Butternut Salt & Pepper Shakers

Count the holes. Fewer is salt, more is pepper, by convention.

The two shakers differ in the number of holes at the shoulder, which is how you tell them apart. British convention puts fewer holes on the salt and more on the pepper, though it is worth checking both before you fill them and deciding once.

11cm is a generous size for a shaker, comfortably bigger than the small glass pair most people have. That means fewer refills and a pair with enough presence to stay on the table.

They sit steadily at 7cm across the base, which matters on a shaker that gets knocked as often as these do.

They match our gourd lidded serving dish in form and glaze, if you want the table to read as one thought.

A squash rather than a novelty, which is a narrow line to walk.

Vegetable-shaped tableware goes wrong when it is cartoonish. These are modelled on the actual proportions of a butternut, the pear-shaped body swelling from a narrow neck, with the ribbing running down the length and a small curled stem at the top. Recognisable without being comic.

The glaze does the rest. A soft cream streaked vertically with sand and pale ochre, following the ribs down the body, so the surface reads like the skin of a real squash rather than a flat painted colour.

The holes are set discreetly at the shoulder rather than in a cap on top, which means there is no metal lid interrupting the form. From two feet away they read as small ceramic gourds rather than as shakers.

It is that restraint that makes them usable year round. A pumpkin would be seasonal; a butternut in a neutral cream glaze is simply a good shape, and it stays on the table in March.

• Modelled on real butternut proportions, recognisable without being comic
• Vertical glaze streaking following the ribs, like the skin of a real squash
• Holes at the shoulder, so no metal cap interrupts the form
• 11cm tall, generous for a shaker and fewer refills as a result
• A neutral cream glaze, so they work year round rather than only in autumn
• A steady 7cm base, which matters on something knocked this often
• Supplied as a pair, with differing hole counts to tell them apart
• Genuinely good gifting, and easy to post

The whole argument for a good pair is that they live on the table rather than in a cupboard. A kitchen table, an island or an open shelf, where they read as small ceramic objects.

Two small objects side by side look deliberate; one at each end of a table looks like they were mislaid. Keep them together, ideally on a small tray or dish.

These are the piece of character on the table. Simple white or stoneware plates and plain linen, so nothing competes.

Our lidded serving dish shares the form and the glaze family, so the two together give a table a quiet theme without it becoming a novelty.

One good vegetable reference on a table is charming. Three is a garden centre. Let the shakers be the only ones.

Hand wash only, and dry thoroughly. Any moisture left inside will clog salt within a day, which is the commonest problem with ceramic shakers.

Fill them somewhere dry and keep them away from a steaming kettle or a hob, since salt draws moisture out of the air.

A few grains of dry rice in the salt keeps it running freely in a humid kitchen. An old trick and still the best one.

Use fine table salt and finely ground pepper. Coarse sea salt or a coarse grind will block holes this size.

Mind the stem. The curled tip is the most delicate point on the piece, so avoid picking them up by it.

What to expect. The glaze streaking falls differently on every piece, so the two in a pair will not be identical and neither will match the photograph exactly.

The pair ships boxed together, packed for ceramic. Current timescales and charges are set out on our delivery page.

Any questions before you order? Reach us via our contact page or live chat.

If they are not right, our returns process is straightforward, and everything is covered by our guarantees and warranties.

Our price match promise stands if you find the same piece for less elsewhere. Fitting out a restaurant or a holiday let? Ask about trade accounts.