Vintage Folk Art Chamberstick in Cream Hand Painted

This is a charming vintage chamberstick with real folk art character, the low candle holder with a dished base and looped handle that was made to be carried from room to room by candlelight. It is hand painted on a warm cream ground in a loose, freehand style, with little crosshatch motifs and simple berry and flower clusters picked out in dusky pink, plum and green, and rows of small painted dots trailing along the handle and around the tray. There is nothing fussy or factory finished about it. This is naive, country pottery of the sort made across France, Portugal and Continental Europe, where the painter's own hand is part of the appeal.

It measures 13 x 11 cm, a neat footprint that suits a bedside table, a bathroom shelf, a windowsill or a mantel. The glaze has aged to a soft, characterful crackle that only comes with time, and every mark of the brush is slightly different, so this is a one of a kind piece rather than anything mass produced.

We love a chamberstick for the atmosphere it brings. Slot in a taper and let it flicker through dinner or a long soak in the bath, and off candle duty the little tray earns its keep for rings and earrings by the sink, loose coins in a hallway, or a tiny posy of flowers. Grouped with creamware and other painted folk pieces it brings a warm, romantic, lived in note against pale walls and old timber.

In the interest of honesty there is a small chip to the paint, shown in the photos, along with the gentle wear and crazing you would expect from a piece of this age. To our eye it only adds to the well loved, handmade charm. The handle is sound and comfortable, and it is lovely in use.