Polish Pottery Trip to Boleslawiec, Poland

Before moving to Germany, I hadn't really heard about Polish pottery.  Once I came to Germany, I heard plenty.  People, and by people, I mean ladies, are obsessed with this stuff!  I know back in the States that shops that do carry the Polish pottery charge a very hefty price.  And it can be somewhat justified.  Poland is known for its pottery. It is well-made, hand-made, and there are so many designs to choose from. 


Most people find their pattern and fall in love with it.  Others have fun mixing and matching.  Personally, I was not initially interested in Polish pottery.  I thought, what can I do with these old fashion looking items?  But soon you get hooked. 


I took a day trip to Boleslawiec, Poland and spent the day at several different pottery shops that were located in the same general area.  In Poland, there isn't really a middle man jacking up all the prices, so the pottery is significantly cheaper.  And you are going directly to the source, so you have a pick at essentially any design your heart desires. 


I want to show you some of the pieces that I bought for myself.  The first is a coffee cup and plate.  This design, in my opinion is not typical of the pottery designs they have.  It has a forrest theme with a little cottage and tree that I thought was adorable.  How cozy.






I figured, I am most likely not going on another one of these trips (just for pottery at least) so I might as well make a splurge.  I saw this beautiful spice rack with yellow roses and burnt sienna accents.  This wasn't quite a splurge though as the price might have been doubled in the States.  I paid around 40 Euro for it.  It's not vintage, but looks modern day vintage.






The last item that I picked up for myself was at a nearby antique shop in Poland. Of course I had to stop in and check it out.  I ended up buying a light blue enamelware milk jug in pretty decent condition.  I have no idea of the year in which this piece was made.  I would guess maybe the 50's, but please let me know if you have any insight.  I think I am a new enamelware/graniteware fan!






In this antique store there were also some other very "interesting" historical items displayed in the back. 

I did end up buying a lot more Polish pottery than shown, but I will have to wait quite a while to show them because they are gifts!  But I will post them eventually.


Currency in Poland is by the Zloty, so I basically had to take the price in Zloty and divide by 4 for Euros or divide by 3 for the Dollar about and this would give you an estimate of what you were paying.


The next couple of images are of what I could snap with my iPhone.  Piles and piles of pottery and different designs over the span of about 6 different shops.


 
 

 




Bowls, mugs, cups, dog bowls, spoon rests, tea pots, salt and pepper shakers, cooking dishes, take your pick!








Butterdishes, saucers, and bobbles.





They had something for everyone and it was a bit overwhelming to choose between so many options. 


 Beautiful Polish pottery stepping stools.




In Ceramika Henry's Pottery store they had an upstairs.  The place was huge!  One room contained baking dishes for casseroles and such and the  other room was filled with various types of baskets.




The trip was long.  Only 4 hours from where I live, but it was a 6 hour bus ride.  I got everything that I wanted to get for gifts and got to experience what the hype is about. 


For lunch, we did get to experience some Polish food.  I was expecting the Polish comfort foods that my family makes on various family get togethers like pierogies, halusky, and pigeons (which I recently found out was the English way of saying Golabski).  But no, none of these items were on the menu, though my dish was very yummy.


I suspect this is because we were mere kilometers from the German border, so they integrate German foods with Polish foods.  I normally don't eat pork, but since living in Germany, it's practically impossible not to.  The Germans eat more pork than beef by far.  I had pork sirloin stuffed with feta cheese and a gravy sauce, green beans wrapped in bacon and the most amazing rosemary potatoes. 


Though these meals are typical of meals served at lunch in Germany and Poland, I will never get used to eating this amount of food, for lunch or any meal.  But in small doses, this food is amazing.  The waiter jokingly kept asking me why I didn't finish my food.






I do wish that we had time to go view some of Poland outside of pottery, but there just wasn't enough time.  I would love to see some of the sights and learn more about Poland especially since it's not too from where I live.  For now, I will have to say, next time!


Are there any Polish pottery junkies out there?






