Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Etceteras: mikasa cera-stone dishes


Have you ever gone shopping and left without buying the item you wanted? And then the non-purchase haunts you and you begin to obsess about the item?


That happened to me the other day. I was in a thrift store and saw these dishes. There were 6 cups, 5 saucers (one with a chip) and 2 bowls.


I only wanted the cups and asked the thrift store lady how much they were.

Here’s the conversation:

Me: How much are these cups?
Mean Thrift Store Lady: It’s a set.
Me: But there are 6 cups and only 5 saucers and one has a chip.
Mean Thrift Store Lady: No, it’s a set, see…(as she places one of the bowls on the saucer).
Me: But there are only two bowls. How much for just the cups.
Mean Thrift Store Lady: $2.00.
Me: $2.00 for the whole set?
Mean Thrift Store Lady: No, $2.00 per item.
Me: $26.00? No thank you.


Mikasa Cups-Collage
When I got home I started researching the brand – Mikasa Cera-Stone. The above photo has some of the great patterns from the Cera-Stone era (60’s and 70’s). I also found some information on Diary of a Dishie.
Here's what they said:

Cerastone is vintage Mikasa. Many of these patterns have a decidedly retro look of the 1970s, especially those with pattern numbers in the 3000 series. Cerastone is similar to English ironstone we’re familiar with. The weight and feel of the dishes falls somewhere between porcelain and stoneware on the ceramics spectrum


The pattern I wanted was Mateo 3119. I had to have them. I obsessed for 2 days and went back to the store. The bowls were gone but I asked a different lady how much the cups were and she said I could have the cups and saucers for $8.00.


Sold!


Since I only have 5 saucers and one has a chip, I tried out my new fabulous cups on different saucers. I like it on this plain white saucer – it shows off the pattern on the cup more.


Here it is on a blue saucer. It doesn’t really work with the gold trim but I like the color combination. I guess I’ll be on the hunt for 6 pool-blue saucers.


In the meantime, I’m going to enjoy my new cups and the satisfaction of getting them at the good price.

{If anyone knows anything about this particular patten, please let me know}

Thank you for visiting.


Carolyn
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14 comments :

  1. ...just want to say I love the design :o)
    Have a good time and enjoy your teas !
    Love
    Gabi

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  2. Yes, that is a very good price:) Love the design and love the color combination of it. I can imagine you enjoy using them:)

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  3. obsessed! i absolutely love that design! going on my wish list :) thanks for sharing!

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  4. I think a girlfriend of mine tried to buy something from the same mean ol' thrift store lady!!! Glad you got your cups!

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  5. Found your lovely blog through the Blog Hop! Thanks for hosting! I'm your newest follower on GFC. Would love for you to visit me sometime. Hugs, Kim

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  6. Great find! I'm so happy you went back and got them. I hate when I fall in love with something then it's either not there when I get back or, the last timeI fell in love with something I was on vacation, so I'm not going back anytime soon.

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  7. Those are gorgeous! I love the retro patterns. If only we had more storage in our house!

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  8. LOVE them! $8? That's awesome!

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  9. The retro look is fab. I am a new follower.

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  10. Have you tried looking at Replacements? http://www.replacements.com They won't have prices as nice as those in a thrift store or yard sale, but I've used them to find the missing parts to sets in the past - or buy unique items - like 1 plate or 1 bowl of something instead of the whole set.

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  11. Just found a similar cera-stone set at Goodwill! trying to research more to find out how much they are worth. I saw your set (a couple of them) on e-bay! Check there!

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  12. So jealous! I just found the tea/coffee pot but there was no matching cups or saucers, and if there were someone beat me to it.

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