Eileen Soper nursery china - part two

A few more pieces from my collection. Designed by Eileen Soper for the Playtime series and made by Paragon.

Paragon China began as the Star China Co., owned by Herbert Aynsley and Hugh Irving. The name Paragon was adopted as a trade mark in around 1900 and the company formally became known as Paragon China Ltd. in 1919. The name was selected deliberately to allude to excellence and quality of product.

Paragon was fortunate enough to receive continued royal patronage, initially from the Duchess of York in 1926 and again from Queen Mary in 1933, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother in 1938 and Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.

The Eileen Soper illustration in the background is from The runaway kitten by Enid Blyton 

The company manufactured bone china wares and during the inter-war period established a reputation for producing high-quality tea and table wares. Nursery and toy wares were also a speciality having been part of the Star China product line since 1904. 

I love the rose and thistle design on the handle of this mug, but I'm not sure how robust it would have been in the hands of a child! 

The Eileen Soper illustration in the background is from Jolly little jumbo by Enid Blyton

The design on the left is from a nursery plate and the illustration on the right is from 

Polly Piglet written by Enid Blyton and illustrated by Eileen Soper

Eileen Soper included her signature on all her nursery pieces

Dogs featured in lots of the designs, but the little mouse is more unusual.

Previous Eileen Soper post here

Thanks for looking, Barbara.