The Pillivuyt porcelain factory in the town of Mehun-sur-Yèvre, located between Vierzon and Bourges, has been in business since 1818. It is the oldest and biggest porcelain company in France, I read somewhere. I learned of its existence just before Covid struck, so a trip to see it and the dishes made and sold there got postponed for a few years.
The company has an outlet shop where some of the items are sold by the kilogram. It produces and sells by mail-order both expensive and inexpensive ranges of porcelain kitchen- and tableware.
I found a big white serving bowl that I wanted. It was priced at eight euros a kilo and cost me the princely sum of 18 euros. We didn't linger in the shop but now I know where it is and what it's like, so Walt and I will drive over there one day, after we've decided what kind of dishes we want to buy. The factory is about an hour by car from Saint-Aignan. Here's a link to the Pillivuyt web site.
What fun. They sell Pillivuyt at Williams-Sonoma and a quiet expensive. You are so lucky.
ReplyDeleteMadonna
Nice to hear from you! I read somewhere that the U.S. is one of Pillivuyt's big markets is the United States. I'm looking forward to going back to the outlet store this summer. We have to make a list of the items we want.
DeleteI've been here stalking you.;), I just could not get my comments to go through for some reason. Condolences to you and Walt for the loss of your cat.
DeleteVery interesting. And, I enjoyed yesterday's church photos, too.
ReplyDeleteLooks like fun
ReplyDeleteIt was, and will be when we go back again.
DeleteI would love to look around that place!
ReplyDeleteI remember that place in Burlington NC where we went with Laurie and my mother back in 2009. That one was amazing too.
DeleteWhat a cool place to visit. How fun! Wonder if this is where they make Astier de Villatte? It has that "look."
ReplyDeleteAstier de Villatte is a ceramic manufacturer in Paris. For the look of his production, I’d say it’s a notch above this place here but not as “fine” as Limoges. That’s what we call “vaisselle blanche”. All these places have productions of different quality and prices. I had never heard of buying by weight! Lol!
DeleteIf I go there, it will probably be difficult as I love dishes. Flying or even shipping back to US is very expensive - maybe one small item! My daughter and I visited the Haviland Outlet in Limoges back in 2001. I bought a few plates there. It was fabulous!
ReplyDeleteI didn’t know that establishment existed. It shouldn’t be confused with the Limoges “fine” china. Haviland, that I love, is definitely not sold by weight!
DeleteBut this here is what I’d call rough porcelain. If you’d sit at a café in France and ordered a drink, it probably came in a glass sitting in a porcelain saucer that was probably made in that factory at one point in time. This is an eye opener for me.
My grandmother had Haviland China (I inherited it) and that was how I knew of it. I was disappointed that it is not hand-painted (from the outlet) but nowdays most have decals. The Haviland decals were very good and I had to ask if they were painted or decals as I couldn't identify it for sure. We had planned our itinerary around visiting Limoges. An interesting place and I will return there!
DeleteThere's an interesting comparison of Limoges porcelain (china is another word for porcelain) and others here.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, stainless steel pans and pots are sold by weight by some of the manufacturers in Villedieu-les-Poêles.
ReplyDeleteAnd Pillivuyt items with prices are listed here.