I know, I know. I said I wouldn't keep forcing the culture pictures on you. Then I got comments and emails saying you loved the culture and Turkey picture posts. But I know there has to be one or two of you out there who are tired of them. I am tired of them. Of course I have to live here so it isn't nearly as exciting when you see it everyday. And because I have so many pictures of Turkey I feel the need to share them with the masses. Or the few. Or the one reader I haven't bored to tears yet.
So after subjecting you to all of my cultural stories and pictures for so long I have decided to do something just for you! Really. The only thing I get out of it is maybe a few more hits on my blog and a trip to the post office. That's right, folks! I'm having a contest! I'm giving away some culture. Kinda.
No, no. I won't give you any of this. I don't think it would travel well and just the thought of how it might smell after a week of travel turns my stomach. Ewww...
I have shown pictures of store fronts like this...
and teased you with pictures like this...
and made you search all over for a cute bags like these...
and had you wringing your hands because you couldn't find pottery like this so many times that I know you are just hankering for a little piece of Turkey of your very own.
Well fret not. I am here to save the day! I am giving away these...
What are they you ask? Well, what do they look like? They are little bowls. Like small ones. Like they would hold one plum nicely. What are they for you ask? Man...you ask a lot of questions! They are for...um...well...I don't know. That is where you come in.
How would you use 4 colorful bowls big enough to hold a plum?
That is the contest. You tell me what you would use these bowls for and I will pick a winner. I will read all of the entries and decide who has the best, most clever idea for these bowls. Then that person will get a package all the way from Turkey with these four bowls in it. To use however they deem fit. That's it. It's that simple.
Some details...they are handmade and hand-painted. They come from Kutahya which is famous for it's ceramics. The bowls are made from a special white clay found in that region. I wouldn't recommend putting them in the dishwasher, but I have used them for food before.
Well...I used the bigger ones for food before. These little things...I haven't put food in them. I eat more than that!
Contest rules...
1. Leave me a comment on this post telling me what you would use these bowls for if you owned them.
2. The contest ends when I drag my sorry self out of bed on Tuesday morning in Turkey. About midnight central time on Monday.
3. I will read all the entries and choose the most clever answer as the winner. If there are too many clever responses I might put the best ones in a hat and draw for the winner. I am indecisive like that!
4. If you live in Turkey, please, for the love of all that is good, don't enter this contest. I mean you can share your clever idea for bowl usage, but I will not choose you as the winner no matter how clever your idea is. You can just go buy 4 little bowls yourself. Seriously!
5. You can enter as many times as you like. I figure some people may be just full of good ideas, and I would hate to stifle that!
60 comments:
Fun contest idea!
I hope you get lots of people playing along!
I have one of these on my dresser, to hold rings & such.
They are the perfect size to hold a handful of m&ms (to eat with your popcorn). 4 of them means 4 people can have m&ms with their popcorn!
What do the Turks use them for?
Mmmm... How about for dipping sauces? They are such beautiful bowls.
I cannot think of a clever way to use the bowls, but they are lovely. A spot of color in my 130 year old adobe farmhouse kitchen would cheer me up each day. I would put them up on the wall to remind me that there are still beautiful places in the world to go, if I ever finish raising children, feeding chickens, cats, dogs, and horses, and scrubbing the floor.
Hi! I found you through Pioneer Woman's site. So, living in Turkey sounds like such an adventure but it's just everyday stuff to you. As to those pretty little bowls...I guess I would be most likely to use them for dessert when I have guests over. I like to serve cookies but they always look so awkward on a plate. They would look nice tucked in a little scoop of ice cream in these bowls. Thanks for the contest!
*A side note before I start: I think that those bowls are beautiful!*
Since there are 4, I think that it's only fair if I give 4 ideas!
1) I would use it to hold earrings so that I don't have to look all over my dresser for the missing earring.
2) I would probably give one to my Secret Sister at church and let her know where it was from and why it was special.
3) I would have to display one in my house, of course.
4) I could use this one to put grapes in for my daughter! Or Glodfish crackers! Even though I think that they are too pretty to eat out of... it's an idea!
just had another idea... I could use them to hold change! One for pennies, one for dimes, one for nickels and one for quarters!
