A little history of a Victorian red tomato server

During the Victorian era, you could find a serving piece for the table for just about anything.  Olive forks?  Got it.  Cake servers?  Yep, got that to.  But have you ever run across a red tomato server?

 

These items are great.  Tomato servers come in two different variations, one for red tomatoes and one for green.  Why in the world would you have a different one for each type of tomatoes?  It’s simple really when you think about it.  The red tomato servers have the openings built in for all the juice from the tomato to drain through the server and not onto your tablecloth.

 

The server for the green tomatoes doesn’t have the openings for the fact that the green tomato are not as messy and don’t need the openings.  You could even use the green tomato server for fried green tomatoes.

 

Currently in my Etsy shop, there is a red tomato server that was made by the William Rogers Company.  It’s made out of silver plate and sports the LA FRANCE pattern.  You can see the piece here.

The Victorian era truly did make a wide variety of serving pieces for the table.  What items have you run across?

A little Lefton Pottery history

George Zoltan Lefton was a Hungarian-born sportswear manufacturer, and he had a big passion for collecting fine porcelain.  From 1945 through 1953, the Lefton pottery company was importing many things from postwar Japan including (but not limited to) head vases, figurines, cookie jars, and salt and pepper shakers.

These items are marked “Made In Occupied Japan,” and the figures even sport a red and gold paper label that read “Lefton’s Exclusives Japan.”

Lefton contracted pottery companies around the world to produce ceramic items for Lefton.  These items are just as diverse as what they imported.

One of these really cool items is this picture frame with a floral motif.

 

The great thing about it is that it  is the perfect size for any side table or desk.  You can see it in my Etsy shop here.  Another item that shows how diverse Lefton is is this great nappy.

 

Not only is it a nappy, it can be used as a business card holder, candy holder, or even paper clip holder.  You can see the nappy in my Etsy shop here.

What kinds of Lefton pottery have you run across?

Mix and match Cocktail, iced tea, or lemonade sets

Having a get together?  Looking for that WOW addition to your table?  A mix and match cocktail set would be the perfect way to go.

 

They can even be tailored to the size if the get-together.  The set above is perfect for when there's two people.  You can see this set in my Etsy shop here.

Another way to go is a set like this for when you have a few more than two people coming over.

 

You can see this great set in my Etsy shop here.  There's also a wide variety of colors that you can use.  Purple, cranberry or amber glass are a very small amount that's out there.  Using a focal point like the pitcher or the tumblers above makes the set even better. 

Whether you use these sets for cocktails or iced tea, these sets are sure to bring a “where did you get this?” response from your guests.  These would also make for an unexpected one-of-a-kind gift.

Have you mixed and matched a set like this?