For a few years during my childhood, we stayed in a remote place 40 kilometers away from Gulbarga, in northern Karnataka. The only outing was a trip t the city once a month. And during the monsoon, the rains ruined even that as the water flowed well above the bridge across Kagna river, thereby disrupting all means of transportation to the city from surrounding villages.

One of the reasons my brother and I loved going to Gulbarga was a chance to eat at Kamat restaurant. I fondly remember tea being served in pristine white cups, with no frills or fancy designs.  We have come a long way, but my memory of good bone china always go back to those humble beginnings.

A few weeks back, when we dined at Pondicherry at this restaurant called Cinnamon (you should check it out if you happen to be there - delicious food with an unbeatable home-made taste), chai was served in round-base clear white tea cups. And my love for the tea cups rekindled. Coincidentally, I found similar designs on the racks of Home Town and wasted no time in getting some home. I have to admit that I’ve never seen the kind all these years at any retain outlets as there are common only with commercial establishments. It turned out the ones I picked up at Home Town are made by Jaipur Ceramics, and they have a impressive product portfolio.

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Discovering Rekha Goyal, a ceramic artist based in Mumbai, happened by accident. And I’m glad I did because her work is a treat to one’s eyes. When objects of everyday use take a different form through creative uses of shape, texture and color, what you get are lovely creations such as these.

Wouldn’t you love to pour water from this jug?

Wouldn’t it be nice if such items were retailed widely? We need a bigger platform for eco-friendly products.

If you are a pottery and ceramic art lover, then do hop over to Studio Karva by Rashi Jain. A former student of The Golden Bridge Pottery, Pondicherry, she has some interesting posts on firing clay.

Images:

Rekha Goyal

Before we get to the wooden collections from Jin Kuramoto Studio, let me tell you how I got there.  I have two identical terra cotta pots with an interesting shape waiting to be painted and planted. I got it on my trip to Mahabalipuram; so they’ve been sitting in my balcony for over a month. I can’t settle on a design/color for the pots, and am constantly looking for fresh ideas. While scouting for modern patterns, I discovered materialicious.  According to the folks who run the site, “materialicious™ (”shelter, materials and objects”) is a user-submitted visual curation site featuring modern architecture and design, craftsmanship, materials and products.” True to every word. You can’t get your eyes off the page once you start browsing, and before you realise you’ve spent enough time wasting looking at the stunners.

Now, materialicious is what led me to  Jin Kuramoto Studio. The wooden tea sets and mirrors in striking, contrasting, and complementary colors leaves a lasting impression. It’s easier to reproduce the same effect with planters. I need not delve further into the effect it would bring into one’s garden.  The traditional wooden tea sets in subdued earthen colors with simple stripes is unique too.

Striped planters

Consider growing a herb garden in the smaller ones by placing them on your kitchen windowsill.

For dark, bright colored planters

Black absorbs heat and can be harmful for the plants during the summer months. Go for a little lighter shade while retaining the effect.

White rules

When you’ve run out of ideas, a easy fallback option is a white planter. - you can never go wrong with this one. Give it a little texture, group a couple of them in different shapes in a corner, and you have a winner.

While we’re on the topic of painting planters, I feel compelled to share how discarded cups were transformed into eye-catching reusable pieces with a little design on them. And, if those designs happen to be characters from Alice in Wonderland, can one resist?

Alice in Wonderland ceramic cups

Images:

1.2.3. - Jin Kuramoto

4 - Dagens Design

If there’s one thing that makes serving lunch/dinner fun when you have guests over, it’s the bright ceramics. I love elegant porcelain in solid colors with minimal detailing/design. Not too fond of the Corelle range - the dinnerware is too bland in its white (Thank God! they have some colors now).

True to my taste, I loved the ceramic collection from Mud Australia. The photography is enticing too appealing to all my sense Take a look and you’ll know what I mean.

Flare Bowls

Pebble bowls

Platters

Cups

Image courtesy:

Mud Australia