Roses..in May?

Well, Royal Albert's "Moonlight Rose" pattern, anyway. ;-)

I was having breakfast this morning with it and I was really struck by how pretty it is. I'm still surprised it was discontinued (Why, Royal Albert, WHY?). I just love blue and white, and this is one of the few patterns in my humble opinion, that can pull off such an abundance of gold trim:

Die-hard "Old Country Roses" enthusiasts would disagree with me, and I will admit, the gold does match better with the warmer tones of OCR. But, I think it's a good compliment to the blue and white and cool colors as well. Which normally doesn't look all that great with gold, if we are being honest...

 I think what attracts me to Royal Albert is the aesthetics of the pieces themselves; the "Montrose style" round curves and elegant handles, it's all very pleasing. And very British. (Think "Mrs. Potts" and "Chip" from Beauty And The Beast. I believe they were patterned after the Montrose style. ;-) In the past I would have called this style "stuffy" or "fussy," but now, bring on the stuffy and fussy. I love it. 

And look at that little teapot? It's the rare 1 pt. size. I have a bigger teapot from this pattern, but I am partial to this size. It's adorable. Perfect for a breakfast of one.