Jump to content

Homemaker tableware

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Philafrenzy (talk | contribs) at 23:10, 20 February 2014 (→Collecting). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Homemaker tureen and plate in the Victoria & Albert Museum.

Homemaker tableware was a range of mass-produced tableware that was very popular in the United Kingdom in the 1950s and 60s. The pattern was designed by Enid Seeney[1] (2 June 1931 - 8 April 2011),[2] manufactured by Ridgway Potteries of Stoke-on-Trent between 1957 and 1970,[3] (1968 according to the Victoria & Albert Museum)[4] and initially sold exclusively through Woolworth's stores.

Production

The Homemaker range was first produced using the Metro shape created by Ridgway design director Tom Arnold (died 2002). Homemaker was earthenware, transfer printed with a glaze applied on top, which enabled it to be produced relatively cheaply and to appeal to a mass market. It was produced in several different factories over its life. In 1959, the American company Homer-Laughlin made copies of the design.

Design

The pattern was a distinctive black on white featuring illustrations of the latest home furnishings and utensils against a background of irregular black lines. Items illustrated included a boomerang or kidney shaped table, a Robin Day influenced armchair, a Gordon Russell type sideboard, plant holders on legs, tripod lights and lamp shades, and a two seat Sigvard Bernadotte style sofa.[5]

Collecting

Because Homemaker was produced in very large quantities over a long period of time, few pieces are rare. The range is, however, highly collectable. A few pieces are scarce and have higher value, such as the Bon Bon dish.[6] Items in red on white are also known.

References

  1. ^ Designer of iconic pottery tableware dies at 79 This is Staffordshire, The Sentinel, 18 April 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2014. Archived here.
  2. ^ ENID SEENEY by Simon C. Moss, c20th.com, 2014. Retrieved 20 February 2014. Archived here.
  3. ^ Enid Seeney obituary by Simon Moss, theguardian.com, 8 May 2011. Retrieved 20 February 2014. Archived here.
  4. ^ "Homemaker" Tableware, Victoria & Albert Museum, 2014. Retrieved 20 February 2014.
  5. ^ Marsh, Madeleine. (2003) Collecting the 1950s. London: Miller's, p. 59. ISBN 0753707667
  6. ^ http://www.c20th.com/pics/bonbonb.jpg

Further reading

  • Moss, Simon. (1997) Homemaker: A 1950s design classic. Moffat: Cameron & Hollis. (2nd revised edition 2002).
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Staffordshire pottery.

This article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Homemaker_tableware&oldid=596410010"