Reynolds  by Spode China
Cynthia  by Fostoria
Charles II  Sterling by Lunt Silver

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Reynolds by Spode is a fascinating bone china pattern produced from 1954 to 1988. Reynolds has a rimmed, scalloped design adorned with a beautiful, asymmetrical center design festooned with fruits, flowers, nuts, and berries. Spode founder Josiah Spode opened the doors of his porcelain factory in 1780. Under his guidance, the factory introduced two important breakthroughs in the development of English ceramics. Using bone ash, Spode was the first English china maker to achieve higher firing temperatures, resulting in beautifully detailed, longer-lasting china. The company’s second important achievement was perfecting "underglaze" decorating. Intricate designs could be applied to china that would last for decades and were much more resistant to chipping, scratching, or fading, at prices affordable to England’s burgeoning middle class.

Cynthia, a blown glass design produced by Fostoria from 1938 to 1965, features a concave bowl, flared top, a knobbed, ribbed stem, and a round foot. The elegant bowl design features grey-cut leaves and berries, making this design a wonderful complement to the Reynolds and Charles II patterns. Founded in 1888, Fostoria competed actively against Cambridge, Heisey, and Westmoreland Glass over the years before emerging as leader in the American glassware market. The rise of industry throughout the nineteenth century had Americans replacing afternoon teas and luncheons with casual brunches and after-work cocktail parties; Fostoria’s patterns (both colored and clear) were ideal for this new trend of polished casual entertaining. Although many of Fostoria’s competitors would be forced out of business during the Great Depression, innovative marketing techniques and business-savvy managers would allow Fostoria to survive. During the World War II war period, Fostoria produced many of its most famous patterns, including Chintz, Colony, Romance, and Holly . Although the company closed in 1986 due to increased foreign competition, Fostoria continues to be an American legend in tableware design, and Fostoria pieces remain highly collectible.
 
Produced from 1934 to 1970, Charles II is a gorgeous sterling pattern by Lunt Silver.  Charles II features a beveled, scrolled edge, a cameo/frame tip with a floral plume design, an elaborate, blocked handle with a fruit motif, and a glossy finish. The fruit and floral design elements of Charles II make it the perfect flatware accompaniment for the Reynolds and Cynthia patterns above. Lunt was founded as the A. F. Towle & Son Mfg. Co. in 1880 in Newburyport, MA. Towle and his son left the company and built a new factory in Newburyport under the name A.F. Towle & Son Company. After moving to Greenfield, MA, in 1890, the firm went into automobile manufacturing and produced one of the first “horseless carriages” in America. Lack of financing caused the endeavor to fail, and George C. Lunt, who had been apprenticed to Towle, established Rogers, Lunt & Bowlen Co., in 1902. Since 1935 the company has used the trade-name Lunt Silversmiths.

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