Before my husband and I got married 20 years ago, my mother and I were on a quest--with a budget, of course--to find dishes for our new household. I had given up on those rose dishes by then, and instead decided I wanted to have a "fruit" inspired kitchen (not literally fruit, but a take off of the "fruit of the Spirit" as is found in Galatians 5: 22-23 " But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law."--depicting what someone who has put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus should be like). I thought green backgrounds with bright fruit could always be fresh and pretty in a kitchen not to mention easily updated and enhanced. At the time I couldn't find a set of dishes to fit this theme...and expensive china was out of the question. So, Mom and I decided on a rather utilitarian set of ivory "stoneware" looking dishes that were very economical and practical and would go with my fruit theme along with green glasses and fruit napkins. I had hoped to replace them within a few years--perhaps if I broke a few I would NEED to replace them...but, alas, they have been durable and faithful all of these years through kids and moves and mishaps and klutzy moments. I would dream of china and see fruit patterns by Lenox and others and sigh at their beauty and despair at their prices. Some "everyday" fruit dishes have come out by Corelle, but they just never "spoke" to me.
I confess, however, that through the years, although I have greatly enjoyed my fruit theme, I have always had a heavy tug towards roses and have SO enjoyed the rose trend over the last many years. There are just so many pretty rose china patterns out there that I have seen in magazines and in other people's kitchens. *sigh*
Well, the day before yesterday Mom and I were at a thrift store and I saw these...
There are two plates of each size--the larger plates were $1 each and the smaller were $.50 each! How could I resist? I tried not to do a little jig right here at the thrift shop for excitement. They are in perfect condition, and I bought all four. 
As you know, I already have a teacup and saucer and dessert plate in the Old Country Roses pattern (as well as a mug from which I'm drinking tea right now) and teacup and saucer in the "Ruby Lace" pattern. Now, I say this is a "delightful" discovery because the thought occurred to me that fruit or no fruit I could be on a very thrifty and only budget-friendly quest to find more of these plates, one-by-one if necessary, to build up a set of dinner and dessert plates via thrift shopping or on Ebay or garage sales and the like. I don't need all of the extras, but a set of these for company would truly be a dream...a dream come true. 
