The Dish Addict Award

Some people call it "Dish Madness," others call it "Plate Collecting." No matter the term, the acquisition of tableware can be addicting. One minute you are looking at a Johnson Brothers pink castle plate, and the next thing you know, you are checking Ebay to make certain you didn't miss the deadline to bid on a teapot. Buying dishes is, for me, quite similar to opening a Whitman Sampler.

One piece WILL NOT END IT.

My dishy, little fetish began during my childhood, when I played with my mother's Haviland--the tureen made a splendid swimming pool for my Madame Alexander dolls. Five decades later, I'm still playing.


When I became a bride, selecting china and pottery was an epic adventure. I loved Sculptured Daisy and Sculptured Grape; but I also loved Antiqua, Fruit Basket, and Desert Rose. In those days, brides registered at the jewelry store. Since I worked just across the street from that store, I befriended the lady who worked there, and she let me wander in the stockroom, just gazing at the shelves of Metlox and Poppytrail. Heaven!

Because our town had two jewelry shops--and they stocked different pottery manufacturers--I ended up with Fruit Basket and Desert Rose--and an addiction was born.

Years later, I managed to buy a few pieces of Sculptured Daisy--because I still loved it from afar. As my 81 year old mother always says, "One man is enough... but one china or pottery pattern simply won't DO. (She keeps things under the sofa, even!

Since this was hereditary, of course, my plate collecting segued into other types of collecting...

Glassware. Napkin rings. Napkins.

I know you know what I mean. How it feels. How it grips you and won't let go. Not even for a second.

So, fellow dish fanciers, or future dish fanciers, I salute you with an award. It is my fond hope that as long as there's room under the bed, dish hoarding will endure.

**winks** and ((hugs))