A footed glass compote dish, hand-etched with a garden of scrolling flowers, in a soft blue that catches the light without ever shouting about it.

The compotier has sat at the center of French tables for centuries and its job has never really changed. A footed dish lifts what is inside it. Berries that would look ordinary in a bowl become something worth photographing on a raised stem with light coming through the glass beneath them.

Blue has always been my color muse, which is why this is the one I reached for first. Etched glassware sits beautifully against blue and white china, against white linen, against a table with nothing else on it at all.

I use mine constantly and rarely for dessert. Berry compote on a brunch table, cherries in July, olives before dinner, nuts at Christmas, or nothing at all when it simply sits on a shelf looking beautiful. At eight ounces this compote bowl is generous enough to serve two and small enough that it never crowds a small table.

Sold individually so you can build a set at your own pace, or keep one and let it be the thing everyone asks about.