My Method For Displaying White Ironstone

   

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Are you a lover of white ironstone, but have a hard time displaying it in your home? I do, and I am about to tell you why, and how even I could have a nice display in my home.

White ironstone is a favorite of mine. I have always had solid white dishes. Somehow even as a young bride I knew that all white dishes were the way to go.

In this very house I had originally planned on adding a plate rail around my eating area displaying different sizes of white ironstone pitchers. 

A nice display of varied styles and different shades of whites like my friend Jennifer from Town and Country blog has displayed in her charming kitchen, in the above image.

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 That never happened but I still have all white dishes, and they are displayed inside my cupboards.

Once in awhile I run across an image that makes me want to have shelves of ironstone displayed.

I am a bit of a neat-nik so I truly can’t live with a lot of stuff in view. That is why I have never done a plate rail in my home to display pitchers.

However, there is a way to have a neat, and orderly display, and I have a few images that show what I might be able to live with.

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I realize how much is enough is always going to be subjective. 

Today I am talking about how to display things in an easy flowing manner that makes sense, and does not look cluttered, or busy. 

An arrangement where your eye will flow easily from shelf to shelf.

Varied shapes, textures and shades of white will keep it interesting.

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The varied color of whites keeps this arrangement interesting. My eye flows easily from one piece to the next. The shelf looks interesting and orderly.

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This is one of my favorite displays. I love the mix of the baskets adding texture to the whole display. 

My eye easily moves from one shelf to the next. Never stopping, or jolting from one piece to the next. I actually think I could live with this display.

DON'T MAKE THIS MISTAKE:

Sometimes I think we can make a mistake of thinking just because it is all white we can just keep adding, and adding to the shelves.

Even when using all the same color, or type of element you should remain mindful of editing.

Below is an image that  is a bit cluttered and it appears to have no rhyme, or reason to how it was displayed. 

I would imagine the homeowner was trying to achieve a collected over time look, but a little editing would have been welcomed here, IMHO……….

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(way to much going on in this display)

When viewing the above image my eye has to stop to try and comprehend exactly what is on the shelves and then it brings forth a question of…… What am I looking at and why did they put it on this shelf. 

These are questions that one should never have to ask when viewing any display in our home.

Here is a very small shelf and the ironstone is displayed in a manner that the eye flows easily from one shelf to the other.

Notice how your eye just wanders easily from shelf to shelf. That Is what I call visually flowing.

Tips to Remember:

• The eye should flow easily over the entire display.
• Vary the shades of white in your ironstone to keep it interesting.
• There should be highs and lows from one item to the next.
• Don’t crowd the pieces
• Start the display by placing the largest items first.
• Place smaller items to add dimension  and depth to the display.

I hope this helps you look at displaying ironstone a little differently.

Even if you are a more is more person, you still need to keep in mind there always needs to be a flow to your display.

For those of you who are like me, big is better less is more, we still can have a nice display as long as we keep it very well edited.

There is always a way and a method for everyone in design, just remember to ……

“Enjoy the Process!”