Fruit and Decorative Bowls

A bowl is one of the most useful pieces of homeware – holds fruit on a kitchen counter, anchors the centre of a dining table, displays decorative pieces on a sideboard. Our collection covers ceramic, hand-blown glass, marble and brass bowls from leading European designers, in scales from compact tabletop pieces through to substantial centrepiece bowls.

  • Out Of Stock
    Como Disc Urn Turquoise Como Disc Urn Turquoise
    By Jonathan Adler
    £150
  • By Jonathan Adler
    £150
  • By Jonathan Adler
    £150

Not necessarily – the best decorative bowls work as fruit bowls, and vice versa. The trick is choosing a bowl that's substantial enough to hold a generous mound of fruit (40-50cm-plus diameter for a kitchen island or large dining table) without feeling stranded when empty. Smaller bowls work better as decorative centrepieces or for one or two pieces of fruit.

Glazed ceramic, glass and stainless steel are the easiest to clean and don't absorb fruit acids or stains. Marble looks beautiful but stains with citrus over time; choose marble for occasional decorative use rather than daily fruit. Brass and copper develop patina with daily wear, which some buyers prefer and others avoid.

30-40cm diameter for a 6-seater table; 40-50cm for an 8-seater. The bowl should sit low (under 15cm tall) so it doesn't block sight lines across the table during dinner. Centerpieces too tall for the room read as institutional rather than decorative.

Quality bowls hold value and improve the longer they're used – glazed ceramics develop slightly burnished surfaces, brass and copper develop patina, marble takes on small marks that read as character. Mass-market bowls in printed laminate or thin pressed glass tend to chip and dull within a few years. The investment per piece is usually small relative to its life.