Castleton's Ma Lin -- "Cinnamon, Gold, and Sapphire"

Last weekend I was in Little Rock visiting my parents, which gave me a chance to play with my mother's dishes.  I have always loved her Ma Lin, a Castleton pattern.  I did a little research and learned that it was designed by Ching-Chih Yee, one of fifteen contemporary artists commissioned by Castleton China in 1942 to create designs for china.  Interestingly, Salvador Dali was also one of the fifteen!  Wouldn't it be interesting to see HIS designs?

Ma Lin was discontinued in 1958.  Here's a link to a newspaper ad from 1951, the year my parents married, describing the pattern as "reminiscent of the elegance of Cathay" and the colors as "cinnamon, gold, and sapphire."  The five-piece placesetting's advertised price?  Only $15.75!  Replacements.com now lists a placesetting for $95.95.

Here's the dinner plate. All sizes of the plates have the same design.

In a post last spring, I used yellow napkins and flowers with this pattern, but for fall I wanted to highlight the "cinnamon" color.  I actually brought these placemats with me on the plane, since Mama didn't have any this color.  I wonder if there's a law against crossing state lines with table linens?  My sister remarked that I had crossed a new threshold in tablescaping addiction.

I also wanted to try the Ma Lin with Mama's Fostoria Royal-Amber.  I think it works well, repeating the rust or "cinnamon" color in the pattern.  Mama also has amber candlesticks, one of which you can see in the background below.

And, of course, rust-colored flowers were needed!  We looked several places for rust-colored mums and finally found a pot that would do.  I just wrapped the pot in two napkins, securing them with a rubber band.  In the photo below, you can also see two sets of amber salt and pepper shakers from Mama's collection.

Here's another view of the table. . .

And one of the placesetting.

The next photo shows Mama's sterling, Reed and Barton's French Renaissance.

And here's one last view of the table.  The angle of the sun wasn't cooperating with me, so neither of the full table shots are very good, I'm afraid.  In the background are some yellow roses -- a hint for next week's table!

Thank you for stopping by!  I hope you will leave a comment before you leave to visit all the wonderful tablescapes at Susan's Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch!

Mama's Fostoria Royal-Amber

When my sisters and I were in Little Rock visiting my parents a few weeks ago, we set the table for a simple family dinner with some of Mama's beautiful Fostoria Royal-Amber.  This pattern was manufactured from 1925 to 1933, according to Replacements.com, and from what I've read, it's classified as "elegant glass" (as opposed to Depression glass). My paternal grandparents received a complete service for eight, along with many other pieces, as wedding gifts in 1927.  Grandma passed it all along to my mother when I was a little girl, and Mama has enjoyed using it for many luncheons and meetings over the years.

Here's another view of the table, which includes candlesticks made by a family friend and a footed bowl of decorative balls as the centerpiece.

As you can see, it's difficult to photograph this etched pattern -- I've read that amber glassware is the most difficult to photograph.  Next time I'm in Little Rock I'll try to stage it to show the pattern better, as well as more of the different pieces.  For this family supper, we used only dinner plates and iced tea glasses, plus Mama's everyday stainless flatware and casual table linens.

In addition to the dinner service for eight, Mama has platters and vegetable bowls, several types of glasses -- parfait, low sherbet, iced tea, water, two types of tumblers -- as well as a footed cream and sugar, footed covered candy dish, two sets of salt and peppers, and a compote. 


Here's one more view, after we changed the centerpiece to these stunning daffodils.  (These photos were taken in March.)

Thanks for visiting, and please also stop by Susan's Between Naps on the Porch to see some beautiful tablescapes.