A delightful hobby is collecting Royal Albert China.

Royal Albert China has been sold and collected around the world for over 100 years. The Dinnerware line is extensive from plain to fancy, with gold or platinum trim.  The Series items are a named category with choices of 4 - 12 items in different styles, sizes and shapes. Popular examples of Series include, Flower of the Month in 3 diff. styles, Friendship in 3 diff. styles Springtime and Summertime, and Provincial Flowers all in 12 choices. Most of the other Series are sets of 6.   Of course there are hundreds of Separate or Unique Cups and Saucers.  In addition there are beautiful Mugs some match Cups & Saucers.  The Giftware line includes some items from major dinnerware patterns, like Old Country Roses.  Elegant china you can enjoy owning or giving as gifts to special friends or family.  An opportunity through e-bay for you to learn, share and study and meet fellow collectors from as far away as you can imagine.  I am including some photos to please your fancy.  A fellow collector in Australia has presented a Guide on Old Country Roses, believed to be the largest China selling pattern in the world.  Whether you like individual Cups & Saucers, Mugs, or Giftware or wanting to put together a luncheon or dinner set, you will enjoy the experience. If you like to have Tea parties your Royal Albert collection would be a big hit.   The challenge now a days is finding Royal Albert Made in England.  Royal Doulton, the Parent company has been sold in 2005, and the newer items are being made in China, Indonesia,  Thailand and Japan. 

Tips for ebay buyers of Royal Albert!!! Don't hesitate to ask questions of the sellers. Example:  What size is the item? Is it a white ground or a pastel?  Some photos are deceiving.   Some items were made in several sizes.

What is on the backstamp/logo? A date is not always accurate information.  It may say 1962, but the item could have been made for 20 years or more  and have diff. backstamps.  

What is the postal charge?  If higher that you think it should be, ask them to recalculate, or see if they are charging extra fees for professional packing and shipping.

Look at the Seller feedback.  Example:  Noted a recent seller had been terminated by ebay even though they had over 1,500 sales of positive feedback, but the most recent had many bad reports.  In such cases, the Sellers may have gone out of business and left buyers without their purchases and no recource.

Hope these hints are helpful, so that you can have pleasant and positive experiences with your transactions.

My Royal Albert Guides 2 and 3 are in process and will include more information on the 12 most popular Dinnerware patterns sold Worldwide. Guides 4 and 5 will include the most popular of the Series patterns, and Guide 5 will include some of the popular giftware items.

My Book  A COLLECTOR'S GUIDE TO ROYAL ALBERT CHINA is listed on ebay.

Thank you for your interest and happy collecting.