I hope that plates come back in style, but I don't really care if they do not, looking forward to hanging my plates shortly

LOL!! My MIL had several plate collections. I found them curious and would go on my list as "old lady" decorating. Fast forward 30 years and I have my kitchen sofit lined in Terry Redlin's "God Bless America" series and an arrangement in my dining room of Norman Rockwell plates. I got so hooked on my NR that I actually swap out the arrangements every month to go with the "season". It all started with a Christmas collection and has gone nuts since then!! Not every month is balanced well as NR plates come in several sizes..but for the most part they turn out.

That was inspiring!

I'm not a plate fan, and I didn't like what he did in the "very contemporary kitchen." I will admit that they looked awesome everyone else though.

@arcy_gw LOVE your Rockwell plates. Where did you get them? I would love to have one of "Road Block" where the bulldog won't get out of the alley and blocks traffic while everyone's watching. That plate would definitely go on my wall.

I like the examples in the blog. I haven't unpacked an entire set of antique white ironstone. Painting a small dark and mounting the plates is inspiring.

Guilty.....I have some on my walls. I am in the process of getting some others ready. I have only ever used the wire hangers. Has anyone used those " stick-on things"?

BTW.....thank you so much for posting those pics.....I love what he has done!

For some reason plates hanging on a wall makes me uneasy ..lol....and I'm not in an earthquake zone either. I think it's because they don't lie flat on the wall. In a previous house we had a large rectangular platter on a wall in a niche and that didn't bother me - but it was fairly flat with a minimal rim.

Instead of plates we have clocks - not grouped together but just about every room has an antique clock of some kind - an English Case close, a 1900's Railroad regulator, my grandparents' mantel clock, an old schoolhouse clock, a Black Forest cuckoo and an Austrian grandfather clock with a secret compartment and several others. They all have pendulums and need to be wound regularly and several chime. DD used to complain that their 'ticking' kept her awake at night but I find the sound soothing.

I don't care for plates in a bedroom... to me it's like a display of vintage hand-held mirrors in the LR. Wrong room for the items.

I also think the placing and grouping of the mirrors is critical to how well the display works. The plates (or frames or any other display items) shouldn't be stretched out to fit a space. They should be grouped closer together on the wall, leaving the impression that it's a collection that you continue to add to.

The exception is if they are hung symmetrically, such as 3 or 5 hung vertically on either side of a DR hutch.

Although I liked some of the plate collections and the way they were artfully arranged, I, too, am not a fan of plates hanging on the wall. It seems odd to me and especially weird in a bedroom. But the people who do it like it and it's their home; I just never would.

I have a really cute set of wildlife plates between two windows of my cape cod cottage and a lot of people compliment them! I just got a set of three bird plates to hang in the same area of the adjacent bedroom. I'll take pics when I get them hung!

awm I have to ask...how did you get them so perfectly straight? I am in awe!

I bought these plates for my aqua kitchen at the beachouse, from a local consignment shop. I love them but I don't recall where I put them or the hangers for them!

There aren't many walls that can't be improved by a tasteful display of plates. I have the guest bathroom vanity niche decorated with antique floral plated and have a row hanging over my bed. Be fore I had the living room painted I had plates hanging above two sets of French doors in the room.

eta: Thank you for posting KSWL!

robo: level, measuring tape, & arithmetic penciled out on a scratch pad. I did it the hard way.

I like the way plates look hung on the wall but I'm so clumsy I feel uncomfortable in a room with too much breakable stuff on a wall, just waiting for me to brush against...crash/embarrassment. Nice pics... I've always been a fan of polka-dots and the plates on wall reminds me of polka-dots.

He is funny; quite salty

I liked the smaller plate displays in the blog. Didn't really care for the modern displays nor do I care for plates in the bedroom or bathroom. And I wouldn't display cheapo plates from Target as he suggested. But if you have a collection or inherited an antique collection, then those are the plates to display, if it fits with your decor.

Awm03, your collection is lovely next to the oak cabinets.

Thank you, zmith.

zmith

I
liked the smaller plate displays in the blog. Didn't really care for
the modern displays nor do I care for plates in the bedroom or bathroom.
And I wouldn't display cheapo plates from Target as he suggested. But
if you have a collection or inherited an antique collection, then those
are the plates to display, if it fits with your decor.

*******************************************************************************

From a feature in O at Home yrs back....paper plates.

I've seen other Caspari paper plates I would display in a heartbeat w/o any hesitancy

Thought I was alone in feeling "uneasy" with plates on the walls! Some look very nice and I can appreciate how they look in other members' houses, but I lean more towards one or two unusual plate(s) (such as MtnRdRedux's duo) or a platter, over the many for my own decorating. Feel the same way about photo walls--uneasy. Perhaps it is the "many little things" on the wall that bugs me.

I love the look, and have 3 white platters next to the hutch with all my whireware. Plates fill a space nicely when artwork isn't what a homeowner prefers, and isn't your typical wall 'art'. I really enjoyed looking! Thanks for sharing Lisa.

I think this display kind of bridges the line between contemporary & trad w/white(cream?) plates against grey walls.

