The French artist Nathalie Lété has designed a run of pieces for Avenida Home, and they are some of the most cheerful things we sell. This post looks at what is in her range, from serving boards and cat-shaped boards to linen tea towels, how to use each piece, and which other Avenida Home designs sit happily alongside her work.
Her serving boards
The Nathalie Lété Birch Serving Board is the piece to start with. It is designed to do three jobs: serve bread and cheese, stand in as a trivet under a hot dish, and lean on a shelf as a piece of art when it is not in use. Each board is handmade in Sweden from birch, with a natural finish on the reverse, and is heat resistant to 120°C and food safe. Designs include Flore, one of several patterns in the range.
Because the boards look so good, it is worth planning where they will live. A kitchen shelf, the back of a dresser or a picture ledge all work. Leaning two or three together, slightly overlapping, looks deliberate rather than cluttered.
The cat boards
For cat lovers, the Nathalie Lété Cat Serving Board is the obvious choice. It comes in two designs, Russian Cat or Tiffany Cat, and is as happy carrying a platter of nibbles as it is sitting in the middle of the table as a centrepiece. Like the standard boards, it is handmade in Sweden from birch. It makes a practical work of art for any cat lover, and a lovely present.
Tea towels worth hanging up
Her designs also appear on Avenida Home's Illustrated Linen Tea Towels. These are printed on 100% European linen, which is strong and naturally absorbent, and gets more absorbent the more you wash it. At 50 x 70cm they are generous enough for a proper drying-up session, and decorative enough to hang on the oven door or a rail purely for the look. They make a good gift, too.
A tea towel is also a low-cost way to try out a pattern. If you love Nathalie Lété's style but are not sure about a bigger piece, start here.
Pairing her work with other Avenida Home artists
Nathalie Lété's illustrations sit well next to other designers in the same range, as long as you give each piece some space. A few combinations we like:
- For a drinks party: put a Lété board out for cheese and use the PATCH NYC Peacocks Party Tray for canapés. PATCH NYC is a New York studio known for kaleidoscopic illustration, and its dancing peacocks make a lively contrast. The tray is handmade in Sweden from birch with a melamine finish.
- For everyday tea: the Illustrated Birch Wood Small Tray measures 27 x 20cm, just right for a cup and a biscuit. It is handmade in Sweden from FSC-certified birch veneer, with a heat-resistant, food-safe laminated surface that wipes clean, and is just as useful for keys and jewellery on a dresser.
- For the sofa: the Danielle Kroll Frog Square Linen Throw, by the New York artist Danielle Kroll, has frogs hopping between lily pads in pink, green and blue.
Something softer
Avenida Home also makes Illustrated Textured Wool Blankets, woven in Italy in a textured weave and measuring 150 x 190cm. The range brings artist illustrations to the sofa or the foot of the bed, with designs such as Anne Bentley's Adorable Cubs in a soothing brown palette. Ask us which designs are currently available if you are after one to go with your Lété pieces.
To see everything by this artist in one place, browse our Nathalie Lété collection, or explore the full Avenida Home range. If you are visiting Somerset, call into the shop to see the boards up close, or contact the team for help choosing a gift.
