Malachi on a McVitie’s
DADDY: "Goodness Malachi! Do you realise that you are sitting on one of my McVitie’s chocolate biscuits?"
MALACHI: "Hullo Daddy! What a preposterous question! Of course I realise I am sitting on a McVitie’s chocolate biscuit. "
DADDY: "Then may I ask why it is that you have chosen to sit there, Malachi?"
MALACHI: "I would have thought it was obvious, Daddy. It’s the perfect place for me to have my elevenses of course."
DADDY: "And why exactly is the best place to have elevenses, Malachi?"
MALACHI: "Oh because it’s so nice and flat and just the right size for me to set out my tea things, Daddy! It smells delicious too! That makes it a capital place to take elevenses. Don’t you think so?"
DADDY: "Well that's all well and good Malachi, but how am I meant to have my elevenses if you are sitting on it?"
MALACHI: "Well, I'm sure you won’t want to eat all of these biscuits, will you Daddy? There are quite a lot of them."
The theme for “Looking close… on Friday” is “biscuits”. I thought a nice stack of biscuits on one of my antique tea plates would be nice and then I thought of Malachi and his love miniature 1:12 artisan biscuits, and then I thought both would be perfect for the theme.
Malachi is a recent, and unexpected, addition to my bear family. I acquired him in mid-March from a wonderful Melbourne stalwart toy shop: Dafel Dolls and Bears, when I went looking for a present for one of my goddaughters. Malachi is designed by Mary and hand-made by Wendy Joy in Australia. He has reticulated arms and legs, and an extremely sweet face. Malachi was the name he came with, written by hand on his little tag.
Malachi is taking tea from a 1:12 white gilt miniature tea set. He has a fine selection of Schoof's Biscuits manufactured in Bourges, France in his tin. If you look closely on his plate there is a heart shaped biscuit, two cream centres and there is even a little teddy bear biscuit! All the biscuits, like the tin and tea set are artisan made 1:12 miniatures from my own collection and are between two and three millimetres in diameter.
The teapot is two and a half centimetres in height, the milk jug two centimetres in height, the sugar bowl one and half centimetres in height, the plate and saucer 2 centimetres in diameter, the teacup one a half centimetres in diameter, the teaspoon two centimetres in length and the biscuit tin two centimetres in diameter.
Malachi and my elevenses sit on a hand painted Primrose patterned Art Deco Colclough tea plate, made in Longton in England between 1925 and 1930.
Colclough Bone China was founded in Staffordshire in 1890 by Herbert J. Colclough, the former mayor of Stoke-on-Trent. Herbert loved porcelain and loved the ordinary working man. One of his desires was to bring fine bone china, a preserve of the upper and middle classes, to the working man. He felt that it would give them aspirations and dignity to eat off fine bone china. Colclough Bone China received a Royal Warrant from King George V in 1913. Colclough went on to innovate the production of fine bone china for the mass market in the 1920s and 1930s. They produced the backstamp brands Royal Vale and Royal Stanley. Colclough Bone China merged with Booth’s Pottery and later acquired Ridgeway China. Eventually they amalgamated with Royal Doulton in the 1970s.
Dafel Dolls and Bears history dates back to 1941 when founder Ada Schmit opened the shop to counter the shortage of toys available for children during the war. The shop, which also encompasses a doll and bear hospital and a dressing service, is still a family affair, run by mother and daughter Pauline Seaton and Lisa Brener. Located for 77 years in Melbourne’s iconic Block Arcade, Dafel Dolls and Bears relocated in 2018 to the end of Howey Place, a light filled arcade just a short stroll from their former original premises.
Malachi on a McVitie’s
DADDY: "Goodness Malachi! Do you realise that you are sitting on one of my McVitie’s chocolate biscuits?"
MALACHI: "Hullo Daddy! What a preposterous question! Of course I realise I am sitting on a McVitie’s chocolate biscuit. "
DADDY: "Then may I ask why it is that you have chosen to sit there, Malachi?"
MALACHI: "I would have thought it was obvious, Daddy. It’s the perfect place for me to have my elevenses of course."
DADDY: "And why exactly is the best place to have elevenses, Malachi?"
MALACHI: "Oh because it’s so nice and flat and just the right size for me to set out my tea things, Daddy! It smells delicious too! That makes it a capital place to take elevenses. Don’t you think so?"
DADDY: "Well that's all well and good Malachi, but how am I meant to have my elevenses if you are sitting on it?"
MALACHI: "Well, I'm sure you won’t want to eat all of these biscuits, will you Daddy? There are quite a lot of them."
The theme for “Looking close… on Friday” is “biscuits”. I thought a nice stack of biscuits on one of my antique tea plates would be nice and then I thought of Malachi and his love miniature 1:12 artisan biscuits, and then I thought both would be perfect for the theme.
Malachi is a recent, and unexpected, addition to my bear family. I acquired him in mid-March from a wonderful Melbourne stalwart toy shop: Dafel Dolls and Bears, when I went looking for a present for one of my goddaughters. Malachi is designed by Mary and hand-made by Wendy Joy in Australia. He has reticulated arms and legs, and an extremely sweet face. Malachi was the name he came with, written by hand on his little tag.
Malachi is taking tea from a 1:12 white gilt miniature tea set. He has a fine selection of Schoof's Biscuits manufactured in Bourges, France in his tin. If you look closely on his plate there is a heart shaped biscuit, two cream centres and there is even a little teddy bear biscuit! All the biscuits, like the tin and tea set are artisan made 1:12 miniatures from my own collection and are between two and three millimetres in diameter.
The teapot is two and a half centimetres in height, the milk jug two centimetres in height, the sugar bowl one and half centimetres in height, the plate and saucer 2 centimetres in diameter, the teacup one a half centimetres in diameter, the teaspoon two centimetres in length and the biscuit tin two centimetres in diameter.
Malachi and my elevenses sit on a hand painted Primrose patterned Art Deco Colclough tea plate, made in Longton in England between 1925 and 1930.
Colclough Bone China was founded in Staffordshire in 1890 by Herbert J. Colclough, the former mayor of Stoke-on-Trent. Herbert loved porcelain and loved the ordinary working man. One of his desires was to bring fine bone china, a preserve of the upper and middle classes, to the working man. He felt that it would give them aspirations and dignity to eat off fine bone china. Colclough Bone China received a Royal Warrant from King George V in 1913. Colclough went on to innovate the production of fine bone china for the mass market in the 1920s and 1930s. They produced the backstamp brands Royal Vale and Royal Stanley. Colclough Bone China merged with Booth’s Pottery and later acquired Ridgeway China. Eventually they amalgamated with Royal Doulton in the 1970s.
Dafel Dolls and Bears history dates back to 1941 when founder Ada Schmit opened the shop to counter the shortage of toys available for children during the war. The shop, which also encompasses a doll and bear hospital and a dressing service, is still a family affair, run by mother and daughter Pauline Seaton and Lisa Brener. Located for 77 years in Melbourne’s iconic Block Arcade, Dafel Dolls and Bears relocated in 2018 to the end of Howey Place, a light filled arcade just a short stroll from their former original premises.