Full disclosure: My family doesn’t eat off of Spode Woodland Turkey plates. We eat off a set of turkey china that look strikingly similar (Johnson Brothers’ Wild Turkey). The background is cream-colored, with a delicate brown floral pattern around the edges and a turkey in the center. One set belonged to my great uncle and the other set belonged to my grandfather. Anyone else hosting gets to use the plates, but my mom always gets to keep them in her china cabinet. It’s a really big deal to hand-wash each plate set and make sure that every piece is accounted for and carefully packed away for the next year. Why is this an important process? Because like many other turkey-motif, Thanksgiving china patterns, our Johnson Brothers’ Wild Turkey china is old, fragile, and…very much discontinued. (One reason why turkey plates are collectibles.)
Spode’s Woodland Turkeys Save Thanksgiving
However, a British manufacturer, Spode, answered the call of so many American hosts in 2004 when they formally introduced the Turkey pattern to their Woodlands china collection alongside the Hunting Dogs, Rabbit, and Big Horn patterns to name a few. Nostalgic, painterly scenes with rich colors framed by the feminine brown floral border make the china very versatile and very apropos for autumn and Thanksgiving tables across the South. The Woodland Turkey pattern comes in 12-piece dinner sets as well as a serving set complete with gravy boat.
Now are you clear on why Spode’s Turkey china is the star of your Thanksgiving table? In short, it’s because Spode is smart enough to keep our Thanksgiving tables set in proper Southern style.
