ps – anna, i love your response to DD above.

I ask because I bought several of the items this past weekend (and admired others in the store), and they all seem to be quite well made, at least as well as any comparable product on the market. I don’t buy badly-made things for my home (or, as you put it, “crap”). I look for quality of design and quality of construction first and foremost. I fully subscribe to William Morris’s belief you should have no item in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.

You may not be a fan of Orla Kiely’s designs, but that’s an issue of taste and is purely subjective. To suggest that those who are fans of her work (myself included) are more likely to (a) only like her products for a month, and (b) will be disposing of said products within a year is absolutely ludicrous. Kiely’s pear and flower prints are classics within her own body of work, and reference a style of design that has remained popular over the course of the past 50 years. Again, whether or not you personally like this style is really not important. Taste is not universal, fortunately.

The list of true human needs is very, very short. That does not mean, however, that things we acquire that give us enjoyment beyond the basic necessities of life are worthless. That goes for the pillow you rest your head on at night, the cup of coffee you drank this morning, and the computer you used to compose your comment.

And Anna, although I’ve been a long-time lurker (we did our Ikea kitchens at about the same time), this is what finally got me to post. Thanks for all you do! :)