Last week when I was in New York City, I went to Grand Central Terminal to buy a pint of vanilla extract at the Penzey's store (Penzey's recently opened two stores in the DC area, but they are a little out of my way so I don't get to them often). After I entered Grand Central, a circus-like store window of crazy colors and disco balls immediately caught my eye. I had to go in and check it out.The store was Pylones, a mind-boggling wonderland of whimsical housewares, office supplies, and kitchen items. In other words, a store full of stuff that no one needs. My kind of place!
In a remarkable exercise of self-restraint, I was able to limit myself to purchasing only two items. For some reason, I have a weakness for sugar dispensers. I purchased a black and white Tumble Sugar Pot and a glow-in-the-dark skeleton motif Sugar Pot. The skeleton one is borderline absurd, which is why I absolutely love it. Plus, I've always loved that European style of sugar pot; it's like the ones they use at The Carlyle restaurant in Shirlington.
These two acquisitions round out my already fulsome collection of sugar dispensers that I've amassed over the years, including (in clockwise order from the upper left, below) an Alessi Gino Zuccino sugar castor, a Koziol Lisa sugar bowl (it matches with my Mona milk jug -- get it?... Mona Lisa!), a Ritzenhoff Ipanema sugar sprinkler, a Ritzenhoff Sweety sweetener dispenser (meant to dispense the artificial sweetener tablets they use in Europe through the clown's mouth), and a Guzzini Feeling sugar doser. The Guzzini is the only one I actually use in my kitchen on a regular basis. The design is genius -- it dispenses exactly one teaspoon of sugar each time it's turned upside down.
I've already got my eye on a new sugar bowl Alessi came out with this year as part of their ongoing collaboration with the National Palace Museum of Taiwan... Sigh, I don't think my collection will ever be complete!
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