I don’t want to proselytize too much, but these wood burning stoves are fantastic! In a recent conversation with a designer who is planning to build a studio adjacent to her home, I found myself waxing lyrically about the beauty and efficiency of our own Morso stove (we have the little Owl…the 5th image down). The Danish company has been around since 1853, so in my opinion it’s got some cred. These stoves are so efficient, that when used properly there is no smoke coming out of your chimney and virtually no ash left in the stove itself. I was originally looking at some really fancy (read: expensive) stoves, but we couldn’t imagine spending that kind of money on a design for which we were not even that keen. They were lovely, but essentially too cold and hard-edged for our humble little A-Frame. There had to be something else out there that embodied the essence of Scandinavian design, but with some warmth and character. Morso designs run the gamut from very classic Danish court style to ultra modern. And, what’s even better, they use 98% recycled materials in the production of their stoves.

I am often amazed at how much subtle variation exists within a single product. There is obviously an entire industry surrounding the manufacture of these little plastic bag closures. Some friends of mine knew I was forming a little pile of them and presented me with a bag full the other night.

The first Cutler Mail Chute was installed back in 1884 in a building in Rochester, NY. Who knows how many of these are still in active use. I read that in Manhattan and the Bronx alone, there are well over 900 still in operation. Although, as a matter of fire safety, they have been banned in new construction since 1997. Which makes good sense. I suppose. I just love that there was an entire industry devoted to designing, manufacturing and installing these things. And, if you live in a city, you have doubtless seen, or perhaps even used, one of these. I can’t quite describe the thrill of seeing my little envelope hurtling downward into the box on the ground floor!

Yay!!!! Rima Suqi from the NYT wrote a little piece in Thursday’s Home Section about my Tupperware designs. Thanks Rima! Thanks NYT! I hope this gives the containers a little extra street cred. Photos by Richard Gary.

As a testimony to how these Dansk Kobenstyle pots, designed by Jens Quistgaard, have stood the test of time, just spend a few moments on ebay and you will find page after page of them for sale. My mother, always a sucker for bright colors and a huge lover of Scandinavian design — she painted our kitchen cabinets a bright orange when I was eleven — thankfully brought these into our home. If I recall, we had a big red dutch oven, and a low yellow casserole dish. Maybe some others. And a few years ago, in what was billed as one of the best gifts ever, a friend of mine gave me the robins-egg blue dutch oven. The most exciting moment is when you remove the lid and see the creamy white interior, with a thin black line at the edge that tells you what the thing is made of. Oh, and that beautiful lid is not for looks only: it’s the trivet! Finally tracked down this photo in order to give credit where credit is due: blueflowervintage.