Brambly Hedge China is a fanciful design by Royal Doulton based on a series of charming children's books. Jill Barklem, the author of the Brambly Hedge books worked closely with the designers at Royal Doulton to create this adorable pattern. Available in both china and figurines, Brambly Hedge is popular among collectors.
About Brambly Hedge
Brambly Hedge is a community of mice that carry out their daily activities and live in homes that have intriguing addresses like:
- Crabapple Cottage
- The Old Oak Palace
- The Hornbeam Tree
Characters like Poppy Eyebright and Primrose Woodmouse live their simple lives within the safety of Brambly Hedge, and sometimes find themselves in great adventures. These stories and delightful illustrations have charmed children and adults alike since they were first published in the early 1980s.
Brambly Hedge China Series and Patterns
Brambly Hedge china was created in several patterns. The patterns have been discontinued and are now considered to be collector's items. Many of the more popular pieces are difficult to find.
Specific Patterns
- Brambly Hedge teapot in the Tea Time collection has an image of the characters of Brambly Hedge having tea at a long table. There were also sandwich plates and other pieces in this pattern.
- Brambly Hedge Seasons collectible plates were created in four designs. Each plate is eight inches in diameter and features a different season of the Brambly Hedge year.
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- Autumn features Primrose among the blackberry bushes.
- Winter gives us a glimpse of Mr. and Mrs. Apple's domestic life as they eat pie by a roaring fire.
- Spring has an adorable scene with Wilfred playing with his slingshot among the yellow flowers.
- Summer celebrates the engagement of Miss Poppy Eyebright and Mr. Dusty Dogwood
- There are tea cups and saucers to match each of the collector's plates.
- The Sea Story collection is a set of four nautically inspired designs
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- Meeting on the Sand
- Dining by the Sea
- Rigging the Boat
- Homeward Bound
- The Primrose Adventure series of plates were four plates produced from 1991 to 1995.
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- Primrose Adventure
- Where's Primrose
- The Search Party
- Safe at Last
- The Interiors Collection showed scenes from the cozy interiors of some of the finest real estate in Brambly Hedge.
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- Storestump
- Old Oak Palace
- The Dairy
- Crabapple Cottage
- From 1995 through 1997 Royal Doulton produced a melamine set entitled Mrs. Apple's Kitchen.
How to Collect Brambly Hedge Series
There are, of course, many more series and patterns in the Brambly Hedge china collection. It would be difficult to collect each piece from each series, therefore most collectors choose a series that they love and collect as many pieces as possible from that one. Another way to collect Brambly Hedge collectibles would be to collect a certain item from each series. For example:
- Cake plates from each series in which one was created.
- Tea cups and saucers from each series.
- Cream pitchers from each series.
And so on. By doing this, it is possible to have most of the illustrations without having to find a place to display the many hundreds of pieces that were created in the years that Royal Doulton crafted the china.
Websites About Brambly Hedge
Most collectibles have chat boards and Brambly Hedge is no exception. This is a message board for collectors.
Buying Brambly Hedge Online
Not surprisingly the largest variety of Brambly Hedge items can be found on eBay U.K.. If you live outside of the United Kingdom many of the sellers will ship to you, but be sure and contact them before bidding.Other places to find these wonderful collectible plates are:
Be careful though. Once you begin to collect these charming images you may find that you are addicted.
