|
|
|||||
| |Gien France | |Laure Japy | |More Porcelain Brands | |Registry | ||
|
Product Information |
|
|
Product
Quality & Colors Every effort has been made to display colors as accurately as possible. As the colors you see depend on your browser and monitor setting, we cannot guarantee that the display on your monitor will be identical with the original product's colors. |
|
|
What is Faience? Faience is made of porous glazed pastes. These pastes are made up of various earthenware clays, depending on the use of the final product. That is why Faience is also called earthenware. In Gien, a very fine textured white paste is used for the faience which is dense, resonant and covered in a transparent glaze, as brilliant as a crystal. The quality grade is called "Fine Faience"
For centuries
faience has been appreciated for its warm colors and the variety of its
shapes. This makes many different decorative techniques and styles
possible. Vivid colors and designs as well as the warm touch of the surface are a characteristic of Faience, because of the low required firing temperature. When fired the glaze produces an opaque, white surface.
Earthenware is a form of
ceramics that sometimes has small dimples or pits that are unavoidable,
though not all pieces have it. These are not considered flaws but are a
normal result of the artisan production methods of Faience. |
|
|
Special characteristics of Gien Faience A special characteristic of Gien Faience is the "spots" on the underside of all plates and flat serving pieces. They come from firing the flat pieces on so-called ladders, a rack that holds 10 plates or a few flat platters. The advantage is that the rims on the bottom of the pieces are glazed, therefore smooth. They won't scratch your table or other plates easily. Porcelaine plates, on the other hand, usually have an unglazed bottom rim, on which they sit while being fired (instead of the "spots"). The "spots" are not a fault at all, rather you can tell the true Gien faience from it. |
|
|
What is Porcelain? Porcelain is a hard ceramic substance made by heating at high temperature selected and refined materials often including clay in the form of kaolin. This high temperature firing results in the toughness and durability, high strength and resistance to thermal shock, whiteness, and translucence of porcelain associated with French Limoges porcelain. Porcelain is very durable and chip resistant. The white ceramics and minerals are fired at high kiln temperatures, and make porcelain ideal for fine dinnerware. |
|
|
Artistic Creation of Gien Faience
The Artistic Creation
Department is at the heart of Gien. It comes up with new designs and looks
for inspiration in the painted archives of the 19th Century styles to
remake historic pieces. Some of the most talented designers develop its
collections.
'Coup de Coeur'
services to fall in love with: an ideal gift. This range includes coffee
and tea services, dessert sets, breakfast sets, with a wide variety of
items and many shapes and styles. |
|
|
Gien
Faience History Please click on this page: Gien Faience History |
|
|
Historical Gien Marks From 1822 to the present - See them here
|