plate installations

from Atique Plate World

from Apartment Therapy

from Harper's Bazaar

from Nina Invorm

from Design Sponge

from Livingetc

from The New York Times

One day, the big empty blue wall in my kitchen will be filled up with plates, inspired by these wonderful installations.

white oak

When I was little, I used to collect great big bouquets of fallen autumn leaves. The plates commissioned by Laura Kaufman remind me of that time. Laura’s marriage ceremony took place under a White Oak tree. Here are the final plates, in use at Laura’s house.

photos of leaves and photo of the final plates are by Laura Kaufman

a is for autumn

Created by the talented Jessica Hische on her Daily Drop Cap blog.

beginnings

There are lots of gleena projects in the beginning stage. To celebrate, I am giving myself (and you) images of flowers from my favorite photographers.

photographs by Anna Williams

photograph by Cindy from Quaint Handmade

photographs by Gentl & Hyers

photograph on the left by Ticklish from a Distance, photograph on the right by Karen Mordechai

photograph by Rolland Bello

endings

Three things ended for me in September: the life of a loved pet, a decade-long relationship, and a long-time place of employment. I've been lighting votives every night for the past few weeks, their comforting light a reminder that endings bring beginnings.

the ukulele orchestra of great britain

click here for some free happiness, in celebration of the end of this crap September... (can I say "crap" on blogger?)

camilla engman

Has anyone else had a rough September? Mine has been one of the toughest months ever. Today I am only looking at things that make me happy, and Camilla Engman's work is exactly that. I am a fan of her "Collections" series, but there is so so much more on her website, camillaengman.com.

From Camilla's bio: "Camilla Engman grew up in a small Swedish town named Trollhättan. This is where she began looking at life from a perspective that most of us see only momentarily, and just a few are able to record."

Camilla's blog is also a treat.

set satisfaction: No. 3

Set includes: butterfly platter in blue, large organic bowl, small organic bowl.

still life saturday with friedamaria

all photographs are from friedamaria.com via decor8

nymphenburg series: model and mold archive

At the Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg's model and mold archive, 30,000 original shapes are stored. Shapes going back hundreds of years, some no longer reproduced regularly, but can be made again by special request. The Nymphenburg craftspeople pull only 15 shapes from a mold before it is discarded. That is incredible to me. I pull over a hundred shapes off my molds, but I don't mind the variation in form that happens as a result of wear on the mold. I welcome the differences.

It's inspiring to see so many molds all in one place, they are so sculptural. I appreciate how much work went into each mold, it takes hours to create a precise one. I have to go for a visit.

All photographs courtesy of Nymphenburg

nymphenburg series:cumberland pattern by joseph zächenberger

In 1765 Joseph Zächenberger, a skillful painter, created the lush Cumberland pattern for Nymphenburg Porcelain Manufacturers. Zächenberger's pattern was meant to replace fresh flowers at table. At the time, fresh flowers were frowned upon as table decorations as they could wilt during the event.

"In his incredibly lush tableware pattern, one finds slightly off-center bouquets enriched by beetles, butterflies, insects, caterpillars, smaller strewn flowers, with larger single flowers decorating the rich gold border. Always in his painting Zächenberger employed the use of strong hues and deep shading to give the flowers a naturalistic vibrancy." ~from moss

Today, painters require up to three weeks to complete a single plate.

All images from Nymphenburg

pippin drysdale

Pippin Drysdale is a ceramic artist living in Western Australia. An exhibit of her work will be on view in Washington DC at the Australian Embassy in February, 2010.

karl blossfeldt treasure trove

An amazing source of Karl Blossfeldt's images reproduced in photogravure, click here.

tasty treat from cannelle et vanille, on a gleena plate

photographs by Aran Goyoaga

The lovely Aran Goyoaga has posted her beautiful photographs (as well as recipe) of a gluten-free chocolate cake on canelle et vanille. In the image on the right, the cake is served on a gleena butterfly plate, with the currants in a small gourd bowl. Thank you, Aran!