I have shared information about my salt collection several times in the past, but I do turn to china and pottery sometimes too. I started collecting plates when my husband and I began traveling abroad several years ago. I liked the ability to slip plates between layers of clothes in our luggage and not worry about breaking them. The interest continued when I realized how much display space there is for plates in a house with lots of high ceilings. Here are a few categories I've found of collectible plates while staying away from series manufactured to encourage that trend. My travelog of plates will wait for another day. Click on any photo in this article to see a full size photo.

The first thing I do is break that promise, but my excuse is that this plate was a gift from a student who graduated in 2001. Wedgwood has released a series of dated plates. In general I scorn things that are mass produced each year, or even each month, just to encourage people with a mania for collecting. That wouldn't be any of us, would it?

Animal plates can be a favorite collectible, but I prefer antique ones. This is an older plate with a cat done on what I imagine was a blank, marked Schumann Arzburg Germany. This isn't one of my travel plates, unless you count its having been found in an antique shop in Hilo, Hawaii when I traveled to a neighbor island.

Scandinavian Christmas plates may also be in the category I said I'd stay away from, but they have the virtue of being fine quality, unlike a lot of the things from groups like Franklin Mint. Even so, I don't think I ever would have collected the 8 or 9 of these I have as gifts from an ex mother-in-law. I found that you can get rid of an ex more easily than of the ex in-laws. This one is a cross-over because it's also an attractive animal design. I love the cat and little boy waiting as the mother crosses the street with their dinner. This is by B&G from Denmark.

Here's B&G's rival Danish company Royal Copenhagen. I like this design too of children playing on an iced-over pond. One I love more shows a small child on a large sled with a man going into the woods for the Christmas tree. About the only memory I have of my maternal grandfather is of his taking me out to cut a Christmas tree in the woods on his large farm in Missouri. My mother told me he got out of bed during his final illness to take me out that day. Maybe part of the charm of these plates lies in the nostalgic designs.

English flow blue plates are a favorite with collectors, and some prefer the designs with added colors. This one is Minton in a design mimicking the Japanese export patterns.

Game plates seem to have been a favorite product around the turn of the 20th century. This one is a favorite of mine because it hung in the hallway of my parents' home for as long as I can remember. My father was a great quail hunter, and I think it had its place because of the subject matter. My sister insists it is an ugly plate, but I like it. It's Bavarian in origin.

Blue Ridge china is a popular collectible. This one was full of mud and left under a flower pot in the yard of a house we once rented. I rinsed it off and hung it in my kitchen. Instant free collectible.

This last plate is marked Limoges, France and has a lovely pink and gold design. Although it is unsigned, I imagine it may be an amateur piece painted during the craze for china painting on blanks from various porcelain factories. The design is artfully done, but the heavy gold is typical of the hobby work around 1900-1920.

Plate collecting can be a fun hobby, maybe some of you will go hang a group of plates, or maybe suggest it to potential eBay bidders!

Featured Sellers

Recently featured sellers in the GPSA in March were gailcat1, jpthings, lan5, and paddyandmax; and in April: 278stuff, bpprat, fanoffenton, shellythings1 and thetreasuredbutterfly. We encourage you to click on their seller IDs and visit their eBay auctions.

by cranberrymanor Kim

This is a very helpful site to identify Royal Albert China patterns (the older Royal Albert is not marked with a pattern name) and shapes.

by 278stuff Niki

One of our own GPSA members, yesimdone, recently sold this stunning Catalina vase on eBay for $1,776.50. The pot, also called an oil jar, has the Descanso Green matte glaze treatment, measures 17.75" tall and is almost 12" in diameter at its widest point. The top rim is 7.25" in diameter.

Some of the reasons for its popularity are the size, the regular "CATALINA" in capital letters mark (pre-1937 or so when Gladding McBean took over) and the almost primitive look of the vase.

The Catalina Island Tile and Pottery factory operated from 1927 to 1937. It was established by the Santa Catalina Island Company to take advantage of the clay deposits discovered by William Wrigley, Jr. and David M. Renton and, more importantly, to use these to help reduce construction costs on the Island by producing building materials locally. Pottery and tiles produced in the factory during its ten years of operation are incised with "Catalina Island" or "Catalina" on the bottom and have distinctive colors such as Toyon red, Descanso green, Mandarin yellow, and others. After the factory closed, the molds were sold to Gladding McBean on the mainland. They used the Catalina name for a while and marked it with blue or black ink. [Source: http://www.colapublib.org/history/catalina/faq.html]

Photo courtesy of yesimdone.

It happens every day! You anticipate receiving an item you won at auction. It arrives, and you open the box to see...pottery shards or slivers of glass!

Have you noticed how some auction photos just seem to scream “BUY ME!” while others are so fuzzy and far away you’re not sure what is being offered?

We share a few practical tips on the entire auction experience, from writing the auction, taking the photos, to packing the item to help you get that item safely to your buyer! Our GPSA website offers a more in-depth look at valuable packing and photo tips. Please visit and have a look around!

Auction tips

• Don't forget the USPS postal increase effective May 14! Read about the increase here and here.
• If you bid on auctions that are in metrics, this conversion site is very helpful!

No reserve clearance sales, less than TWO DOLLARS!

GPSA sellers are still listing clearance items. All items start at an opening bid of $1.99 or less. Don’t miss this opportunity to pick up a bargain from one of our reliable GPSA sellers! All sellers abide by the GPSA guidelines found on our home page.

Find a bargain! Deals and Steals!

To see Shazaam listings at any time, click here. Check back often — sellers add items all the time!

We’re so happy to have you join us!!

The following eBay sellers became GPSA members in February and March. As members of the GPSA, they have committed to upholding the standards of the Glass & Pottery Sellers’ Association.

treewian antiquepotteryrestoration bmello5

gmcarol tiques_n_ties

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