Heloise Problems

I've finally decided to give in and engage in my interest in Buffalo China.  Who says we don't have fun! 

But imagine my surprise and irritation when I came to find out how generally undocumented this quintessential American brand is.  Like what the fuck, I can't even find a reliable resource for all of the pattern names.  Not even close!

If you wanted to collect pottery by other early-mid American brands (McCoy, Shawnee, Homer Laughlin), you'd be overwhelmed with exhaustive publications and message boards full of people fighting about real vs. repro or fake, and the various types of stamps used to identify the pieces over the years.  

I'm starting to realize that Buffalo China's problem is it's too common to care about for most, with some exceptions.  They started production around 1908, and all of those early century patterns through the 1920s are predictably rare, documented and expensive.  They're also ugly.  Back then, they were called Buffalo Pottery, and after WWI, they became one of the most prolific modern pottery distributors in the world.  In addition to their retail output, they made dishes for the the armed forces before pivoting to creating custom china for hotels, restaurants and steamships in the 1920s.  That's where I get interested.  

My favorite Buffalo China is from the 1930s-1960s because it's heavy, thick utilitarian ware with unexpected, interesting patterns - sometimes.  It's common enough that it's not expensive and I just want one piece of every pattern that I like.  

Being an adult is everything I thought it would be.

The problem is, I don't know what my selection is due to the lack of documentation.  I learn pattern names and histories from eBay or Etsy, from the sellers who bother to know what they're selling.  I've learned enough to bitterly lament not purchasing the cheap set of multifleure that I saw on eBay a couple of years ago.  There isn't a single piece of this weird midcentury psychedelic pastel pattern on the internet right now, which has made it all the more precious to me.  I just want one piece.  Actually, I'd take a few of that one.  And a few of the masonic "Eastern Star" pieces while I'm at it, but those are around.  Don't get me started on Rebekah Lodge flags.  Ever wanted to blow a bunch of money on a rotten piece of silk?  Me too.  

I don't mind how common the Buffalo pieces are.  I just want #basic things that regular people used as long as I find them attractive too.  They're regular enough to find everywhere, and affordable if you're cool paying offensively varying prices for a single dinner plate, which I am.  

I'm not a collector, never have been.  It's not in me.  After decades of acquiring various antiques and vintage pieces of varying quality and importance, I don't want to be burdened by any more miscellaneous stuff unless it's special and in small quantity.  Pieces need to be interesting and usable.  Items are meant to be used.  What else is all this for?  The animals eat off of broken expensive china and sometimes, so do I.

This hasn't prevented me from being burdened by inheriting the collections of others.  And by "inheriting," I mean taking so they don't end up in the trash.  That's how I ended up with my grandmother's collection of ugly 70s and 80s rocking horse figurines.  They've lived in a box for 20 years, and although I think they're generally unsightly, they are mine now and I have to keep them until I die, so perhaps I'll put them on a shelf instead of asking my cousins every two years, "Would you like me to send you some horses?"  Why is the answer always no?  

I want a couple of pieces of shitty Corelle now.  Collections (er I said I have none!) don't always have to be precious.  I see my grandma's pattern, Butterfly Gold, every so often in thrifts.  Seems like it came out in 1970 and was discontinued in 1981, so I don't know when she got it, but I think it was on the earlier side.  The pattern looks like Spaghettios to me, served up to kids in the teacups.  I snapped a pic of it and sent it to my cousin recently.  Power punch to the childhood.  Pic not available but:

No problem adding cheap china to the collection, that's the best part of it all.  

I might even add one piece of Callaway to my hoard, just for funsies, because that was my mom's pattern in the 90s.  Hardly rare and practically still in production, it came about in 1995 and ended in 2015.  A nod to the old Irish heritage, Sean-o Parsons style.  Kerry and Derry and Monaghan counties representing in a common piece of shitty American china.