What a Pretty Picture

I love the image that you see at the top of our blog. Our staff photographer, Katie and I worked on this photo a while back and used some of my favorite Burleighware items in the shot. Burleighware is the name of the classic transfer style of porcelain we have been carrying in our stores for years. The first time I saw the collection of these traditional style pieces I fell in love with their feel, shapes and beautiful designs and the more I learned about it the more I wanted to start a collection of my own.

Let me tell you just a bit about the company that makes Burleigh in England. William and Rosemary Dorling bought the factory that produces Burleigh in 1999. The factory itself had been making pottery since 1851 and they were the premier manufactuers, regarded world wide as the finest makers of transferware, in the early 1900s. The Burleighware made now is made in the same tradition that has been their process for generations. It is unbelievably labor intensive and something to watch. Jim and Jonathan traveled to Stoke-on-Trent in England years ago to find out exactly how the magic happens.

Barges bring clay down the Mersey Canal to the factory where it is fashioned into molds that date back hundreds of years. Each piece is fired and allowed to cool before the pattern is applied. Delicate tissue is imprinted with one of many historical patterns that previously had been hand engraved onto a copper roller. As the tissue rolls off these big copper rollers the intricate patterns are hand cut (amazingly) by craftsmen who have been training for years.

The tissue is then applied to the biscuit pieces and rubbed gently using a brush and soft soap. The ink transfers to the piece and the tissue is then carefully washed off leaving the wonderful pattern. Then the triple firing takes place hardening the clay and a special glaze that assures the pattern will never fade.

The striking patterns and rich colors are incredible. You can find a lot of the "blue" patterns on our website. Burliegh crafts ironstone in black, red, green and many classic colors. I have dinnerware in black and love the versatility of it. I can make it casual or elegant and I find I use it all the time. My favorite collection though is tiny pitchers, all in different styles and patterns. I have them in the transom over my front door in a house that was originally built in the early 1700s. They haven't faded and they look great.

Burleigh's website is burleigh.co.uk and it is worth checking out. Look for our collection on our website and I am sure you will find them as beautiful as we all do. Cynthia

Gadgets, Gadgets, Gadgets

We all have them and we all love them! Why is it there is such a fascination with gadgets? There are those gadgets that work well and we use them all the time and then there are those that just seem to sit in our cupboards and collect dust. That got me thinking and I surveyed the Stonewall Kitchen staff to ask them about their favorite gadgets. Overwhelmingly I got a response of the Veggie Chop by Chefn. This is used regularly by our Cooking School Staff and it is their favorite. You can easily and uniformly chop veggies, onions, nuts, etc. It is easy to clean and disassemble and it is relatively small for storing.

They also recommended the Emulster and Garlic Wheel by Chefn. Some other close runners up were the Pot Minder and Brown Sugar Savers. I do actually have a brown sugar saver which I leave in my brown sugar and it does work. The Palm Peeler by Chefn which is worn on your hand and easily and safely lets you peel your veggies. The Microplane Graters are great tools in the kitchen. I use the zester frequently at home.

The Chopper/Scrapper came highly recommended by our Recipe Developer because it is so useful in the kitchen. You can use it to cut and measure brownies, cakes or bars. Or it can be used to scoop up chopped veggies.

Finally, our Mini Spatula made the list because it can get into every small jar or space that you can imagine.

I would have to say that my favorite gadget that I use at home is the Swiss Mandoline Slicer by Zyliss. I use it all the time. It has all the great attachments so you can julienne or slice veggies or potatoes uniformly and effortlessly. It is easy to disassemble and clean and stores together with the holder so all the attachments don't get lost in your pantry.

We would love to hear your list of favorite kitchen gadgets.