For the last year or two, I’ve had on my shopping list the vague notion of adding some slightly more special tableware. By “slightly more special”, I mean, perhaps, a serving plate in a fun color, shape, or pattern. Or a quaint set of sauce dishes. Or a fun pair of dessert vessels. Just pieces that can be whipped out to elevate whatever food is being served and make the meal more festive.
I haven’t really acted on this desire much — at least not in the way I envisioned (which would be buying something pretty off a pretty site or happening upon something that “speaks to me” in a cute shop while traveling, ha).
But we have had a few nice additions that came with little effort:
Two super cheap but lovely dishes from H Mart — they’re slightly irregularly shaped and really up our banchan game. (Honestly there are a lot of cute and inexpensive dishes and such at Asian supermarkets…I could probably find some things I really love there — but the mundane availability of them makes it a less exciting purchase? 😅)
Small bowls from a dinnerware set given by relatives when we moved — we currently don’t have the space or need for the full 57-piece set but we decided to bring the eight small bowls into our regular roster. Our original intention was to use them as rice bowls, but these also ended up being so nice for serving berries, yogurt, and ice cream. And I love the dark blue and gold lattice border on these — a perfect match for blueberries and definitely a nice change from our usual solids.
Still! A (very relaxed) hunt is on for more spirited tableware. I’ve been gathering a list of brands/sites that I want to keep an eye on1. It’s sort of fun to just keep tabs on the possibilities.
Here’s a look at where and what I’ve been browsing.
Know other promising places I should check out? Please share in the comments ;)
— Jenny
I find this a helpful thing to do when facing ~a lot~ of options but not necessarily a strict deadline. You can take a look whenever there's a spare moment or when the item becomes a bit more of a priority. I'm currently keeping a list of baby clothing sites that look interesting, for example.