Everyday Objects : Vintage Napkins

With a visit from one of my sisters-in-law and her family, last xmas was the first time in years that there was more than just the five of us around the festive table. And, as any sane person would, I saw this as reason to spend days hours trawling Etsy in search of the perfect set of vintage napkins for the occasion. 

At the time I was a little obsessed with a moody colour scheme of greys and blues, with a bright pop of yellow (see this). Not exactly festive but...well, I have no answer. 

The napkins of awesome above - in all their polka-dotty, daisy goodness - are from Ligonberries and Moss. The slightly more subdued floral numbers below are from Retro Rubbish, an Etsy shop that never fails to tempt me with it's fun retro loveliness.

*******

Everyday Objects is all about celebrating the design in our day to day lives.  Recognising those little things that bring a bit of happiness to our day through beautiful, thoughtful design or by reminding us of happy times gone by.  See all the posts here.

Everyday Objects : Iittala Teema Dinnerware

Iittala is a Finnish company that creates 'essential objects that are made to enrich people's everyday lives'.  They are all about design that is functional, timeless and striking.  A perfect match for the Everyday Objects series, yes?  

When my husband-who-was-not-then-my-husband and I first moved in together we were really starting from scratch.  I had enough mismatched, cheap and a little bit nasty stuff to get us going but that really wasn't going to cut it in the long term.  But we got a massive head start when my lovely parents-in-law gifted us a stack of Iittala Teema dinnerware.  

The gift meant (and still means) so much to me - it was a sign of acceptance, a welcoming. And the choice of Iitalla was so utterly perfect.  In my design naivety I hadn't yet heard of Iittala but the pared back design, clean lines, bright colours and straight up usefulness really set my heart a flutter.  

Teema was designed by Kaj Frank (another name I hadn't heard of then, but who is now a firm design favourite) in 1952 and is based around three basic shapes - circle, square and rectangle.  It comes in a range of totally awesome mix and match colours.  And it's built to last - we still have that original set of plates and even though we use them day in day out they still look fabulous.

*The keen eyed will know that those stripey little bowls are not part of the Teema collection.  They're actually from Origo, designed by Alfredo Haberli in 1999.

*******

Everyday Objects is all about celebrating the design in our day to day lives.  Recognising those little things that bring a bit of happiness to our day through beautiful, thoughtful design or by reminding us of happy times gone by.  See all the posts here.

Everyday Objects : Vintage Cactus Glasses

I'm not a hoarder, but I'm by no means a minimalist either.  I do like having things, but they need to be carefully selected things.  Over the years my husband and I have built up a nice collection of everyday objects, things that we use day in day out but that speak to us in some way.  

Be they tacky or beautiful, simply styled or elaborately decorated, each of these things that we own have something delightful about them - a link to a fond travel memory, a handmade touch, thoughts of family or friends, classic design, vintage quirk or maybe just being perfectly designed to match a specific purpose.  

And I think we should all celebrate and enjoy the elements of design in our day to day lives.  Maybe you have a special cup for your tea each morning?  Or perhaps a crochet blanket made by your Nana that you snuggle under each night?  Yes, these are just 'things', but I think these small objects bring a little bit of happiness in to our lives when we use them each day.  

So, with that rather long winded and somewhat high reaching introduction, welcome to the first 'everyday objects' post on Good Things*!  Some of the objects I'm going to share with you have a story, some don't.  These vintage cactus glasses don't, but they are possibly my most favourite glasses ever, and I feel quite privileged to have them in my cupboard.

I first spied them in Mahleewan's fabulous Etsy shop Retro Rubbish whilst I was on a rather obsessive hunt for some vintage yellow napkins.  It was love at first sight, international shipping and all.

I've since learned that these glasses were given away by a chain of Arizona based gas stations in the 1950s and 1960s (read more here).  And (oh dear!) that apparently there is a matching pitcher, and a juice set, and dinnerware all with a cactus theme.  All of which I think I might need to track down...