Linking up at: Savvy Southern Style
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23 comments :

  1. My grandmother is really into it. I like it too. My favorite is blue and yellow.

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  2. I'm not so much into like the traditional polka dot, blue and white stuff, I like the stuff that you don't often see.

    -Brittany Ruth

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  3. Wow! so much great pottery.. I wouldn't know what to loo at first! It all looks so hard to resist...What a great shopping trip!!

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  4. Yes it was almost too much to look at. I get mini panic attacks when I go shopping haha. Thanks for reading!

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  5. What beautiful pottery collection! It would be amazing to have them all! Got you from Serenity Now: Weekend bloggy reading link up.

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  6. Thank you and thanks for stopping by Garden Chef!

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  7. That is an overwhelming show of Polish pottery. I would have never been able to pick out a piece. Love the bright blues. The cup and saucer you chose is very lovely.

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  8. Thanks I love my little cottage cup and sauce. It was indeed overwhelming, especially going to like 7 different stores in one day!

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  9. I love pottery! Thanks for linking up at Assets and Efforts on HickoryTrail

    Angela

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  10. Hi there, Can you give me an idea of how much a dinner plate or a coffee cup costs?? Wondering if it's worth making the trip from Belgium.. or if it would be better to just got to an outlet shop locally.. ?? thanks

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  11. Hi, if you are only looking to pick up a few items I would say go to a nearby outlet, but I will say that with the amount of pottery I purchased (I didn't post them because they are gifts), I saved a lot of money going directly to the Poland outlets, but you also have to factor in gas money. The first picture of a cup and saucer I bought was only like 4 euro on sale. The mugs are about 4-7 euro depending on how fancy they are. They are probably almost double that elsewhere. So my advice overall would be go to Poland if you are wanting to buy a lot of items, but just go local if you only want a few things. Try to make a road trip out of it and see some things in Poland or some things nearby. Hope this helps.

    -Brittany Ruth

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  12. I love going to Poland for Polish pottery! Were you able to find the stores with the discount rooms? I found dinner plates for 3 euro each. It's hard not to go a little crazy when you're there ;)

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    1. Hi Shannnon,

      I did find some of the discount rooms. I also found an antique shop that had very cheap used pottery. I checked out your blog. It looks like we have A LOT in common. Both American expats in Bayern, newlyweds, and travel lovers, amongst other things. I followed your blog!

      -Brittany Ruth

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    2. Thanks! I've really enjoyed reading about your travels-we're going to Greece this summer so it's nice to see what other people did. I think we might actually be in the same place-I saw your post on the fabric store in Parsberg and I'm in there all the time. Small world, right? :)

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    3. Thanks, I followed you too! It's nice to meet someone similar. I think we might actually be in the same part of Bavaria! I saw your post on the Parsberg fabric store and I'm in there all the time. Small world, right? If you need an antiquing partner let me know! :)

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    4. Small world indeed, It's a wonder we haven't run into each other yet.

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    5. Yea awesome, I have a lot of cool places that I like to go to. My husband doesn't like to go with me haha he doesn't like to do any form of "shopping."

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  13. I am from Poland and I must say you surprised me with this post! It's a shame that sometimes we know so little about our own country... Beautiful photos! I must visit that place!

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  14. I'm in love with this pottery painting style. All those dots and flowers- I'm diggin' it ;)

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  15. I emailed this to my mom, she has a beautiful and amazing collection of Polish stoneware, she'll love all your photos. -Dawn

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  16. I would love to know your recommendations for shops in Boleslawiec. I am thinking of making a daytrip on an upcoming trip to Germany. I can't seem to find much online!

    Thanks!

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  17. I would love to know your recommendations on shops in Boleslawiec. I am hoping to make a daytrip on an upcoming trip to Germany. I am not finding much online. Love your blog....so glad I found it!

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  18. I was looking for traditional polish potteries and I got a wonderful collection from you.


    Traditional Polish Pottery Patterns

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I love to hear from readers! Questions and comments welcome. I try to respond to everyone (I respond back to your comments on the comments page so check back for a response). Thanks for reading!

-Brittany Ruth