I'll see your four bowls and raise you a Hookah.
Actually, can I TRADE four bowls for a hookah?
Let's see...to me they look like the perfect little bowl to put some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and crunchy toasted garlic bits in...then dip some yummy warm sour dough bread in.
Salt, Pepper and spices. These are beautiful bowls! They'd be pretty anywhere in the house. And for lots of uses. I am so glad I found your blog!
I would gladly put a small bit of water in them with a wedge of lemon, for rinsing fingers while eating shellfish. Or anything else stinky, for that matter.
They'd liven up my next dinner party, especially since the rest of my dinnerware is earthtones!
I would be afraid that the lemon would eat the paint off. That wouldn't be good!
They could hold sprinkles when I let the girls make their own cookies or cakes!
Great blog! And beautiful bowls.
These bowls would help me tremendously with portion control, especially in the area of snacking.
Being a Louisiana girl, I might also put a Cajun spin on them, using them for pickapepper sauce or cayenne pepper or even to show off some Mardi Gras beads.
My deceased grandmother’s rosary would look really nice in the purple one. Is that morbid? I hope not.
Thanks for the chance to win these gorgeous creations!
I think I'd use the bowls for baby food! My daughter would love to stare at the pretty patterns on the bottom of the bowls, so hopefully it would give her incentive to EAT!
Thanks for stopping by! I have to cover my stuff with plastic. Janitor rules. And you don't want to make the Janitor mad at you...
I love those bowls. They are definitely beautiful. I would use one for rings, one for earrings, one on my desk at school for paperclips and random office supplies, and one at home to keep in the kitchen with small candies in it.
These would be great for holding dipping sauces like balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
Storing the multitude of little pieces of toys that are usually scattered over the carpet.
To put those little biscuits in when you have visitors for morning coffee.
To store earring backs in.
To make my mum feel bad for thinking I don't have pretty things.
Bossy would proudly display them in her open cabinetry, and every night she would use them for her dipping sauces because that's the kind of cook she is, and then later, in the black of night - before restoring them to their place on her shelf - she would french kiss them.
A recipe for fun.
I would save them for Weiner Night, at which time I would fill them with;
• Ketchup
• Mustard
• DELI mustard
• Relish (for the boy only)
We would then proceed to dip our wieners in our favorite CONDIMENTS.
Don’t delete and/or censor this.
Clearly, I am the least creative and domestic person ever because the first things that came to mind were:
1. Someplace for The Hubster empty his pockets that is NOT the dining room table or kitchen counter.
2. Dishes for cat food since they appear to be taking relationship cues from Hillary and Barack.
3. A way to manage my evening chocolate chip cookie consumption since I apparently suffer from portioncontolatosis.
4. A cute vessel for my iPod while I am blogging.
OPTIONAL: A cute thing to slam against my forehead when I have decided to watch JUST ONE MORE episode of "Keeping Up with the Kardashians".
These bowls are so beautiful !!
I think they would look so pretty with either some egg custard in them or banana pudding or maybe some fresh strawberries with cream !!
I have some little bowls just this size, but mine aren't nearly as pretty as these. These are beautiful!
I use mine for making spice rubs and spice mixtures for meats and veggies. They are the perfect size to dip your fingers in and sprinkle away!
I also have used them for condiments when having people over. So much cuter than having big bottles of ranch or ketchup or mustard sitting out on the counter.
I think it would also be perfect in my kitchen window to hold my rings if I've doing something messy and don't want to goop my rings all up!
Beth
ok...i wasn't planning on responding to these comments, but there are a couple of you who have asked me questions so i must respond! it goes against my nature not to!
tamara - the bowls aren't used for anything in particular. mostly as decorations. at least this size.
heyjoe - i would so love to give away a hookah! i would be worried it wouldn't make it in one piece if mailed from here. i think i will bring a few back with me when we return to the states so if you really want one you can put in an order!
I would use them to serve a fabulously rich dessert that you only want to serve in small portions because otherwise you would make yourself sick.
Imagine how wonderful to uncover the beautiful designs as you eat your tasty treat!
