My Grandmother's China

Since I was a child I recall seeing my grandmother's china cabinet and all the pretty pieces inside.

Of course I was never allowed to touch anything as I could break it.

Children often do not realize their own strength or understand how to be delicate with precious things. That is why we say to them all the time "Don't touch". That is often why parents with young kids do not take their children to go shopping in a china shop.

The china is a Royal Albert pattern called "Blossom Time". It is a beautiful pattern with gorgeous trees full of pink flowers in Spring. It reminds me of ornamental apple blossom trees like the ones we have here in Victoria. I think because I really like the colors and the fact that it was my grandmother's china makes it something I love a great deal.

the shakers

dessert bowls

I remember her displaying it in her cabinet (which was much bigger than mine) and back then it seemed like she had so much of it. Now that I have it in my smaller cabinet and have done an inventory of all the pieces I now realize when she displayed it, she had it all spread out. I have to stack the plates and such to fit them all into my smaller display cabinet.


As you can see in the picture of the salt and pepper shakers what the colors and pattern looks like. The little bowls shows you that it is almost like an orchard of trees you can walk through if you follow the road/path. All of the pieces have this wonderful pattern on it.

After doing the inventory I discovered that I have 100 pieces and that is only part of the whole set that was created. With all the plates I have I could do appetizer, dinner & dessert for 12 people. I have a teapot and enough teacups to do tea for 9. There are several odd pieces that you could be use for various other functions as well. Now that I have the china I think I will start looking around for pieces to fill in the blanks.

One of the things I do not have enough of is soup bowls; I have one. The bowl are usually harder to find as they were typically used most often and would break from usage. It is unfortunately a discontinued pattern so I may not be successful in finding the pieces I want but that is something I can live with. Sometimes the hunt is all part of the fun of looking.

Just so you all know, my grandmother is still alive and doing well. She decided earlier this year that her house was too much for her. Many years ago when my grandfather died the huge house they once owned was too big as my grandmother was having difficulty going up/down the steep flight of stairs. She felt it was the better option to buy a smaller home that would better fit her needs. She ended up purchasing a prefabricated 2 bdrm/2bath home that was all on one level. It was perfect. Not to big to keep clean, no stairs, close to town and she had a guest room/bath for when company stayed over. She enjoyed that house.

My cabinet

Over the years as time went on she started having more and more difficulty in maintaining this smaller 2bdrm home. She suffers from osteoporosis and as her bones deteriorate she cannot get around too well. Earlier this year she decided it was time to downsize her home and belongings. She moved to a one bedroom suite in a seniors housing building. She is still getting her stuff organized. In the process she decided that it was time to pass on the china. My aunt said she didn't want it. I did.

As you can see in the picture, all the china fits my little cabinet quite nicely. The cabinet is glass on three sides and even has a light at the top that just needs to be connected.

In time the cabinet might be less packed if my cousin decides she wants some. Grandma wants me to share if with my cousin and her daughter. So we will see if she wants some.

All I need in addition to this is a really nice set of Silverware.