Iittala launch ultramarine blue collection to celebrate Finland's 100th anniversary


Finland is 100 this weekend! To celebrate this momentous occasion, Finnish design company, Iittala, have launched a new glass colour for 2017.


A selection of vases, tumblers and even a glass dove are now available in ultramarine blue. Iittala has said that it chose the colour for its symbolic significance and for the Finnish associations with blue.

In terms of its symbolism, blue is often associated with peace and serenity.  As the national colour for Finland, it reflects the blue skies and thousands of lakes found in the country’s natural landscape.  

Iittala has created the ultramarine colour from its extensive glass colour library. The rich colour has been made using a special glass recipe in the company’s glass factory in Finland. Ultramarine blue was chosen out of hundreds of glass colour recipes to reflect the warmth of the Finnish national character.

Over the years, a number of collections have used the ultramarine recipe including, the Kivi votive by Heikki Orvola, the world famous architect Alvar Aalto's collection and the Kartio tumbler by Kaj Franck. The colour has been revived in the Kastehelmi range by Oiva Toikka and in the mouth blown blue Finland 100 Dove by Professor Oiva Toikka, which also honours the anniversary of the artist’s home country.

The complete range of products, including the Aalto vase and the Finland 100 Dove, has been created by skilled glass blowers in the Iittala glass factory in Finland.  All of the products, excluding the Kastehelmi plates, are available in blue gift packages and the Aalto pieces come engraved with reference to the 100th anniversary.

However, if you want to get your hands on a Finland 100 Dove you will have to act fast as only 2,017 have been made in total.








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