Iittala has long been at the forefront of Scandinavian design. Founded in 1881 in the small Finnish town for which it is named, the company began as a glass factory, creating simple but beautiful objects meant for everyday use. Though the brand has expanded into wares far beyond glass (whimsically graphic ceramics, minimalist cookware), Iittala’s designs—many of which are crafted by hand—have always maintained the timeless, functional characteristics the brand set out to establish from the beginning. Read on to discover the craftsmanship and history behind these luminous pieces.
Iittala’s Toikka birds and Aalto collection are mouth-blown by expert craftsmen.
The Quality and Craftsmanship
Aside from timelessness, what sets Iittala’s designs apart is the brand’s dedication to craftsmanship and quality. Though these pieces may appear simple and minimalist, the process of creating them is anything but.
Many of the designs, such as the Toikka birds and the Aalto vases, are mouth-blown and hand-shaped by skilled artisans with a wealth of experience. The wares that are not entirely crafted by hand still get the star treatment and are carefully measured and inspected to ensure the highest-quality result. The majority of glassware is still produced in Iittala’s factory in Finland, while the ceramics and other materials are carefully sourced and manufactured all around the world.
Aalto vases, Taika tableware, Toikka birds, and Kastehelmi glassware were all created in collaboration with Scandinavian designers.
The Core Collections
The other hallmark of Iittala is its continued collaboration with legendary and up-and-coming Scandinavian designers; the oldest such collaboration was dreamed up more than 80 years ago and serves as a tribute to the house’s focus on creating meaningful designs that last. Here are some of Iittala’s most storied collections.
The Alvar Aalto collection: Designed in 1936, this award-winning line is the brand’s oldest continuing collaboration. Created by iconic designer Alvar Aalto, these mouth-blown glass pieces are renowned for their organic, undulating shapes. The designer took direct inspiration from his name (aalto means “wave” in Finnish) when creating the vases, which have come to be a major symbol of Finnish design and among the most recognizable glass objects in the design world.
Shop Iittala’s designs by Alvar Aalto →
An expert glassblower fine-tunes the shape of a Toikka bird. Photo courtesy of Iittala.
Birds by Toikka: One of the great names in Finnish glass design, Oiva Toikka created a number of collections for Iittala, his birds being perhaps the most famous and widely collected. Originally designed in 1972, these mouth-blown creatures are expertly shaped by experienced craftsmen, using both traditional glassblowing techniques along with Toikka’s unique hands-on approach.
Shop birds by Toikka →
The Kastehelmi series: Designed in 1964 by Oiva Toikka, this collection draws inspiration from the beauty of glistening morning dewdrops, or kastehelmi in Finnish. The clear, pearllike drops have a functional purpose too: They cover up visible joint marks left from the glassmaking process, resulting in iconic, tactical designs that have become Iittala classics.
Shop the Kastehelmi collection →
The Taika collection: Named after the Finnish word for “magic,” the Taika line is one of Iittala’s newer collections, designed by Klaus Haapaniemi in 2014. It’s aptly named: Inspired by imagination and rich storytelling, the ceramic tableware designs feature whimsical depictions of forest scenes.
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