Our pieces are made to be used, not kept behind glass. Looked after simply, they will outlast the occasion you bought them for.
Fine porcelain with gold detailing
The body is fine porcelain. The gold detailing is fired onto the finished glaze. Because the gold sits on the glaze rather than under it, it is a decorative surface rather than a permanent one. That is what gives it its depth and its warmth, and it is also why the few rules below matter.
The Dining Plate Set carries no gold, but it is the same fine porcelain: please care for it in exactly the same way.
Hand wash only
- Never put a piece in a dishwasher. Detergent and the heat of a drying cycle will dull and lift fired gold, and the damage cannot be undone.
- Wash by hand in warm water with a little mild washing-up liquid, using a soft cloth or a soft sponge. Never a scouring pad, a brush, a scraper, or a cream or powder cleaner: anything abrasive will take the gold off. Avoid bleach.
- Do not leave a piece to soak.
- Dry it with a soft tea towel rather than leaving it to drain.
Never in a microwave or an oven
The detailing is metal. In a microwave it will spark and can damage both the piece and the oven. Our pieces are not oven-safe, grill-safe or freezer-safe, and they are not made for warming food.
Avoid sudden changes of temperature
Porcelain does not like a sharp jump from cold to hot or hot to cold. The shock can craze the glaze or crack a piece outright, sometimes days later.
- Let a piece come to room temperature before you pour anything very hot into it.
- Do not pour boiling water straight into a cold cup or teapot. Warm it first with a little hot tap water.
- Do not run cold water over a piece that is still hot.
- Do not take a piece from the refrigerator and fill it with something hot.
Storing and stacking
- Put a piece of felt, a paper napkin or a coffee filter between plates before you stack them. Stacking gold on gold is the commonest way it gets scratched at home.
- Hang cups by the handle only if the hook is coated; a bare metal hook will mark the glaze.
- Keep the gift box. It is a safe place for a piece when it is not on the table, and it is what you will need if you ever return a piece to us or send your porcelain jar back for a refill.
Your Porcelain Candle
Coconut soy wax with a wooden wick, hand-poured in small batches: 160 g of wax and approximately 30 to 40 hours of burn time.
- First light: let the candle burn until the whole surface has melted to the edge, usually 2 to 3 hours. This sets an even burn for the rest of its life.
- Each time after: burn for no more than 4 hours at a time.
- The wooden wick: before lighting, snap off any blackened tip so the wick stands about 3 mm tall. A neat wick gives a steady flame.
- Where to place it: on a flat, heat-safe surface, away from draughts, curtains, children and pets. Never leave a lit candle unattended.
- When to stop: when about 1 cm of wax is left at the bottom.
- After use: the porcelain warms as the candle burns, so let it cool before you touch or move it. Put the lid back on once it is cool to keep the wax clean.
- When it is finished: keep the jar. Send it back to us and we will pour a fresh candle into it, in either scent, for RM60, and return it ready to light again. See the Porcelain Candle Refill for how it works (Malaysia only). Or wash the empty jar by hand and keep it on a dressing table or shelf.
The silica gel sachet
Each gift box holds a small sachet that keeps the porcelain dry in our humid climate. It is not edible: remove it once the gift is unpacked and throw it away, out of reach of children and pets.
If something goes wrong
Write to us at customercare@casaaseana.com. We answer email between 11am and 6pm, Malaysian time, Monday to Friday. If a piece arrived damaged, please tell us within 7 days of receiving your order, and before you send anything back. Our Returns & Refunds page sets out what we need and how we arrange it.