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About Us

La Tavola Bella is an importer of fine Italian handmade ceramics. Our goal is to maintain a clientele with taste and a fond appreciation for Italian Renaissance style pottery; dinnerware handsomely hand painted; unique decorative accessories and much more. Our pieces are produced in the CAMA workshops in the heart of Umbria.

We import our pieces directly from the workshop to you. Here at La Tavola Bella we strive to provide you with high quality dinnerware. Our love of good food, good friends and great places to visit will be reflected in all we sell. From time to time we will feature recipes, cooking tips and fun places to visit in Italy on our blog. Please join us in making people aware of nice places that may not be in every guidebook. If you have visited a small town, taken a special tour or enjoyed a small private tour that you think shows the real Italy please share.

The CAMA workshop was established in the 1950's in Deruta. This small hill town in the beautiful region of Umbria (between Florence and Rome) is where the ceramic tradition dates back to the 13th century. Today, Andrea, Renato and Elena Niccacci carry on the family tradition, directing one of the only workshops in Deruta where every stage of production is accomplished in one studio under the personal supervision of the artistic directors. Their assistants share their standards of quality: every single piece is carefully thrown or forged by hand, and hand-painted using only 100% lead-free glazes. CAMA has been exporting ceramics all over the world, but mostly to the U.S.A., where selected stores have been carrying CAMA dinnerware since the 1970's.

We try to provide a place where our customers would send their friends telling them: "...you can buy me anything in that store and I would love it!" This statement may be true, not just for the beauty but also for the functionality of our selection. Although our pieces are exceptionally beautiful they are made to be used and enjoyed on a regular basis.

Care
Our ceramics are fired over a long period of time, so some heat will not harm them. Although we would like to recommend that you do not expose them to high-temperatures such as ovens etc. In addition, we recommend limited use in microwave ovens. This is mostly because of the wide variation in heating speeds of microwaves. Most items are considered "dishwasher safe" only if the low or energy saver cycle is used, although we always highly recommended all our hand-made items be hand washed. You may encounter over time some crazing or small fine lines that may form on your majolica after repeated use. This is a common trait of majolica and adds character to each piece. This does not this harm the piece and is simply a part of all ceramics aging process.



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