I've been seeing a lot more black tableware lately and while I'm sure that it will never replace basic white, I'm beginning to wonder if a new trend is on the rise. Today's black dishware is a far cry from the 80s fusion cuisine look. Like the teapot in the lovely photo above, it's being used with traditional shapes, as well as in handmade pieces, for a more modern, sophisticated feel.
For years I've stuck by my white plates for casual and fancier meals alike. I felt that the simple, unembellished disks were the best choice to let the aesthetics of the food come forward. But lately I've been tempted by the dark side. Matte black dishes are my new white and it's a dramatic, exciting shift!
I really enjoy my large black matte platter and how it emphasizes the graphic shapes and colors of my raw dip appetizer. I scatter brilliant pink and red radishes, crisp circles of green cucumber, a pile of tiny carrots on the black surface and plop a stiff goat cheese dip or homemade hummus off on one side. Ravishing!
The black seems to be warmer, more intimate, than white, and more complex. There's something exotic about black tableware, too, especially the handmade ones. I do have a few preferences when it comes to black dishes, however: they have to matte (the shiny glazes are too glitzy and distracting) and never square (rectangle platers are OK.)
It might be intriguing to consider black for your holiday table this year. The dark surface really pops the colors of winter produce, bringing out the glistening crimson of pomegranates and blood-red beets, the deep green of chards and kales, and the vibrant oranges of squash, mandarines and carrots.
Here are a few matte black dishes I've rounded up, from an inexpensive BB&B set to lovely offerings from Heath Ceramics and La Chamba. Pick up a few pieces and explore your dark side!
• First photo is from the fabulous photographer Anna Williams
• Heath Ceramics, $17.00 - 31.50
• Calvin Klein Kohl, $22.00 -155.00
• La Chambra, $11.50 - 54.95
• Calvin Klein Cargo, $12.50 - 150.00
• Paradiso Black, 16-piece set $59.99 at Bed Bath & Beyond
• Remodelista has a nice roundup here.
Related: Kitchen Keeping: How Many Sets of Dishes Do You Own?
(Image: Anna Williams)
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I love that tea pot.
I've been eating off of black dishes since my mother bought a set when I was in high school. I've always thought food looked better on a black plate than a white one. I love that more black dishes are being made. The ones in the fourth picture are lovely.
I have a couple of pieces of Vintage Wedgwood Basalt. It's too expensive and difficult to find for me to get a full set but I do love it for display. Granny Smith apples are gorgeous in a black bowl!
I use large black lacquered trays to display fruit.
In love with the Colombian stuff. Wow.
I have a mixture of solid black and black and red plates and I love them. But if they chip, it's not so nice. Yet it doesn't stop me from continuing to collect them ;)
Basalt dish ware and glazed jet ware were both popular in the 19th century and as in the 1980s, were inspired by Asia. Like these modern versions, however, Victorian black dishes used more classically Western lines.
Just goes to show - what's old is new again!
Black may be a trend but food looks best on white.
Not sure how I feel about only black dishes, maybe a few accent pieces for me.
I have a double set of the Paradiso Black dishes in the last picture that I inherited from my in-laws. They're fine - hey, free dishes! - but honestly, food just looks so much nicer on white plates. Also, the texture of them is a bit too nails-on-a-chalkboard-y for me when the utensils touch them. Someday when I go out and buy my own dishes, I'll go for a lighter color (or white) and a glossier finish.