Buyer's Guide
Most of our china is discontinued and consequently may be previously owned and used, but all of it is in 'Very Good' or 'Good' condition. To help you assess what we mean by this, please read our definitions of condition below for standard and period / collectable items. Please note that item sizes and patterns may have minor variations owing to manufacturing tolerances and/or differences between production batches over time.
Rest assured that we only send out china in the condition in which we would be happy to receive it.
Don't forget to read our buying tips!
Standard Condition Definitions
Pieces in 'Very Good' condition (Green graded items, identified with a 'G' on the invoice) may have:
- slight surface scratching, or wear consistent with normal use
- tiny manufacturing blemishes, only noticeable on close inspection
- a 'seconds' mark. This will be on the base of the piece and varies according to the manufacturer. These will be 'eye perfect', meaning that without close inspection it would be hard to identify any manufacturing defects.
Pieces in 'Good' condition (Yellow graded items, identified
with a 'Y' on the invoice):
- As for 'Very Good', but may also include slight fading or wear to the trim, very slight crazing, minor pitting, grit under the glaze, a surface scratch and/or glaze wear. It certainly won't have all of these.
Period / Collectable Condition Definitions
Pieces in 'Very Good' condition (Green graded items, identified with a 'G' on the invoice) may have:
- Minor flaws consistent with the date of manufacture, including pitting, lumps in glaze, grit under the glaze, rough edge conditions or an imperfect/misaligned pattern
- Light surface scratching or wear (including light glaze wear)
- Fine crazing or feathering
Pieces in 'Good' condition (Yellow graded items, identified
with a 'Y' on the invoice):
- As for 'Very Good', but may also include flaws not attributable to date of manufacture, slight fading, moderate wear, surface scratching, crazing or a 'second mark' (which will be on the base of the piece and varies according to the manufacturer). It certainly won't have all of these.
Buying Tips
Tea cups for some patterns come in a variety of shapes. If in doubt, please call us before ordering.
For items that comprise a lid and a base it is preferable, where possible, to buy the complete item to ensure a good fit between the two. Where there are separate entries for lids and bases, we cannot guarantee their fit.
We occasionally receive pieces that do not meet our normal high standards which are available at a reduced price - please call us for details.
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