Sara Cihat

I found Sara Cihat on Craft magazine's blog. She takes old dishware that she finds at thrift shops and gives the pieces new life by reglazing them and refiring them. The result is a funky, fun set of different patterns in bold colors and motifs, with no 2 single items being exactly the same. I think that there's something so fun about having a set of dishware that doesn't match exactly (which is why we ordered different patterns of the china that we picked). You pretty much can't throw a stuffy dinner party if your china doesn't match. And having an astronaut on your plates is pretty much a hand-delivered letter pressed invitation for your dinner guests to dance on the table and swing from the chandeliers. I can't decide if I like the anchor the best or the astronaut.
I also love that her pieces give new life to old pieces- this is the height of sustainable design. Seeing as how fashion and design are so cyclical, it makes perfect sense that you can highlight the great parts of a piece (in this case, the lines of the china), and add an element that makes it modern (the big motifs) while still keeping the item's character. By doing this, you also save that item from ending up in a landfill, and you also consume an item that does not have to be manufactured instead of one that does (I hope that last part makes sense). It reminds me of the piece in Blueprint this month about giving new life to flea market finds. My favorite was a set of re-painted frames in different shades of green (shown below): the lines of the frames are classic and hip, and painting them green adds an element that makes the frames look very modern and fresh. Maybe I'll schedule a trip to the Chelsea flea market next weekend- I'm envisioning a project involving a stencil, a can of spray paint, and a vintage briefcase...