Revered by chefs and cooks everywhere and coveted by those of us that love the look of an old world French kitchen, the copper pot is basking in cookware popularity. As we well know trends come and go but decorating kitchens with copper pots always manages to cling on.
Estate sales, auctions, antique/flea malls, and yard sales are all wonderful places to start looking for your copper pot collection. You might find pieces that are heavily soiled or tarnished. If you like patina you can leave them unpolished. If you like a shine on your copper pots don't fret, there are ways to have them gleaming again.
Just a reminder that collecting copper pots for decor is different than buying them to cook with.We will go into that later in the post.
If you want to create an old world French kitchen, copper pots are a must. By all means go treasure hunting! It's fun!!
via Pinterest ....Chateau de Fleury la Foret
The warmth of copper pots instantly gives your kitchen an old world French feel. They double as beautiful eye candy as well as functional cookware.
via Pinterest
Copper pots and pans heat very quickly and evenly which is why they are the cookware of choice for most great chefs. Here in this French kitchen they are hung from rods on various surfaces.
via Pinterest
Copper does have one major drawback - it reacts with acidic foods. An intact lining on your copper pots are important because many foods are acidic and that corrodes copper, producing toxic byproducts. Copper pots made before World War II are more than likely lined in tin. If you are going to cook with your vintage finds, they must be lined with a non-reactive metal such as stainless steel or tin.
Philippe Louzon Photography
If you have picked up a great pot or pan for your French kitchen while treasure hunting and intend it for cooking purposes how do you determine if it’s food-safe? Make sure no copper can be seen coming through the inside bottom of you pot. You MUST have it retinned before you cook with it.
Good copper cookware can set you back some $$$$. Getting some antique copper pots retinned might be the answer as it is a bit cheaper.
If the copper pots look too new for your old world French kitchen there is a chance they have been lacquered. Decorate with them, however the lacquer needs to be removed before you attempt to cook with them. I think the acetone in fingernail polish remover will remove lacquer if you want to test it in an inconspicuous place on the pot. Google it and I am sure you will find an answer.
If you are only decorating a French kitchen with a copper pot collection, enjoy and don't worry!
Don't forget baskets look great with copper pots when decorating in French style.
via Pinterest
In an authentic French kitchen you will find useful pieces like copper pots, molds, and rolling pins on display by hanging or stacked on wall shelves. The room is suppose to look down to earth. This is what gives French decor that certain je ne sais quoi!
Collections of copper pots are also commonly hung over the stove like in this kitchen by designer Axel Vervoodt.
Photo by Susan Serra
A lovely collection of vintage copper pots dents and all. So what! These pit marks come with age. A rustic French kitchen should not look perfect anyway. It is that effortless elegance that draws us to the look in the first place!
While copper looks fabulous with any color, blue seems to be it's proverbial "match made in Heaven."
houseandgarden.co.uk
Vintage copper pots are a compliment to many decor styles from French, English, shabby chic, farmhouse, to even contemporary kitchens.
countryliving.com
lameredelamule.canalblog.com
Vintage copper pots are a compliment to many decor styles from French, English, shabby chic, farmhouse, to even contemporary kitchens.
There are several ways to polish your copper pots. Some use salt and half a lemon, some salt and vinegar.....but always with a soft cloth. I am sure there are a plethora of ways to be found on Pinterest. Find the one that suits you. Isn't this French kitchen fabulous? I love the verdure tapestry on the chairs!
With the "metallic look" being on trend today, a display of your copper pot collection will keep you trendy without having to compromise your French/old world kitchen preference.
Copper pots add extra warmth as well as elegance and charm to a French kitchen. Find interesting ways to hang them. If you have noticed many times wooden shelving is used for storage with hooks underneath for suspending them on.
The warm gleam produced by copper makes a collection of pots and pans a much admired perennial favorite for decorating the old world or French style kitchen.
chezpluie.com
A lovely old world kitchen complete with copper pots by Belgian designer Walda Pairon.
or alot, you can see from both these pictures of beautiful old world kitchens that it works regardless of size!
Photographer Julie Kertesz Photo by Julie70 on flicker
If you like the look old world/French kitchens you might like this post as well.
https://eyefordesignlfd.blogspot.com/2013/08/french-kitchens-keep-them-authenic.html
https://eyefordesignlfd.blogspot.com/2013/08/french-kitchens-keep-them-authenic.html
Click here to see the previous post
This blog post was published by Lisa Farmer
