Collecting Porcelain Boxes

I love little porcelain boxes. They are miniature works of art. Not only that, but they are useful, too.

They are great for holding all sorts of little odds and ends.

I've been collecting them for quite a while and had them stored in a box in my loft. I have been doing some organizing up there and Hubby suggested that if I didn't use what I had

hoarded saved, it had to go.

So naturally I had to find a use for them!

I find them everywhere for just a couple of dollars; thrift stores, garage sales, and vintage shops.

Placed on top of a vintage piece of needlework or a pretty plate or tray, they are sweet and charming.

I have found a wonderful use for them besides holding paper clips or sewing pins.

Do you hate throwing out all that lotion that you can't get out of the bottom of the pump bottles? Do you hate the looks of the jars that your face creams comes packaged in?

You can use these small porcelain boxes or pretty jars to pot up your leftover lotions and face creams! You won't mind leaving them out in plain sight.

Just cut the plastic lotion bottles with a serrated knife to get started, then cut around with a pair of scissors to get the leftover lotion out.

Then use a rubber spatula to scoop out the lotion into your favorite jar.

This little beauty with hand painted violets is made of polished alabaster with a hinged lid.

It looks so sweet on the decoupaged tray that I made from a pretty napkin. I keep this tray on my bedside table. 

I filled this darling heart shaped box to go in the upstairs bath.

It has a blooming lily pad with a long legged egret and pink cherry blossoms. Vintage Love.

This unusually shaped one is a lotus blossom. I filled it with lotion to keep by my kitchen sink. It's so much prettier than a plastic lotion bottle.

This tiny heart shaped charmer is hand painted and rimmed with 14 karat gold. The tiny plate is the perfect size for this little vintage heart. I keep my rich night cream inside and keep it on my vanity. This is one of my favorites.

This little trio all have similar colors of poppy orange, yellow, and mossy green. One is actually an orphaned sugar bowl.

I filled them with tiny kitchen odds and ends. The sugar bowl holds butter mints (which I love, but have to hide from my candy stealing Hubby). Shhhhhh! The other two boxes hold birthday candles and candle holders which would otherwise be lost in the pantry or a drawer.

They perfectly coordinate with my soup tureen in my kitchen queen cupboard.

The soup tureen was a gift from my Dear Mother who passed away last year. It has unusual colors and finding coordinating china has always been difficult. When I found that sweet little sugar bowl, I knew it would be perfect.

I love collecting these tiny treasures. They are small, useful, and beautiful.

What do you collect?