One person’s giveaway is another person’s treasure.
Recently friends of mine were cleaning out their closets and garage and getting rid of items they no longer needed or wanted. Knowing I had an Etsy shop, they asked if I’d like an enamelware bowl to sell. As soon as I saw it, I knew what it was: a Cathrineholm lotus bowl in avocado and white.
Would I like to have it? Absolutely! But not to sell. During the last decade or so I’ve been searching for Cathrineholm pieces and had only found two, both at a church sale.
One was small and yellow and didn’t fit with my kitchen decor. I sold it for what I considered a pretty good price. Today, however, I would have kept it. My collecting passion for Cathrineholm has grown. The fact that I’m Norwegian probably has something to do with it.
But what or who is Cathrineholm? A woman? No. This paragraph from a post titled “Cathrineholm Collector’s Guide” on the blog Hammer and A Headband by Tara Besore explains:
“If money were no object, I would collect every piece of Cathrineholm lotus pattern enamelware out there! Alas, money (or lack thereof) is a very big object and I can only afford to ogle all the wonderful pieces that can be found on Etsy. For the longest time, I thought Cathrineholm was a person, you know Cathrine Holm – admit it, you did too! Cathrineholm is actually the name of the factory outside of Halden, Norway that produced these iconic enamelware pieces from the mid-1950’s through the late 1960’s. While Cathrineholm manufactured a number of lovely enamelware pieces; the lotus pattern is by far the most recognizable and sought after by collectors. Created by designer Arne Clausen in 1962, this simple design quickly became Cathrineholm’s best selling pattern; which explains why there are so many pieces still floating around today – lucky us!”
Lucky us indeed, and a big thanks to my dear friends who gifted me with this lovely bowl, paired below with the red lasagne pan I found that ignited my Cathrineholm obsession. They’re both weathered with use, but vibrantly beautiful. At least, to the eyes of this collector!
