Vintage Picnic Sets

Here are a few photos of some of my favourite picnic sets I have sold over the summer. I must admit some have been very hard to part with! The first picture is of the first picnic set I ever sold and probably one of the best ones I have come across. It was made by Brexton with Bandalasta ware and it was in perfect condition. I often wondered if it had been an unsed wedding gift.

The last photo is of a set by Sirram which came complete with a matching folding table. Although not as practical as current day sets, they have been very popular on the market stall - it's their elegance and charm! It's great that so many have survived as the crockery is often made of china but unfortunately the flasks aren't as hardy and many sets don't have the originals. The very early sets were made by Coracle, Ilat, Garrison and would contain a spirit kettle and very early plastic such as Bandalasta bakelite. In the 1950s the main British manufacturers were Sirram, Brexton and Optima. The sets were cased either in wicker hampers or a hard wooden suitcases that were often covered in material. In the very good sets the flasks are covered in the same material to match the suitcase. The crockery in the 50s. 60s, 70s was usually china and the lunch boxes were made of tin or a heavy plastic. Optima is still making picnic sets to this day. I was very lucky to find this Brexton set at a car boot sale today which probably dates from the 1960s.