Christmas tea and teawares

I'm so glad this day has arrived, because I have a new (to me) teacup I've been wanting to use, and I was determined not to pull it out before Dec. 1. Last year I decided to begin looking for vintage Christmas china since all I had was whimsical Christmas pieces and a few trios in the Spode Christmas Tree pattern. I haven't come across vintage Christmas china very often at all and ended up with only two cup and saucer sets (I'll share the other one another day). I chose this one because of its cheerful holly and berry design and the scalloped shape of the cup.

I wish I knew more about china and pottery marks, because I believe those three dots to the right of the Crown Staffordshire mark (which appear on both the teacup and the saucer) actually mean something. For other makers (and perhaps even this one), the dots refer to a particular year of production. Here, I learned this design was probably made after 1930.

A thin green band edges the rim of the teacup and saucer and a bit of the handle, a very elegant little addition.

And also since it's Dec. 1, I can finally have some of a favorite Christmas tea from Celestial Seasonings, a yummy peppermint flavored green tea called Candy Cane Lane. It's in stores now, so I need to remember to stock up before it sells out!