Wedgwood Jasperware St. Patrick’s Day tablescape

Today I am setting a table for the quintessential Irish holiday using English pottery. Why not? The matte finish of the green Wedgwood Jasperware adorns the St. Patrick’s Day tablescape with subtlety.

So let me explain. St. Patrick was actually not Irish but rather he was British. This table honors St. Patrick’s roots if you will. At least that’s my story and I am sticking to it. 💚

The history of St. Patrick

St. Patrick was British and was captured by Irish pirates as a teen.  He lived in captivity in Ireland for quite a few years only to escape to France and eventually make it back to Britain.  While he was back home he studied to be a priest and on his own accord he returned to Ireland to establish Christianity. Later in life he served as a bishop.

Saint Patrick became revered as the patron Saint of Ireland. March 17th has been designated as St. Patrick’s day, which is believed to be the day of his death. It is celebrated in and out of Ireland as a religious and cultural holiday.

Pray tell how do I know all this? Believe it or not I learned it while I was helping my son with his homework when he was around nine years old. Sebastian is now twenty years old so clearly the lesson stuck with me.

The history of Wedgwood Jasperware

Jasperware was developed by Josiah Wedgwood in the 1770s in Staffordshire, England. It is known by it’s unglazed matte “biscuit” finish. Although it is produced in several colors, it is best known for it’s pale blue color, which is known as Wedgwood blue. Of course my collection consists of the green Jasperware variety and you can read more about it here {glass cloche vignette – last summer}.

Relief decorations in white, although other colors are used as well, are characteristic of jasperware, giving it a cameo effect. The Jasperware decor is known for its fashionable Neoclassical style.

The exact Wedgwood formula for fabricating Jasperware remains confidential and the pottery is still manufactured to this day. The main difference between the original works and the later pieces is that the original pieces were dyed throughout as opposed to the later pieces, which were just cover on the outside or slipped. These different types are known as “solid” or “dipped”.

The history of a Wedgwood Jasperware St. Patrick’s tablescape

The green color of my Jasperware makes it the perfect foil for St. Patrick’s day decor. And although this Jasperware is not tabletop material, since it’s unglazed, I thought they made the perfect accents for this table.

The Jasperware will not be used to serve any food or to eat from, but simply used as place setting adornments. Some additional pieces are also used for the centerpiece.

As always I added some organic elements with the preserved boxwood wreaths, moss chargers and greenery in the Jasperware vases. The moss chargers I made last year and I love how they turned out. You can read how to make them here {moss chargers DIY}.

The gold accents on the china and the glassware reinforce the pot of gold folklore. I am not quite sure how it ties in with Saint Patrick, but maybe we will leave that for another time {wink}.

The table does not have anything “St. Patrick’s day” specific per se, so this could undoubtaedly be used as a spring table as well. It was a great way to use my green Wedgwood Jasperware collection in a different way.

Since this collection is mainly used as display decor, I have been wanting too use it in a tablescape for awhile now. With the upcoming holiday it was the perfect opportunity to marry the two and create my Wedgwood Jasperware St. Patrick’s day tablescape. All my pieces did not make it onto the table so the rest of them sit on display on the sideboard.

Also while doing the research for this post I found these. How great would these be for the table or any St. Patrick’s Day vignette? A Saint Patrick plate and a clover dish. I love how they are done in opposite color ways.

Hope you enjoyed the Wedgwood and St. Patrick’s day inspiration.

“May your day be touched by a bit of Irish luck, brightened by a song in your heart and warmed by the smiles of the people you love.”

Irish Saying

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