new hang up

I'm hung up on my new wall art...which just happens to be my *not new* fish platter. I think it looks great up there, right above my dining table. So much better than being stored away in my china cabinet, which is where it had been residing. When my mom was here a couple of weeks ago we were looking at it, and she suggested hanging it up. We got it up just in time for the party on the 4th. So great to have a deadline like that, something that forces you to rearrange, straighten up, refresh your space.

Here's a close up so you can see the details of the work. I got this MacKenzie-Childs platter on ebay awhile back. It's a piece from an era when the company was still owned and operated by the original artists, Victoria and Richard MacKenzie-Childs. All of the pieces from this time are slightly 'off' a little...meaning, they look like they are made by hand (which they are.) When you stack the plates they are not uniform, they kind of tilt in different directions. Some plates are lighter or heavier than others. The painting on each piece varies. Sometimes the pattern is very light, sometimes it's dark. Sometimes the flowers are little, and sometimes they are BIG! It all depends on who was painting that day. Even this piece...see that vertical line in the middle? It's a little pop that can happen during the firing process. But, I like the flaw. It looks more authentically handmade.

I'll always be a MacKenzie fan and follow what's happening with the company (currently for sale!), and I'll (of course) continue to add to my collection with new pieces. But it's never been the same since Victoria and Richard left. They were the soul of the company. They were (and are) extremely talented yet humble artists who had a vision, and then the passion to bring their dream to life. Their whimsical designs and presentation truly made everything look and feel magical, as if you were stepping into a fairy tale when you entered their world. As if, as an adult, you had somehow reconnected to your childhood and found a way to infuse that kind of innocence and fun into a grown up world. There was no mass production...heck, there wasn't always consistency with the product line from season to season. But there was so much fun in it all. And there was no Made In China.