SAID to be inspired by Cornwall’s expansive cerulean skies and the crests of the crashing waves, the distinctive blue and white stripes of Cornishware have long set it apart from any other crockery adorning kitchen worktops or displayed on Welsh dressers across the land.
Legend has it that the idea for the range’s concentric rings, now considered a design classic, was conceived in 1923 by Frederick Parker, general manager of the Derbyshire-based T. G. Green pottery, when he was on the factory workers’ annual two-week holiday to the county. Since then, the striking and straightforward style has become so recognisable that the company’s 10oz mug is one of the 50 most iconic global designs of the 20th century on display at the London Design Museum.
‘It was pretty radical at the time,’ observes Cornishware’s managing director, Charles Rickards. ‘We have a book that shows other