Hi! I followed your link from The Pioneer Woman. :o)
This may disqualify me from the contest, however, the thought of putting anything in these bowls that would cover up their beauty, seems wrong somehow. I certainly wouldn’t want to put anything in them that could scratch or mar their surface in any way.
So, I would simply display them. As is. In all their glory. I would catch sunbeams in them and use them to store my daydreams and fantasies of some day visiting their place of origin. I would drink in the purity of their vibrant colours and listen for the distant sounds of a boisterous marketplace that is held within each brushstroke. I would inhale the remembered scents that the colours evoke – the mouthwatering smell of fresh oranges; the clean crisp scent of lemons and limes; purple popsicles on a hot summer day.
If I were to put ANYTHING in them at all, I would fill them with clean, clear, fresh water for my cat to drink from. He’s a very sweet boy who loves to smell flowers, so I think he’d enjoy having these lovely bowls to drink from.
It’s very generous of you, BTW, to offer these as gifts. I would be thrilled to receive just one of these and share the wealth with others who appreciate their beauty, as well.
Carolynn
I'm going to guess I'm disqualified since you gave me one of these the last time I saw you. I really wouldn't mind having 4 more to keep my one company. I use mine for the obvious: holding my watch and earrings so I don't drop them down the drain which I have done before--before I had the beautiful little bowl.
What's a hookah go for in American greenbacks? Not that they're worth anything these days.
I found your blog via Thursday Drive. I spent four years living in Baku, Azerbaijan...which means that I had the pleasure of visiting Istanbul and loved the city.
As to those lovely bowls, I would give them pride of place to hold munchies at a cocktail party I'm going to host to welcome my mother back from her month-long stay in Hawaii.
-suz
Hey Natalie. I have one of these bowls. You gave it to me 2 or 3 years ago. Mine actually has a couple of fish painted on the inside. I have kept it on my kitchen counter since the day you gave it to me. It's definitely not big enough to put food in. Maybe a very small amount of dipping sauce or something but way too small for even the smallest portion of dessert. And since I wasn't clever with the one you gave me, I really can't think of what I would do with 4 more. I like the idea of putting it in my room for rings, but I really don't take mine off so...Oooh, I've got one. I would use them to put melted butter in so when I cook lobster we could dip it in the bowls. Well, if I cooked lobster and if my family ate lobster then that's what I'd use them for.
I would use them to sort beads while making jewelry.
Hi! I'm here via the link from The Pioneer Woman. Great site!!!
My daughter and i would use these for our weekly Sunday tea party. Perfect for our little tea cakes. The rest of the week they would grace the china cabinet with the rest of my treasures.
Cute and beautiful bowls are great, but I can't top any of these ideas!!
I am with Joe on the Hookah upgrade...
Can I place my order with you, or do I need to come to Turkey to pick it out?
What a fantastic giveaway, and a great concept to make it a contest!
The colors are so lush and the designs so gorgeous--they should be used. I love making use of the pretty things I have, rather than only displaying them.
So I would use them. In one, I might put fleur de sel, a sea salt from France, to sprinkle over roasted asparagus or fresh, crusty bread with butter. I might fill another with shaved parmesan. Another could hold honey, to drizzle over baguette slices topped with feta and rosemary sprigs.
But the last one should sit on the sill of the kitchen window. It should hold a plum, or maybe even a small peach, while it softens and sweetens and becomes ripe.
heyjoe - it depends on what you want. if you want a functioning one i would say about $30 for a small one. and then if you want some authentic turkish tobacco add about $10. if you want a decorative one you can get a smaller one for less. mine is on the smaller side, but it works!
charlie girl - you should come pick yours out. maybe you can pick one for heyjoe too.
Wow - fancy giveaway! I could make up some really great stories about how *I* would use them...but the reality is that unless I put them away, my girls would get them and would probably use them to hold the snails they hunt. I know, probably NOT what you were looking for...just keeping it real here :)
And thanks for the comments on my blog...I love your blog...now I have two Turkey blogs to follow - how cool is that?!
I would use them for plate spinning to the tune of the Sabre Dance.
