Blue Agate Serving Tray with Brass Handles

About the Blue Agate

No two areas of a blue agate slab hold the same strength of color. Ink-blue passages sit beside washed-out gray ones, separated by hairline seams of white quartz, and the whole pattern is abstract because it was formed by mineral-rich water rather than drawn by anyone.

Polished flat, the stone stays cool to the touch and reflects a little of the room. Thin sections at the perimeter go semi-translucent and pick up whatever light falls across the table, so the outer inch of the plate often looks brighter than the center.

How It’s Made

The stone is cut to a rectangle, the shape that carries a course down the middle of a table. Its edge is electroformed, which grows real metal onto the agate until the rim has thickness of its own and is permanently bonded, rather than a leaf or coating that can rub off. The handles are solid brass, made as an open leaf or a laurel arch, and finished with the rim in silver, rose gold or gold.

Details

• Material: natural blue agate stone plate
• Size: 9" x 14"
• Finish: electroformed silver, rose gold or gold on the tray and the handles
• Handles: solid brass, in an open leaf or laurel arch style
• Food use: serve with a liner, board or servingware rather than putting food straight onto the stone

Each rectangle is cut from its own piece of agate, so the run of the banding and the strength of the blue change from tray to tray.

A Gift For

A wedding or engagement gift for a couple setting up a table, and an easy housewarming present because blue sits well against wood, marble and white china alike. It is also a good host or hostess gift to bring to a dinner.

Use and Care

Serve a cheese or fruit course from it, or use it to carry drinks, with a liner or servingware between the food and the stone. Wipe with a soft, damp cloth, dry the brass right after, and do not soak the tray or scrub the electroformed edge.