Stylised Your Dining Area With These Storied Japanese Porcelain Tableware

The past year has seen most of us spending far more time in our homes than ever. In the strangeness of COVID days, the place we used to call home has become an office, home school, restaurant, gym and entertainment venue.

Prior to this, though, one of the most overlooked parts of the house is probably the dining area. With home-cooked meals and private house parties being the new dining trends, the dining area has truly become our new playground.

Making this space feel extra special is really quite easy. Some leafy potted plant centerpieces add some warmth while a colourful table runner effortlessly elevates the dining ambience. Another great idea would be to use interesting tableware.

For this, let’s head over to the beautiful world of Japanese tableware and get inspired by some styling ideas for your dining table!

Make Your Table Bloom

Flowers always bring about a little burst of summertime happiness but real flowers may be a tad troublesome. Well, the artisans at Atelier Yu must have heard the plea of flower lovers.

They created the most exquisite “Atelier Yu Brilliant Flower” collection so that you can now have beautiful flowers blooming perennially on your table! Dainty flowers in pastel hues adorn these fine porcelain ware, every single piece lovingly hand-painted. The blooms are delicate and graceful, yet at the same time, full of life.

Serve some cut sandwiches or biscuits on the pretty Round Plates, make a soothing pot of tea in the Kutani Teapot and savour the aromatic brew in a matching Kutani Cup and Saucer. This Kutani ware collection definitely elevates your teatime to an indulgent experience.

With a proud history of more than 360 years, the art of Kutani tableware is one of the most famous styles of Japanese ceramics. This traditional pottery, originating from Ishikawa Prefecture, is beloved for its elaborate paintings of landscapes, flowers and birds.

Atelier Yu specialises in authentic Kutani ware, but with a contemporary twist. The traditional colour palette of green, yellow, purple, cyan and red is adapted into softer pastel hues by the female artisans here. Square plates, which do not exist traditionally, are also designed to appeal to younger consumers.

Every piece of Kutani ware tells a story and these floral-themed works of art convey a tale of preserving age-old Japanese traditions through creativity.

Layer Your Tablescape

Just like fashion, our dining table can be an expression of our character and mood. We adorn ourselves with accessories and makeup to feel good. Likewise, a beautifully set table enlivens the dining ambience and makes your guests feel special.

A pretty tablescape is a celebration of food and love. And it can be easily achieved with some simple layering techniques! First off, you need a big base plate that is plain in colour because this acts like the canvas that will frame the plates to be placed on top. You can then layer on two or three plates, with the top-most plate being your feature piece.

Turn your attention to Seikou Kiln from Ishikawa Prefecture for some gorgeous Kutani ware that is perfect as feature plates!

The Blue Peony plate features striking blue peonies against a contrasting yellow background, the Foliage Kutani captivates with a large yellow sycamore leaf, and the auspicious bottle Gourd is supposed to bring good luck for future generations. These are just stunning to look at and would make fantastic conversation pieces.

Seikou Kiln specialises in Ko-Kutani (old Kutani) style pottery that often depicts nature, such as flowers and birds, in lavish and vivid designs. The founders started their kiln about 100 years ago and have stayed true to this traditional craft and techniques ever since.

Even though the designs retain artistic influences from the mid-17th century, this tableware is still as sophisticated and chic today. Kutani ware is indeed a timeless design.

Create a Little World on Your Dining Table

Now that we have got you all excited over table styling, get some wonderful Japanese tableware and try it out yourself. It is about time we treat ourselves to a beautiful tablescape and add a touch of sparkle to our everyday mealtime experience!