Help! I've broken a tea cup!!
We've all done it. It is, after all, so easy to do. Maybe you bashed the edge of the cup on the tap during the washing up. Perhaps the dishwasher (usually the husband, rather than the machine) chipped a plate. Maybe an over eager child tipped the ice cream bowl from his high chair sending it smashing to the floor.
No harm done! Just buy another one right?
But what do you do if you get to the store only to find that your dinner, tea or coffee service is no longer displayed on the shelf? Not to worry, it's probably just out of stock. Ask the shop assistant to order some for you. But ALAS! You hear the words that you've heard tell of, but thought would never be uttered to you. Not in the same breath as the name of YOUR dinner service! Are you sitting down?
"I'm sorry but that china pattern has been discontinued. We have sold our last piece and we won't be getting anymore in...EVER."
Table of Contents
- All is not lost
- Be your own china detective!
- Buy direct from other owners of the same service
- My favourite discontinued tableware book!
- Car Boot Sales
- Auction Houses
- Online Auction Websites and Replacement China
- Replacement china on eBay.
- Discontinued Tableware Replacement/China Matching Services
- ReplaceYourChina.com
- Other China Matching & China Replacement Services
- More resources on discontinued tableware
- Reader Feedback
All is not lost
Don't panic yet
It is not always easy, but it is certainly possible to replace your broken and now discontinued china cup, plate, dish, teapot or whatever.
Perhaps it's not a case that you have broken anything. Maybe your family has expanded and you wish to add some extra place settings to the table. Perhaps, when you first bought the service your finances did not allow you to buy the extras, such as the serving ware or dessert set.
Do not worry. It is still perfectly possible to add to or replace your china. How easy it is going to be to do so however, will depend on the following: -
So how do you go about finding your replacements? Read on...
Perhaps it's not a case that you have broken anything. Maybe your family has expanded and you wish to add some extra place settings to the table. Perhaps, when you first bought the service your finances did not allow you to buy the extras, such as the serving ware or dessert set.
Do not worry. It is still perfectly possible to add to or replace your china. How easy it is going to be to do so however, will depend on the following: -
- Your budget.
- How much information you know about your china, e.g. do you know the name of the pattern, or even the make?
- How long it's been discontinued for.
- The length of it's production life. i.e. How much is out there in the market place?
- How popular a design it was. You may not be the only person looking for replacement china pieces.
- The type of pieces you are seeking. For example, dinner plates get broken more than tea plates and are usually harder to find. It's easier to find a whole teapot, than it is a spare lid, but obviously more expensive.
So how do you go about finding your replacements? Read on...
Learn more about discontinued tableware
Be your own china detective!
Gather the facts
For those of you who don't know me and haven't read my bio, I used to own and manage one of the UKs leading china replacement services, called The China Detectives. More often than not, when we received the first enquiry from a first time customer looking for some replacement china, they would end up putting the phone down and calling us back with more information. This was because we had learnt to be very specific in terms of finding out what people are looking for. We had to be to avoid items being returned.For example, one person's definition of a breakfast plate maybe an 8" plate. Someone else may feel that a breakfast plate is a 9" plate. Maybe the first person didn't know that the pottery made a 9" plate in their pattern.
Another example, would be a change to the style of the china pattern. Poole Pottery are an example of a pottery manufacturer who were notorious for relaunching their designs with slight variations over the years. Borders would become slightly wider, the shading of a colour would change slightly, the teapot would change shape etc. Now I appreciate that you use your dinner service every day. You know it intimately. You have fondled it lovingly in the washing up bowl and there is NO WAY you could confuse it with something else...is there?
If you go to a second hand stall and there is a box of plates in your pattern but with two or even three variations that you did not previously know about, would you know which one is yours? Maybe, maybe not. But do you want to risk buying the wrong ones.
So it's time to gather the facts and find out and write down the following: -
- The manufacturer name. If it's not printed on the back of the pieces, then check your original paperwork and catalogues.
- The pattern or design name. Again, if you can't find it check original paperwork and catalogues. Also look for a number printed on the back of pieces as some potteries use pattern/design codes.
- A list of the china pieces you wish to add or replace. Include measurements and the number of each piece you wish to find.
- A photograph. If for some reason a photograph is not an option, perhaps a sketch or even a brief description.
Now it's time to start the search, and there are a number of options available to you. Needless to say the cheapest options require the most patience and work on your part...and the easiest and quickest sources of finding replacement china require deeper pockets!
Buy direct from other owners of the same service
This is the most economical solution to finding your replacement china, and perhaps unsurprisingly therefore is the preferred method for china replacement specialists (see later). However, it does present some issues. The first being, how you go about finding other people with the same discontinued china pattern as you, and who are willing to part with it.One recognised way to achieve this is to place a small advertisment in the classifieds section of your local paper. Be prepared to get telephone calls from dealers as well as private individuals. The dealers can be a pain (I should know, I used to be one), but be polite. After all, if you are unsuccessful trying to find a private individual you may need to go back to the dealers for their help.
Should you be lucky enough to be contacted by someone wishing to sell the same service that you are seeking, you will likely be presented with the second problem with this approach. The individual will be unlikely to offer you a single plate or cup and saucer to replace your breakages. They will have, like most people, the common misconception that they will make more money keeping the set togther and selling it as a job lot.
While this may seem an expensive way to obtain a replacement saucer it is usually to your advantage to try and come to an agreement on the whole service. Not only will you get the replacements you seek, but also plenty of spares. And...if you have too many surplus pieces, you always have the option to sell them on individually at a profit.
