Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Functional Ceramics for the Kitchen

I like to cook and often find I have a need for another serving platter or other useful utensil in the kitchen. The Triple Serving Dish is just such a piece. It measures 17 x 6 inches and is 2 inches tall. And this dish's glaze rewarded me with a rich variety of colors, red, green, gold and blue.

If I want to serve three different dips at a party or I have a few leftovers but don't have room for three large serving bowls at the table then the Triple Serving Dish comes in real handy. It fits three different food items in a compact space. Often while I'm cooking in the kitchen, I'm thinking of how I will serve a particular type of food. Sometimes I think "I wish I had a serving dish like that". Then I go into the studio and try to create just that type of kitchen ware.


You can't have too many colanders in the kitchen. You probably can't see it but this colander's glaze has some nice crackle to it. Of course colanders are useful to drain pasta. But they are also useful for rinsing fresh vegetables or fruits and displaying them right in the same container. I often carry a colander out to the vegetable garden, pick some of those bite sized tomatoes right off the vine and put them in the colander, rinse them off and leave them right in the colander. Crackle Colander measures 9 inches in diameter and 2.25 inches tall.

I'm already thinking of the next colander I want to make, a smaller one with larger holes at the bottom, maybe an individual size with a tray below to catch the excess water - perhaps a free form shape. Can't wait to work the clay today.


Wouldn't this Grape Leaf Plate be a nice spoon rest on the stove top? Or perhaps to serve some cheese and crackers or maybe a cluster of grapes. If you cook you know, like I do, food tastes better when it is presented well, so I like to use handmade functional ceramics to display my cooking creations. The Grape Leaf Plate is 5 x 6 inches.


How about a dish just for serving biscuits fresh out of the oven? My grandmother would have appreciated this one. She made the best baking powder biscuits I have ever tasted. The beauty of ceramics is that they hold heat well, so if I warm my Biscuit Bowl, the biscuits will stay warm while they are at the table. The Biscuit Bowl measures 11 x 5 and is 2 inches high.

2 comments:

  1. Gorgeous plate! You've been busy lately!

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  2. Thanks Yolanda. Yes, I've spent it-seems-like eons mixing all my glazes and then glazing all my pieces. Still have one or two more loads to go.

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