It started with a bowl.
There was a store in Double Bay called Made Where. If you know, you know. My sister-in-law Gabby had this radar for the most beautiful things, and she would disappear in there and come out with gifts wrapped so perfectly you almost didn't want to open them. Almost. Inside was always something ceramic — a bowl, a platter, something beautiful. That was it for me. I was gone.
"I didn't know it then, but that was the moment I started caring deeply about how a table looks — and what it means when someone takes the time to set one."
Fast forward to my life with my husband. His Turkish family didn't just cook — they performed. His mother would spend hours in the kitchen and we'd arrive to a table already set, already beautiful, already full of mezze before we'd even sat down. Every dish placed with intention. Every meal designed to last for hours.
And then there was Istanbul. We'd land, barely get our bags down, and somehow find ourselves at a seaside restaurant — you know the kind, where the fish is impossibly fresh and the mezes just keep coming. Dish after dish. Conversation after conversation. That's the thing about long meals — they create the conditions for honesty. You can't rush what gets said over a table like that.
Here's what I'll admit though 👀
I could not cook. Not even a little. I was deep in the fashion industry — buying, running a retail chain of intimate apparel, moving fast. My years were measured in buying seasons, not dinner seasons. The table was always someone else's domain and I was always the one arriving hungry, admiring, but contributing exactly nothing to the kitchen.
That changed when we had our own family. Suddenly the table was mine to set. And I realised — maybe I couldn't yet contribute the food, but I absolutely had opinions about the ceramics. 🍽️
"A beautiful bowl changes a meal. A beautiful table changes a conversation. And a great conversation? That changes everything."
Fast forward to our family's life today — and the table is still the centre of everything.
The Shabbat Table.
Our weeks revolve around it. Friday comes around and somehow, whatever chaos the week has thrown at us, the table gets set. Friends arrive. Often new friends. Sometimes people who've never met each other before and by the end of the night can't imagine not knowing each other. That's what a Shabbat table does — it has this magic of collapsing time.
And centre stage? Our Bondi Ev ceramics. Every single time.
"The mezze collection comes out first — the eggs, the liver, the cucumber salad. Everything landing in these beautiful pieces. Modern. Stylish. A table that looks like it took effort even before anyone's sat down."
Then come the salads — in our three sizes, scattered all over the table. No order. No symmetry. Just abundance. Platters going down, bowls appearing, everyone reaching across each other. It's the kind of table that says there is more than enough here. Which is exactly the feeling you want a Shabbat table to give.
The thing about Bondi Ev pieces ✨
You don't need to replace everything you own. That's the beauty of it. You add a piece at a time. A bowl here. A platter there. And suddenly your table looks like it has a story.
🏺They mix beautifully with whatever you already have — the contrast between old and new makes everything look more intentional.
🤍Pick one up and you'll notice it immediately — there's a solidity to them, a richness in the hand that you don't get from lighter pieces.
🎨And the glazes. Oh, the glazes. That's the thing that gets you. Each colour so deep and considered — once you have one you find yourself wanting the whole set.
"Bondi Ev pieces feel more solid — the richness of the glazes is one of its most addictive features. One piece leads to another. Consider yourself warned."
This week's table question: What's the one piece on your table that always gets a comment from guests?
This is Girl Chat 💬
This newsletter is for women who love to gather — around food, around wine, around the kind of long slow meals where real things get said. We're going to talk about tables and ceramics and recipes and restaurants. About the women in our lives who taught us things without realising. About Istanbul and Double Bay and the plates that started it all.
Each issue, Girl Chat will bring you:
🏺Current Bondi Ev pieces — what's available now, new arrivals, and the ones flying out the door.
🎁Bundles & gifting ideas — because the best gift is always something beautiful for the table.
🍋Recipes — the kind that look gorgeous served in Bondi Ev ceramics.
📅Upcoming events — dinners, markets, pop-ups and gatherings worth knowing about.
✨Bondi Ev news — behind the scenes, new collections, and what's coming next.
"One issue and you'll find yourself rearranging your table. Consider this your warning."
