Red Ribbed Vase With Bow

Deep vertical ribbing runs the full height of this decorative vessel, giving it a fluted, almost pleated profile that breaks up light and shadow as you walk past it. Sitting against the body is a sculpted ribbon bow, modelled with soft folds and trailing tails, which turns an otherwise plain silhouette into something that reads as a wrapped gift rather than a container. It belongs on a mantelpiece, a hallway console or a dressing table, and it works as the present itself as readily as it does as decoration. Dried stems, grasses and pampas suit the ribbed body, and it stands up perfectly well empty as a small piece of sculpture. Makers tend to reach for pieces like this around Christmas, birthdays and Valentine's, when a handmade decorative object beats another shop-bought candle. Scale the same shape up for a floor-standing version, or down for a group of smaller ones along a shelf.