Can I put antique blue plates in the dishwasher?

Keep them out of the dishwasher entirely. Harsh detergents and rapid heat changes will strip the glaze. Wash by hand in warm soapy water. A soft cloth is all you need.

I have noticed that some of my older platters have a distinct blue tint in the white areas, while others are purely white. Why does this happen?

That tint comes from the glaze formulation. Many factories added a tiny amount of cobalt to the clear overglaze to make the white background appear brighter and mask any yellow tones in the clay. You see this often on pearlware from the late eighteenth century. When the glaze pools in the crevices around the foot rim, the blue colour becomes much more obvious.

What removes brown stains from crazing?

Brown staining happens when fats and oils seep into the crazed glaze over decades. It's stubborn but can sometimes be drawn out. Some restorers soak the piece in a diluted hydrogen peroxide solution. It takes time and should be done carefully to avoid damaging the ceramic body.

When looking at old printed bowls, the pattern sometimes doesn't line up at the seams and looks a bit messy. Does this mean it was a factory second?

Not at all. Transfer printing a flat tissue paper design onto a curved bowl is difficult work. The workers had to cut the paper and overlap the edges to make it fit the shape. Slight mismatches at the seams are standard for early printed wares. They were produced quickly for a mass market, so the transferrers worked at speed rather than aiming for precision.

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Antique Blue and White from the 18th Century

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Antique blue and white encompasses a vast range of domestic ceramics decorated with cobalt oxide under a clear glaze, originally developed in China and later mass-produced in Europe for dining and display.