Meeting Martha: Timeless Wisdom for Your Holiday Table

Martha and I at the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Businesses Summit in Washington DC

Three weeks ago, I had the kind of moment you don't quite expect: I met Martha Stewart.

For a small ceramics studio like ours, just the two of us working in Rhode Island, it felt surreal to stand face-to-face with the woman who literally wrote the book on entertaining. And not just any book: Entertaining, her 1982 debut that launched an empire and changed how Americans think about gathering around the table.

The timing couldn't have been more perfect. Martha's iconic book was just rereleased this month, exactly as it was 43 years ago, same recipes, same photographs, same timeless wisdom. We've been pouring over it ever since, and one quote in particular has stayed with us:

"The table can establish or augment a mood, for it is in fact a stage set and should be so considered."

A stage set. We love that. Because it's true, every element on a table plays a role in creating the atmosphere for a gathering. The plates, the bowls, the serving pieces. The colors, the textures, the way light hits a glaze. It all works together to set the scene.

Personal, Relaxed, Expressive

In Entertaining, Martha describes her philosophy as "personal, relaxed, and expressive." She writes that entertaining "no longer has to be stiff and formal—it can be omelettes served on the lawn, dim sum before the theater, tempura in the kitchen, a boisterous pasta buffet, champagne and desserts at midnight, or a weekend country breakfast."

This resonates deeply with how we approach our work. We've spent a decade refining our craft—our proprietary clay bodies, our glaze formulations, our design sensibility—all in service of creating pieces that feel both refined and approachable. Pieces that work as well for a Tuesday night dinner as they do for Thanksgiving.

Our new glaze collection embodies this philosophy. Each color was developed to set a different mood, to play a different role on your table's "stage." Some feel warm and grounding, others light and fresh. They're designed to be mixed, layered, and styled in ways that feel personal to you.

Food as Decoration

Martha also wrote about using food itself as decoration: "four pears, a pyramid of oranges or lemons, a flowering kale." We think about this often when we're designing—how will this bowl look filled with citrus? How does this plate frame a simple roasted chicken or a handful of figs?

The best tableware doesn't demand attention; it elevates what's on it. Plain plates, as Martha noted in a 1982 interview, let "food stand on its own merits." Our neutral base glazes do exactly that, while our more saturated colors add personality and warmth.

Quince fruit adds a bright chartreuse color pop to the table along it’s intoxicating tropical smell.

Setting Your Holiday Table

As we head into the season of gathering—Thanksgiving, holiday dinners, long evenings with friends—we're thinking about Martha's wisdom and how it translates to the tables we're setting now.

What mood do you want to create? What story do you want your table to tell?

Our new glaze collection is available now, just in time for your holiday gatherings. Whether you're hosting an intimate dinner for four or a boisterous feast for twenty, we hope these pieces help you create the scene you're imagining.

Shop the collection, or visit us during our upcoming studio events.

Myrth is a two-person ceramics studio in Rhode Island, creating handcrafted tableware and serving pieces with proprietary clay bodies and glaze formulations. Every piece is designed, made, and fired in our domestic facility.