Musings on Retro China with yay retro!

A few weeks ago, I spoke to the lovely Sue from yay retro! about Peace, Love & Daisy Chains, our motivations, our hire collection and our favourite pieces for sale on the yay retro! online site. You can read the article here.

Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to yay retro! yay retro! is my go-to place to find and salivate over those special pieces that crown my collection, those pieces which can't be found with my usual rummages. 

I bought the wonderful Barker Bros Springtime cups and saucers, plates and milk jug from yay retro! and duly added them to the hire collection. Ever since they have attracted admiring and covetous glances.

Without further ado, let's chat to Sue! 

Sue's interest in retro china began some time before she founded yay retro!:

'The first piece of retro china I ever bought would have been a jug of some sort back in the 80s, I have a ‘thing’ about jugs…so many different shapes, sizes and thicknesses with an array of handle and spout designs -they are visually appealing and almost like mini sculptures to me! They are infinitely useful as well as decorative and can be used in the kitchen or as ornaments around the home.'

I agree with Sue that jugs are just wonderful - they can hold milk, or gravy or sauce! Here is that fabulous Barker Bros jug in full glory:

'The first piece I sold at yay retro! was a vintage cheese board covered in bright daisy patterns, I can even recall the date and who bought it on 4th August 2012!' 

Sue began began collecting Poole Pottery in earnest back in 2012, after finding a 'wonderful minimally shaped 1930s cheese dish of theirs, during my quest I amassed lots of other vintage pieces of tableware. My husband and son run a web design company and built me the yay retro! website www.yayretro.co.uk as a birthday present, so that I could sell my vintage treasure online. I haven’t looked back, it is now my full time job. 

'I send vintage wares all over the world, from South Kensington to South Korea. My favourite 1960s Figgjo Flint pieces, such as the Anne-Marie and Daisy patterns often end up being repatriated to Norway, and are also very popular with collectors in Japan. Australia is a popular destination for Poole Pottery and 1960s Flower Power designs, but of course my biggest customer base is in the UK, where I have lots of brilliant regular and repeat customers.'

The Figgjo Flint Daisy and Anne-Marie designs

As with all good vintage retailers, vintage is not just consigned to the day job, but a passion and way of life:

'I love to cook and to have the whole family over for dinner, when we are all together there are 10 of us. The table always has vintage serving dishes and plates. Currently I am using 1950s Empire Shetland pastel blue check plates, with sky blue Poole Pottery. For cooking I use vintage enamelware and a variety of Norwegian ceramics such as the Daisy pattern from Egersund, Norway.'

Egersund Daisy pattern and 70s Daisy teaset (which we also have for hire)

In the few years that yay retro! has been retailing, Sue has seen a distinct shift in trends:

'When I started up yay retro! a few years ago, lots of people were ‘into’ pretty roses on 1930/40s china, now the bold Flower Power designs of the 60s and 70s have definitely taken over, and there are many, many more people collecting. Bright Scandinavian designs on both fabric and table-wares are definitely the most sought after and drooled over pieces! The good thing is that with such bold patterns, you can buy one or two statement pieces and they will shine in your modern vintage home. 

'Grey and Yellow has become a stylish colour scheme in the home recently, and so yellow vintage-wares have also become very desirable.

'The most popular items in the yay retro! shop change from year to year to be honest. When I started out in 2012 Pyrex and Gaydon Melamine tea sets were the ‘thing’. Now I rarely buy these brands in as they don’t ‘go’ as well. Right now, anything with huge bright daisy patterns, or Scandi bird or fish designs are sure to be snapped up by collectors. Spice and storage jars are also sought after. 

Figgjo Astrid and Worcesterware Spire

With regards to her own personal collection, Sue would like to add a 'classic piece of mid-century furniture. A minimally designed armchair covered in pale grey fabric with bright yellow daisy cushions. I am still looking for the ‘optimum chair’ but may cheat with a look-a-like from IKEA! 

'The 1960s and 70s time period has the most influence on the way I have decorated my home – It’s very minimal with bright colour accents & patterns here and there. I was born in the early 60s and can remember most of what I sell at yay retro! being used in my parents and grandparent’s homes. I have wonderful memories of growing up in this era, and so being surrounded by vintage homewares of this period gives me a warm fuzzy feeling. In my kitchen I have a vintage kitchen unit made in 1953, which is just like the one my Nan had – it’s even the same colour. This is where I keep all my vintage china which of course I use every day.' 

Finally, Sue says that if given a chance, 'I would go back to the summer of 1968 to walk along a country lane in Wiltshire in the sunshine spotting primroses with my wonderful Gran – my most treasured memory.' 

