Oneida’s new Terrace collection 

Casual dining is the emphasis at the Tabletop Show here this week, exemplified by durable materials, new configurations and shapes, trend-right colors and tone-on-tone textured patterns.

Oneida launched Terrace, a mixed-media outdoor living collection comprised of melamine dinnerware in a banded, solid-color palette, complemented by plastic-handled flatware. “We’re trying to tap into the trend of outdoor living,” with high quality product,” said Ross Patterson, business director, tabletop, for Robinson Home Products. “No one in the tabletop world of big brands has gone into this [category].” Oneida also stepped into the bone china dinnerware business with a suite of patterns that complement its popular flatware offerings and launched a new buffet dining concept.

Noritake introduced Sandefjord, a blue and white, Scandinavian-influenced dinnerware design; more shades in its textured, tone-on-tone assortment; and a new colorway in Colorwave—a pale gray called slate—that currently is exclusive to Macy’s.

Gibson’s General Store

Gibson highlighted its new Tosca collection of mixed material, cross category dinnerware and serveware inspired by a rustic Italian lifestyle. The company also fine-tuned its large General Store collection, first shown at the International Home + Housewares Show in Chicago last month. General Store is all about mixing and matching elements and materials and spans many product categories. It has a rustic country palette of red, white and tan accented by bright touches of teal.

Creekside glassware by Lenox

Lenox introduced a striking formal pattern accented with gold, called Solar Flare, and several more casual dinnerware patterns, ranging from a geometric, Art Deco-inspired look to several floral designs, all with bold colors. It launched lots of decorative glassware as well as highly textured drinkware in several pastel shades, called Creekside. Lenox also introduced an in-stock monogrammed dinnerware program featuring all the letters from A to Z, in either gold or platinum in two font choices.

Mikasa Gourmet Basics’ Botanical Bird

Lifetime Brands showcased its Store, Stack and Serve concept of dinnerware, a three-piece set comprised of a small (7 ½-inch) dinner plate, mug and bowl in beige, gray or white, designed to stack or nest and be transported easily to table or couch. Lifetime also continued to expand its popular Cheers franchise with more casual dinnerware to complement the drinkware assortment and new interpretations of the original designs on several new shapes. It also offered nearly a dozen new formal dinnerware patterns, many casual dinnerware patterns that offer combinations of textured and matte and shiny finishes, and, in the case of Gourmet Basics by Mikasa, more complex patterns using a blend of techniques such as pad print metallic and wax relief.

Waterford introduced Lismore Pops, the newest iteration of its top crystal pattern, heightened by all new colors (there will be fall and spring color palettes; this show featured the jewel tones of purple, green and blue) as well as modifications of traditional shapes, such as a double old-fashioned with a flared top. Wedgwood introduced Vera Essentials—an open stock assortment—from designer Vera Wang, a contemporary design in either white or slate.

Sandefjord by Noritake

Designer Monique Lhuillier, meanwhile, created Malibu Azure, a slightly more formal look with a border treatment of fine lines in various shades of blue.

At Auratic, Mike Zhao has taken over as president, succeeding Lewis Wong who left the company several weeks ago. Zhao, previously in charge of all overseas shows for Auratic’s parent company, Yong Feng Yuan, will now focus on the U.S. and build the Auratic brand. Auratic introduced Nomad, a textured all-white or all-black dinnerware design made from premium porcelain, which has a very white body and increased durability due to its magnesium content.

Pets deserve dinnerware and giftware, too. At this show Lenox delved into the pet category with holiday-themed dog bowls, treat canisters and the like, while Royal Doulton introduced Top Dogs, figurines of several different dog breeds in white, seated on a patterned china cushion.

As previously reported, melamine is a hot category at this show, and has captured the notice of two companies with longstanding bone china holiday collections. Spode launched a melamine version of Christmas Tree, and Lenox did so with Holiday.

(Source: hfndigital.com  Author: Allison Zisko)