I would take the show on the road and make millions. I would have an entourage and I'd buy that Vespa I've had my eye on. You'd see my face on the cover of Star and The Enquirer because I'd be dating Jodie Foster's former partner whom I met while they were wooing me for a movie deal to tell the tale of my luck in getting those very special Turkish bowls in a contest of Natalie's and making my fortune after years of struggling as a single mom.
Then, after I retired, I'd give the bowls to the women's and children's shelter along with a big donation.
Great comments so far! My first thought, when you said they were so small, was that they could be converted into "pasties". You know...drill a hole in the center, add a tassle...
But that would ruin them, so I would simply put them next to my carved wooden bowl that my father-in-law brought back from Africa. And then I'd actually have a COLLECTION.
I'm going to mention your contest in an AllMediocre post today!
I feel like these would have so many different uses....They would love perfect in my green bathroom holding potpourri. They would also be perfect on my dresser holding my rings a some loose changes. They'd also be perfect for holding condiments at parties or at dinner. You know like ketchup and mustard for pigs in a blanker or duck sauce for egg rolls. There's so much that can be done with them!! I'd even just put them out as decoration. If I could figure out a way to mount them, I'd mount them in a group on the green wall in my bathroom...they'd give it a splash of color!!
Hi! I love the bright, beautiful colors of the Mediterranean! I have not been to Turkey, but to semi-nearby Crete. The landscape looks similar. What a wonderful experience for your family.
We live in Germany and have traveled to quite a few countries around here. I love that you have taken lots of pictures. I haven't taken quite so many because we get enough stares as it is :). I will take more as I get more comfortable though.
I would use the bowls for different uses:
-dips with naan bread and pita bread (tzatziki, hummus, balsamic vinegar w/ EVOO, a nice chili dip from Waitrose....
-little candies like M&M's, skittles, smarties
-small sundae bowls for the kiddos. The baby gets a plastic one since he is so crazy!
I have thought about doing a similar giveaway with either Polish pottery or German sweets and biscuits/cookies/chocolates/ lebkuchen. Thanks for sharing!
Well, I was going to enter this contest but HahnAtHome already used my idea. Which rocks. So I will only say that they are lovely little pretties, indeed :) And if I won them they would probably use them to collect dust bunnies on my book shelves. Those dust bunnies are such prolific little devils.
those bowls are gorgeous! i would use them when i take pictures of the things my future hubby cooks... so they look even prettier when he blogs them. :) and then i would eat whatever was in them, so i could admire the designs on the bottom.
I make chainmail jewelry and these little bowls would look lovely on my workbench, each holding different kinds of metal rings that I'm working with to keep them seperate. (Large 18k gold in one, small 18k gold in another, and then Large and small sterling silver in the other two.)
What a fantastic give-away. Ya put me to shame, Natalie :)
Those bowls are gorgeous and I'd hate to cover up the inside with stuff. But, if I HAD to....
I would fill each with something I don't like to eat but that I should like to eat b/c they're good for me--like tomatoes, bran, beans and my daily vitamin (which I always "forget to take" because it gives me terrible breath). I'd fill each of the bowls up with small amounts of these 4 items. Do you see where I'm going? In order to see the pretty painting at the bottom of the bowls, I would HAVE to eat down to the picture. I believe this same concept is used for children but the bowls have Elmo or the like, waiting at the bottom. I am nothing, if not unreasonably childish :)
P.S. I can guarantee that I would NOT place ISKEMBE inside those bowls. Because I would not want to put those bowls through that.
Natalie. I am a juggling fool. So what I would do is I would put those 4 bowls on a specially made juggling shelf. And in each bowl I would put a golden juggling ball. So when people asked "What are those?", I would say, "Those are Turkish juggling ball holders." and I'd grab them & juggle.
Holy cow! So many responses!!!!
Those bowls are divine, and if they were mine, i would put them away from little hands, and hang them above the "safe adult equator" line in my house, and whenever anyone asked, I would say they are special bowls all the way from Turkey, sent from the coolest girl ever, Natalie, so stay away from them or else.
They sell Hooka's at the GAS STATION here in Florida. I know - crazy - but they have a nice selection. I've never priced one of them, but next time I go in there I will! The people who own the gas station are from Jordan.
OK - the bowls - I would hang them on the wall as decoration. They are beautiful.