Do take a look at the wonderful items for sale on yay retro! - I would be very surprised if you left empty handed! I particularly love the latest addition to the shop - flower power cushions - wouldn't these make a brilliant, bright alternative to ivory seat cushions at a wedding?

yay retro! also has a wonderful 'retropedia' of articles about various different potteries and collections which is a treasure trove of information for anyone wanting to learn more about vintage china.

Figgjo Clupea and Scandi Cushion

If you would like a taste of retro or to add a flower power vibe to your wedding, party or event but can't commit to accruing a large collection of items, then take a look at our extensive hire collection of retro 60s and 70s china and props - we have enough china to serve dinner or afternoon tea to 160 people, as well as pineapple ice buckets, crochet blankets and picnic baskets!

Five alternative ways to flower power up your wedding 

It should come as no surprise that here at Peace, Love & Daisy Chains we are huge fans of flowers. We have our roots in the flower power movement, with the vast majority of our retro china hire pieces dating back to the late 60s and 70s. The obsession with flower power was not only shown through flowers in hair and embroidered kaftans, but also reflected in the china of the day, with brazen blooms and kitschy blossoms adorning the porcelain. 

In our journey we have seen so many fabulous ways to incorporate flowers, both real and faux, into the big day, which go beyond the usual bouquet of roses and vase displays. Here is a round up of the most inspiring ones we have seen recently!

1. Eat them!

Stuck on choosing favours that you want to guarantee will be taken home? Who could resist the flowery lollipops created by Eat My Flowers?!

Eat My Flowers started growing and selling edible flowers from their farm in the Dee Valley, Wales, in 2011. These lollipops were originally created as a thank you gift to their crystallised flower customers, but were so popular that they decided to continue to produce them to sell. 

They come in a variety of delicious sounding flavours, including strawberry swizzle, raspberry  ripple, orange zest, rose-y-posy, peppermint dream and violet haze. 

Isn't this pansy pop so cute?!

2. Drink them!

There are many more edible flowers than you probably realise (such as cornflowers, tulips and even the humble daisy). They make a beautiful, bohemian accompaniment to a cocktail or even a glass of champagne.

You can buy edible flowers from Maddocks Farm Organics, who have a beautiful selection of flowers, not just for cocktails, but also wedding cakes and they sell fresh foraged salads. They can be bought as a wildflower mix or one single variety. Alternatively, you can pick the flowers yourself from your garden or country lanes - what a lovely way this would be to tie in a country theme? Just make sure you know what you are picking and whether it is edible or not, and try to keep away from polluted areas such as the side of roads - you don't want to poison anyone after all! Maddocks have a really useful guide to using edible flowers here.

Another alternative is to create ice cubes with flowers in them - make sure you use boiling water to ensure that the ice cubes freeze clear. If you want to reduce your stress then you can order them from Maddocks Farm Organics.

3. Throw them!

I have always been in two minds about confetti. While it's beautiful and a unique wedding-specific tradition, there's the little problem about its impact on the environment. Many churches forbid the use until you are already outside the church gates, and I remember many a childhood summers day collecting the confetti left over from that weekend's wedding.

Coloured and bleached paper, while paper is biodegradable, is never going to be wonderful for the environment. Step in Natural Favours, who grow and dry beautiful mixes of flowers for throwing. Not only do they have beautiful, non uniform colours and shapes, they smell much more wonderful than tissue paper.

Note: make sure you check out the policy of your wedding venue to see what is permitted.

4. Adorn your Walls with them!

Who says that flowers have to be real? I had the pleasure of meeting Paper Flower Wedding at the Vintage Wedding Fair in Stoke Newington recently. Offering a completely bespoke service, this company creates the most amazing paper flowers. From flower arches to stunning walls covered with flowers of different kinds, colours and sizes, this is certainly one way to add a wow factor to the room.

There is also the option to add details in lace, crystals and pearls, and flowers can also be made in plastic to withstand the whims if English weather. How amazing would plastic flowers in bright saturated colours look behind the top table or on the dance floor?!

5. Eat off them!

Last, but not least, why not incorporate bright, vivid flowers into your table decor by mixing and matching dinner plates, side plates and cups and saucers? From sunflowers, to poppies, to kitschy mod flowers and Romanian folk flowers, our collection of mismatched china creates an eclectic flower power feel. 

If having a smaller reception, we can colour coordinate to your specific colours, while bigger parties look bright and stunning all mixed up together! We excel in bright, bold colour, like this yellow cup and saucer and purple dinner plate combination.

Take a look at our pinterest board or the kodak moments on our website to see more fantabulous ways to add a bit of flower power to your wedding or event as we spot them!