Other options for buying privately include car boot sales (trash and treasure [Aus]/junk yard sales[US]), but I will cover these in more detail later.
My favourite discontinued tableware book!
Valuations, identifications, item listings, marks and backstamps
Dinnerware of the 20th Century: The Top 500 Patterns (Official Price Guides to Dinnerware of the 20th Century)
Amazon Price: (as of 10/11/2008)
Whether you are seeking a guide as to the value of a given make and pattern of discontinued tableware, or a listing of the pieces made in a discontinued china set, or simply a clear and concisely displayed resource dedicated to the subject of replacement china, this is the book for you.
This book was by my side constantly while I was running The China Detectives and even now it is a familiar companion on my book shelf. For dealers and owners alike I highly recommend it.
Car Boot Sales
Junk/Yard Sales in the US & Trash n Treasure down under
If you are not yet familiar with the phenomenen that is car boot sales here in the UK, then perhaps you may know them as Trash 'n' Treasure sales in Australia, or Junk/Yard sales in the US.Essentially, it is a gathering of people, usually a mixture of private individuals and traders, who sell their surplus accumulations from the boot of their car. Here in the UK, they are often held in school car parks and farmers fields.
They are a great source for discontinued tableware. Sadly, due to the rise in the number of discontinued tableware specialists and dealers, it is no longer as easy or as cheap a method of finding replacement china as it was 10 years ago. Nevertheless, there are still bargains to be found.
As with buying directly from private individuals, look for private people who are seeking to sell a whole set, rather than dealers who will have already split the set up and added a considerable mark up.
If you want to find a car boot sale in your local area, we recommmend CarBootJunction.com.
CarBootJunction.com Forum
Share your ideas, reviews and car boot sale experiences.
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byAuction Houses
The real, offline, ones!
Yes they do still exist. Out there in the mysterious world known as "real life", beyond the reaches of eBay , eBid and the like, exist some often dark, dusty and musty smelling buildings containing a selection of other peoples junk about to be sold at auction.It is certainly possible to source discontinued china from these venues and often at a very reasonable price. The disadvantage is that you may well have to attend an awful lot of auctions before you find one selling your particular make and pattern.
That said, you could save yourself a lot of time by asking to be put on the mailing list of the auction house.
Online Auction Websites and Replacement China
Yes...that probably means eBay!
One can't bring up the subject of online auctions without mentioning eBay. Well I'm not going to just mention them...I'm going to give them a shameless plug. While there are other online auction websites out there, I have yet to find any with the vast number of discontinued china, tableware and collectibles that eBay has.
Based on volume alone eBay is your best chance of finding specifically what you are looking for, without going to a specialist replacement service. If you are not yet familiar with eBay, take a look at some of the replacement china auctions listed below and click on one of the links to explore further.
Based on volume alone eBay is your best chance of finding specifically what you are looking for, without going to a specialist replacement service. If you are not yet familiar with eBay, take a look at some of the replacement china auctions listed below and click on one of the links to explore further.
Replacement china on eBay.
eBay is an excellent source for finding your replacement china pieces from discontinued lines. Often you can buy pieces directly from replacement services for less than their standard prices, and if you are lucky enough you will find your missing plates cheaper still from private sellers.
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Discontinued Tableware Replacement/China Matching Services
Buying from the specialists
China matching services and discontinued tableware replacement specialists have been around now for about 25 years, here in the UK, Australia and the US. More recently they are starting to turn up in other European countries.Their methods of operation vary, but in general terms the larger replacement services carry large stocks of second hand discontinued china lines, across a vast range of makes and patterns. When they have the item(s) in stock that you are seeking, they are of course happy to sell it to you immediately. However, if they do not have the dish or cup you are missing they will usually offer to take your contact details along with information about the items you want to replace, with a view to contacting you when they next get those china pieces in stock. That maybe a matter of days, weeks, months or even years depending on how good the replacement service is and how rare your particular wanted item is.
Some china matching services specialise in particular potteries, some in a few and others deal with all makes. In my experience it pays to go to a specialist when one is available.
This is usually one of the quickest ways to obtain a replacement for your missing china and the quality of the replacement pieces is normally of a very high standard. Some replacement services like ReplaceYourChina.com only sell replacements that are in near new or excellent condition.
When you telephone or email them for assistance, make sure that you have all the information that you wrote down before about your missing china to hand.
Happy hunting and good luck replacing your china!
Here's my favorite link:
Other China Matching & China Replacement Services
My recommended discontinued china specialists
- ReplaceYourChina.com
- The number one source for replacement china in the UK, specialising in Poole Pottery, Hornsea Pottery and Royal Doulton, but dealing in all makes of discontinued china. The site offers a secure e-commerce and shopping cart facility to directly purchase your replacement dishes.
- Poole Pottery Replacement Service
- A specialist discontinued Poole Pottery replacement/china matching service based in Dorset near the original Poole Pottery factory. They hold a lot of Poole Pottery stock including many of the twintone and compact ranges.
- Accumulations
- For further information about finding and collecting discontinued lines take a look at my own website, Accumulations. It is a general information website about discontinued tableware, china and collectables. Enjoy.
More resources on discontinued tableware
Reader Feedback
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mrpottery
What an excellent lens. Very informative. I wish I had thought of it. Posted May 10, 2008 |
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Tiggerroo
This is an excellent, informative piece. I have on many occasions broken something and then thrown everything away because it does not match. Did not know these services were out there until I read this. Great stuff. Posted May 02, 2008 |