I have seen a Hooka made into a lamp. Just thought of that. Anyway - - the bowls are SO PRETTY.
They'd look beautiful in my daughter's room. It is decorated in a middle eastern theme. I am SO enjoying your blog site. It's on my FAVE list.
I know you can't make rice (if it were not for a rice cooker neither could I) - but do you have any Turkish recipes you could share with us that your family enjoys? That would be so much fun.
If I owned these beauties, I would nominate you to gift them to a deserving soul, there locally. Maybe a young single mom who would adore them, but whom would not normally be able to afford such delights.
I love how Pioneer Woman has these perfect bowls for her photos. I would really like some perfectly painted little bowls all the way from Turkey to post my own photos. I would put a tribute in for you everytime I use them. Maybe even the Pioneer Woman would be jelous enough to leave me a comment. Then, we could become BFF and she would name her next dog after me and it's all because of these cute little hand painted bowls that I won in your contest :)
www.bloomswheresplanted.blogspot.com
I roast my own coffee and love to mix and match the green beans. My roaster holds about 2 ounces so two of the bowls look the perfect size to hold the mixture I would roast the next morning. In the other two I would put our vitamins so my husband and I wouldn't forget to take them. The bowls would be emptied first thing in the morning so I could enjoy them on my kitchen windowsill all day before filling them up again at bedtime.
Here's a picture of what I would do: http://i41.photobucket.com/albums/e291/kclist/WhatIWouldDo.jpg
I'd teach my pup to wear them on her head and follow me around with chocolate all day.
PS: the bowls are gorgeous and I love all the other pictures. I'm here via All Mediocre and I'll definitely be back.
PPS: I hope this doesn't double post
I feel the need to frame this answer with the fact that I have never traveled to far off lands.
I would use the bowls to wow and amaze my students next fall by telling them all about my fascinating trip to Turkey (mildly based on your stories) and tell them some amazing story about how I won the bowls in a crooked poker game or something.
Then, once I had them truly believing I am the traveler extraordinaire they might think from the bowls, I would tell them the truth and get them to study the area and culture since their curiosity would be piqued.
They are so beautiful I would use them for everything!Breakfast, lunch, dinner everthing in between. I don't care if they are small, I would just refill. And if for some reason I wasn't eating, I would probably carry them around the house with me just so I could gaze at their beauteousness. (I'm not sure thats a word in English, maybe in Turkish? Maybe not)
Oh and as I just discovererd from the Pioneer Woman's website, I think they would do quite nicly for holding cubes of "raw" cheese. Yum! Thanks for the look inside your world!!!
-Robin
I think I am with Carolynn and I would display them...right on the wall above my sink...as I have it painted a golden yellow. That is one very lonely wall and in need of something bright, fresh and vivid!
Alas...53 comments, so I will leave you with this ...good luck choosing a winner.
Natalie, I read your blog because I am friends with Lisa W who is also your friend. I saw your post about the bowls and thought that I would tell you that I would use them for holding money for each of my children (sorting). I need something colorful and decorative in my kitchen to hold the change that they receive after doing their chores and such. This would help me sort them very easily. Of course, it would also cause me to think of you and my friend Lisa each time I looked at them because of their origin. Thanks and I love your blog. Kimberly Martin - kimberdea@qx.net
Dee.....if ya win, slip over to Maine & I'll throw in some grappa, cannoli, & gelato. All fresh:)
I know the contest is over- Good luck choosing a winner. There were great answers!!! Just for fun: I would put one in the kitchen for mixed nuts all the time, one in my bedroom for rings, etc. I would give one to my mom for her kitchen to go with all of her bright colors, and the last....? I'd have to decide when I saw it!
BTW- I was looking for a cute small bag like those just last weekend. I couldn't find one.
Who knew I had to go to Turkey to find one? ;-)
headless mom - yeah, we've got all kinds of fun things here! maybe i'll give a bag away in my next contest!
I'm ssoo stressed lately that I would place those bowls in the four rooms of my house I hang out in most often and keep a small "mindfulness bell" in each one.
erica - wow! i have never heard of a mindfulness bell. it sounds like a great idea. i wonder if it would be heard over the noise in my house. i think i might need a mindfulness airhorn. would that work?
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