One Shape, Many Patterns
- Wedgwood: The legacy of Keith Murray
- Wonderful Wedgwood Lustre, and a couple of true British Collectables
- A rare Crown Devon Musical, some 1930s Maling lustre, and an early Poole Jug
- A look at the enduring appeal of Poole Pottery's 1950s Freeform Range