Have you ever wondered why snowflakes look so gorgeous? Their shape has always been mysterious, but also impressive to all as we catch them in the air in winter. Well, it seems snowflakes are more than just a meteorological change that happens in the atmosphere. There are many stories about snowflakes and the beauty of their structure.
Two National Geographic’s articles from the beginning of the twentieth century, featuring the real snowflakes’ structure and beauty inspired Mottahedeh to design a totally new dinnerware. Actual micro-photography allowed us to see real snowflakes and we painted them exactly as they are seen in nature.The porcelain shapes are asymmetric and featured as “National Geographic Home Collection”. Each snowflake from this dinnerware collection was originally hand painted in icy tones of blue and silver; fresh, familiar, and modern.
 
All our designs have their own stories, but we also aim to bridge traditional with modern. In our dinnerware offering Snowflake dinnerware is totally different.  Winter months can often be blue and depressing; we’ve made this dinnerware to bring joy and good atmosphere to every interior. Moreover, it is ideal for every occasion - weekday morning coffee & weekend coffee rituals, random settings in the dining room, but Snowflake is also as a great gift. Holiday season is just around the corner, so think Snowflake!
 
The real snowflakes’ structure was discovered back in the 19th century by Mr. Wilson A. Bentley. His two articles about snowflakes were published by National Geographic, one in January 1904 and the other in January 1923. These articles show the extraordinary photography of snowflakes, taken closer than anyone could have imagined at that time. As Mr. Bentley stated within his article published in National Geographic in 1923: “water forms are dependent on temperature”. This fact speaks for itself.
 
It’s not the cold weather that most people dislike; it’s the cold weather that creates extraordinary pieces of nature we can all see, but also feel.
Water drops are just like humans - they either attract or don’t attract each other. These drops are made of water molecules with their two poles, which react to temperature. When it’s too hot, they cannot unite. But, during colder months, they’re drawn together and their poles are fixed. Regarding the molecules of water, we can say that all of them have their own ‘’characters’’. That’s because each molecule has its own arrangement within the crystal, which determines the form of each snowflake and makes it unique.
 
The author mentions dew and hoarfrost as the most beautiful forms of water. Still, there is another one, which is even more beautiful: snow. Snow crystals (snowflakes) are very delicate, especially for filming. The only way it was possible to photograph them at that time was to put the snowflake on a piece of soft black velvet. Gorgeous shapes, lines and forms have proven that the nature does magnificent things. Mr. Bentley had it right when he said that snow is the treasure which is absolutely inexhaustible. An interesting fact is that the natural form of water crystal is the triangle, but such forms occur only during very cold temperatures. Instead of the triangle, we can observe the beauty of many irregular forms, each one representing a piece of art. Apart from the pattern used for Mottahedeh snowflake dinnerware, there are limitless others… most of them have irregular forms, but are equally beautiful. Some of them look like a spider web; some are triangles, some are hexagons..
 
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As you can see, there are different shapes painted on Mottahedeh dinnerware featuring the snowflakes. What makes this pattern different from the others is a fact that each part is originally hand painted instead of having it printed. The knowledge of the snowflake’s structure in combination with hand painted shapes gives additional value to this unique collection.
Beautiful snowflakes can be seen on a dinner plate, cereal bowl, vegetable bowl, dessert, bread & butter plate or demitasse cup and saucer; but also on inevitable snowflake mug.
 
Bring the elegance to your home inspired by National Geographic and crafted by Mottahedeh. Let’s welcome cold months and holidays with the modern, fresh as Snowflake pattern. All items are available at our online store.