Blue Danube, produced 1951-2000 by Blue Danube (Japan), is scallop-shaped whiteware with Meissen blue floral designs. Patterns like Blue Danube come in a variety of forms, from antique flow blues to modern versions of centuries-old Oriental designs. The pattern name was inspired by the Danube River. Flowing from southeastern Germany into the Black Sea, the river’s pristine beauty has inspired artists, poets, and musicians for hundreds of years. It also represented a major trading route between Europe, the Middle East, and overland to the Orient. As early as the 16th and 17th centuries, Oriental designs became very popular in European tableware. Artists and designers of the period were enamored with Oriental art, particularly with its floral designs and repeating geometric forms. Johann Joachim Kandler (1706-1775), a German ceramicist, is credited with creating the original Blue Danube design.

With its bold, elegant shape and brilliant cobalt-blue color, Mirage-Blue by Denby Crystal serves as the perfect complement to the Blue Danube china and Reins flatware featured here. Denby began in 1809, when William Bourne built a pottery to manufacture salt-glazed pottery just outside of Derby, England (not far from the famed pottery-producing region of Stoke-on-Trent). Bourne's son, Joseph, was given charge of the company's operations, and the company (then called "Joseph Bourne") swiftly gained a reputation for its jars and bottles. When cheaper glass jars and bottles began competing with pottery products in the late-19th century, the company shifted its focus to kitchenware and decorative art pottery, much of which was produced in a variety of richly hued glazes. These new product lines remained popular throughout the 1920s and 1930s, and in the 1950s, Denby transitioned to tableware. In the 1970s, Denby innovated further, producing a line of "oven-to-table" products designed for both cooking and serving. Today, Denby maintains its reputation as a producer of high-quality, stylish products for the kitchen and table.

Wallace Silver's Reins is a delightful stainless steel flatware pattern featuring a ridged, geometric handle design with a glossy finish – Reins is an eye-catching pattern! Wallace Silver, established in Connecticut nearly two centuries ago, has long been recognized for excellence in tableware craftsmanship. The founder of the company, Robert Wallace, was born in 1815 into a family of silversmiths who had immigrated to New England from Scotland. Apprenticed to William Mix, a renowned Connecticut spoon maker, Wallace, after mastering his trade, purchased a dilapidated grist mill and began to produce his own silver flatware in 1833. Reins is just one of many examples of Wallace Silver's excellent craftsmanship.

To browse and order in a great selection of china, crystal, and stainless pieces, start at these links!