Before there were figurals shaped like cats and croissants, there were simple little boxes made to be carried: round, oval, square or six-sided, small enough to slip into a pocket or an evening bag. These classic pill and snuff box shapes remain some of the most graceful forms a porcelain box can take.
Limoges boxes are small hand-painted porcelain boxes with hinged lids, made in and around Limoges, France. In this collection, the shape stays modest and the painting does the talking: scattered roses, bands of gold, dots and stripes, a tiny crown on the lid, a teddy bear perched on top.
A pill box is one of the most practical Limoges gifts you can give. It can hold a few mints, a pair of earrings, a ring during handwashing or a folded love note. It also makes a lovely first box for a new collector, a sweet bridesmaid thank-you or a small treasure tucked into a stocking.
Rochard Small Pink Oval Limoges Box with Gold Dots
Pink as a macaron and sprinkled with gold like confetti, this little oval lives in the pocket of a party dress. At midnight, after the dancing, its owner opens it to find the one thing she saved from the evening: a single sequin that fell from her sleeve during the last waltz.
Mini Hexagonal Pink Flowers Limoges Box
Six little sides, six little gardens. Turn it slowly in your palm and the pink flowers seem to follow you around, as if the box were a carousel of blossoms. In a daydream, a marquise tucks her beauty patches inside. A modern girl keeps her grandmother's pearl earrings there instead.
Petite Dark Blue Floral Limoges Box with Gold
It glimmers like a night sky over Paris, deep blue with flowers drifting across it like fireworks frozen in gold. On her nightstand it holds her wedding ring while she sleeps. In the morning, she slips the ring back on and closes the lid with a tiny, contented click.
Small Square Burgundy Limoges Box, Gold Stripes and Flowers
Imagine a salon with velvet curtains, a crackling fire and a gentleman who insists on telling the same story every Sunday. He reaches into his waistcoat for this small square box, offers everyone a peppermint, and begins again. Nobody minds. The story improves a little each week.
Bird of Paradise Flower Rectangle Limoges Pill Box Figurine
Postcard from somewhere warm: the bird of paradise blooms on the lid, orange and blue as a tropical sunset. She bought it to remind herself of an island she has never visited but plans to, someday. Until then, it holds a seashell, a pressed hibiscus and a very optimistic savings plan.
Teddy Bear Seated on Oval Pill Box Porcelain Limoges
The tooth fairy has a very reliable assistant. Every time a wobbly tooth finally falls out, it goes straight into this little oval box, and the teddy bear on the lid stands guard all night. By morning there is a shiny coin under the pillow, and the bear looks enormously proud.
Crown Top Blue Limoges Pill Box
Every little princess needs a royal treasury. This one sits on the dresser with a tiny crown on its lid, guarding a hair ribbon, two buttons and a gold paper star. Visitors are welcome to look, but only with permission from Her Majesty, who is seven and takes the job very seriously.
Velvet Lined Blue Rectangle Pill Box in Limoges Porcelain
Lift the blue lid and there it is, a little bed of soft velvet waiting for something precious. Perhaps an engagement ring, hidden in a coat pocket on the way to dinner. Perhaps a single cufflink that lost its twin. Whatever it holds, the box keeps the secret beautifully.
Round Baby Limoges Box with Pram Design
A first curl, snipped carefully on a sunny afternoon, tied with the thinnest thread of ribbon. The proud parents tuck it into this little round box with its painted pram. Years from now, when the baby is grown and taller than everyone, they will open it and smile all over again.
Square Sevre Roses Pill Box in Limoges Porcelain
Roses on the lid, roses down the sides, roses everywhere you look. Aunt Margot carries it to every garden club meeting and opens it, very slowly, to offer violet pastilles to her rivals. It is the only roses competition she always wins, and she knows it.
Bright Orange Floral Porcelain Limoges Pill Box
On gray Monday mornings, a little orange sunshine helps. This bright box rides along in a commuter's briefcase, full of lemon drops for the long train ride. When the carriage is crowded and the coffee is cold, one glimpse of those painted flowers is enough to feel like spring in Provence.
Small Oval Blue Limoges Box with Gold Stripes
Crisp as a naval uniform, blue with bands of gold, this little oval stands at attention on the desk. The captain, now retired, keeps his collar pins inside and the tiny brass key to his old sea chest. Some evenings he opens it just to hear the hinge click, like a salute.
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