my latest dish obsession

I know most of us share a love for pretty dishes from ironstone to transfer-ware to delicate china patterns to much, much more. Today I want share my latest dish obsession of Wonki Ware, a handmade dinner table top pottery.

the Wonki Ware scoop

Wonki Ware originated in South Africa where it has been produced for two decades now.  I have shared many of my pieces in tablescapes here on the blog and my collection consisted mostly of serving pieces, bu lately I have also added some place setting pieces too.  

This dinnerware is extremely durable and I love it’s rustic appeal and charm.  It’s called Wonki Ware because no two pieces are alike, from shape to pattern to size, making every piece a little bit wonki.

Wonki Ware in our tablescapes

I also love how it plays nice with my other dishes like my French bistro dinner plates and black transfer-ware accents plates. You can see how it mixes and matches in my lemon inspired tablescape.

I collect the black and gray pieces but Wonki Ware also has a red, green, blue and a beautiful duck egg option.  This beautiful pottery dinnerware is available internationally. We carry it at the store I work at , which you can read about here {working @Whim House}, which only feeds my obsession 🙈.

The different patterns lend themselves to many looks and styles, making them super fun and versatile to use for tablescapes.  Above I used the gray accent plates in my winter tablescape, which had a snow theme.  While in the tablescape below I set the mood transitioning from summer to fall.  You can see more pictures of each table by following the links under the pictures.

There are so many different patterns to choose from; half of the fun is picking which one{s} to bring home.  Many customers at the shop take pictures of the ones they have already purchased when they come in so they don’t duplicate patterns or so they can select complimentary patterns.  The patterns are created by using different laces and fabrics during the production process.

the Wonki Ware process

From start to finish each piece passes through 14 pairs of hands to produce each beautiful dish.  The pottery is high fired and extremely well made.  It is dishwasher safe, microwaveable and oven warming safe.  It’s super durable. I love that it is rustic and refined all at the same time.  I love that I can dress it up or dress it down.  My latest piece was this large round bowl for my birthday and it’s the biggest piece I own.

I will probably use this more as a decorative piece than as a serving dish, but if the needs arises and we ever gather in large groups again I might pull it out to feed a crowd.  Right now I use it on my dining room table as decor, which I shared over the holidays and soon I will dress up for spring.

I love how these pieces look on our table; I love how they look in our curio cabinet; I love how they shine in any vignette.  

We receive a shipment from Wonki Ware all the way from South Africa twice a year at the store.  We should be getting our next shipment sometime this Spring and I will probably add a few more pieces to my collection.  

When I look and see how many pieces we own when amassed all together, I should feel guilty, but the truth of the matter is, I use most pieces all.the.time.

“To be happy you must be your own sunshine.”

C.E. Jerningham

---