Chijim, great photos! I LOVE the caspari paper plates, very clever!

I have a like/not like feeling about that, although some of his examples are superbly done, better than I ever could. I have plates on the wall in one room because I have twelve plates with my antique Limoges fish service and where would you put them all?

I have a collection of Danish blue plates I want to hang above a plate rail around the top of my dining room, so I can enjoy them all year, but take them down, wash, use, and replace at Christmas time. One set is not Christmas but Winter-themed, and I use them during our winter birthday season. I think they'd look nice against a blue or grey background.

I love plates. I have a set of fashion-through-the-20th-century that would look so pretty in a dressing room, bedroom, or sewing room, but I'm not into fashion; I think I will sell them. I have a set of Currier & Ives Four Seasons in the DR wall, mainly because they pick up my colors well. The 1933 Chicago Worlds Fair plate needs a spot on the wall, too. And, I have a set of mini-plates of Andersen fairy tales: they are simply charming, and I have no idea what to do with them!

One of my favorite blogs is Confessions of a Plate Addict. The blogger hung 3 white plates on her white fireplace mantle for architectural interest. I notice in her more recent pictures, though, that she has restaged the fireplace.

In 2009 the then-editor of House Beautiful, Newell Turner, chronicled the building of his Catskills getaway. I enjoyed the series which described his use of high/low elements. I remember loving his use of antique fish plates in the combined dining/living area. It was the first time I saw using plates as art in a way that struck me as fresh and deliberate.

I'm not a gun person, but something about a lot of plates closely clustered on a wall remind me of target practice.

Amck2 my DMIL, has a collection of antique fish plates. I love them!

Lol Linelle, too funny.

I have to comment on the bloggers language. I understand the power of a well placed expletive but even my sister-who swears like a sailor-would find his language use, in this context, odd.

Lord knows, I have enough plates to cover the walls in several houses!!

I hung a few to finish off the wall behind the guest bed.

I like that he warns against using mixed sets of portrait plates--don't put Mr. Spock and Chuckie in the same grouping!? Ummm, is there ANY grouping where that Chuckie plate would be good design?

I do like plates on walls and grew up with them at home, but would not want to see them in a bedroom or bathroom

As I was packing up my kitchen tonight what did I find but not one but two plates with roses to match the one I was going to hang....plates are good in the bedroom.... pretend they have cookies on them

I'm gonna try to hang Grandma, Great Grandma, and Baubie's old slightly chipped plates in my dining room. I had them in a china cabinet against the back at my old house but don't have the same set up here. This blog has been very helpful for me deciding how to display them. Will be a while before I uncover the box they are in though. I also have some plate pedestals I am going to use for some of mom's favorites. She had way more sets of dishes than I will ever want or use, so a lot of them are going out to Goodwill, but I may save a sample or two just for the memories. Thankfully I don't collect plates. But I did collect dolls, (International ones plus some ceramic tchotkes) and that's a whole other thread . . . for another day . . .

I've gotten some good ideas from that blog post for plate hanging as well, Pink. I have a bedroom with lots of Scandinavian Christmas plates in blue and white that undoubtedly could be hung in more interesting configurations.

Loved looking at the possibilities for placement of plates. Some of those examples are just genius! Too bad that he uses "freekin" so much. It sounds so high school.

My mom has always enjoyed plates, and puts them on walls, from Victorian handpainted-by-a-great-aunt plates to Franklin Bradford whatever plates. And they do indeed come down if not properly placed.

I haven't hung any of mine yet since I remodeled except for one of these (this isn't mine, but alas they are not rare collectibles :P) :

This plate is hanging in the laundry room because it is so darned stupid. It makes me laugh. The cheesiness is strong with this one.

Oh, I enjoyed the article. Thanks for sharing it! I have 2 plates to be hung, but have not received inspiration on where. Perhaps soon!

Fori, L.O.L. !!!!!

I absolutely love the idea of incorporating plates into your wall décor. It is such a traditional way to dress up a room. I attached photos of how I used plates in one of my projects in Connecticut. I love how it turned out and hope this helps you out!!

Leslie May, I do like how the plates look against the blue wall. That's what I want to do with my Danish plates. Do you mind sharing the paint color?

I went on a house walk today and one house had quite the plate collection. I had no idea oyster plates came in such beautiful varieties, and of course with that fascinating organic shape within the outer circle shape. They were displayed in a few rooms, on walls and in cabinets, and color-coordinated with each other and with the room. I estimate close to 100 of them!

In another house, vegetable plates (you know the ones I mean, they are shaped and decorated like vegetables) were in a country cupboard with the beadboard back painted a deep teal. It looked wonderful.

I wish I could have taken pictures!

I'm glad you liked the room I shared with you! The paint color is Benjamin Moore Old Navy 2063-10!

I'm at the cottage today so took a photo of my cute animal plates. I think I have some vintage Royal Copenhagan Mother's Day plates hanging around somewhere too...

I enjoyed reading that KSWL, thank you for posting it. I like plates when they're done in a way that's tasteful and creative. When done right, I think they can make a room feel homey.

awm03 I love your back splash. Can you share the info regarding your tile?