Collecting Sets

I am a collector. I love "sets"! Although an olio of one offs can be a sublime decor, I prefer displays of sets. I think maybe it is because you can spend some time and be thoughtful with each group, rather than just be over run by object after object after object. Does that make sense? In a way, it is making your space like an onion. If someone wants they can look at it as a bulb, but if they prefer they can peel away the layers to reveal more. Whereas if nothing goes with anything else they are just simply looking at a pile of minced.

Anyway, I also love nostalgia so I was so happy when my mother discovered these wonderful old spices in my grandmothers kitchen. FYI, if this is what your spice cabinet looks like naturally, you need to throw out and start over because you are seasoning your food with old bits of plant dust at this point. Actually, don't throw them out, but repurpose them into a fun nostalgic vignette in your kitchen. That's what I did with my grandmothers, and I think the addition of the Commemorative Andy Warhol soup cans really turns it into quite the little display asking the question "Art/Food, Food/Art?"

So the next time you are out at the goodwill store or down the street at a garage sale, consider buying all of the egg plates or ceramic vegetables or salt and pepper shakers rather than just one. They will be so much more dynamic as a team on display than as a lonely single.