Tulip Vases

What is a tulip vase?

A tulip vase, also called a tulipière, tulip pyramid or flower pyramid, is a vase with several spouts. Each stem has its own opening, so the tulips stand upright and apart and the arrangement takes on a sculptural look. The tulip vases here are in fine Chinese porcelain, painted by hand, which gives a clear, clean note when tapped lightly.

Why buy a tulip vase?

A tulip vase joins floristry and the art object. Its spouts give an arrangement height, rhythm and order, and the piece looks as good on a console table as on a chimneypiece or at the centre of a dining table. A home can be as stimulating as an exhibition, which is why these tulip vases are designed and chosen to hold flowers and to stand as works of art in their own right: painted by hand and rooted in art history.

The history of the tulip vase

Tulip vases appeared at the end of the seventeenth century. Blue and white porcelain from Jingdezhen in China was then the benchmark, and the potters of Delft carried its look over into tin-glazed earthenware. The Victoria and Albert Museum in London holds a flower holder from the De Grieksche A factory in Delft, dated 1685–1700: it is tin-glazed earthenware, decorated in cobalt blue with Chinese-inspired flowers. Later, the style known as Kangxi Revival returned to the blue porcelain of the Kangxi period, with floral motifs in a deep indigo blue; several of our models draw on it.

Types and models of tulip vase

Small tulip vase with neck and spouts

For a tulip vase that fits anywhere, the classic model, with a central neck and several spouts around the body, is the most versatile. Its form gives each stem its own space: the flowers stay upright and the silhouette looks light. In a small sitting room or on a sideboard its size is practical, with enough volume to be noticed and a slender enough outline not to block the view.

Our Kangxi Revival-style tulip vase takes up the look of the Kangxi period: cobalt blue under the glaze on a clean white body, high-fired, giving that recognisable clear ring. It suits a household that brings tulips in only now and then or anyone looking for a small, versatile tulip vase at a moderate price.

Classic three-tier tulip vase

The three-tier model is a fixed composition: the tiers always belong together and are stacked as a set to give the right proportions, stability and distribution of water. Using the sections separately is not intended and blurs the form and the play of lines.

Our Amélie tulip vase is painted by hand with flowers in several shades of cobalt blue on white and high-fired, giving a dense porcelain with a crisp ring. A very discreet aged finish strengthens its classical air. It is the model best suited to a matching pair, set symmetrically on a chimneypiece or a console table: a classic, balanced arrangement.

Tulip pyramid (large tulip vase)

The tulip pyramid, also known as a flower pyramid, is the most architectural form of the tulip vase. Every tier has spouts that build the arrangement up in steps; it suits high ceilings, entrance halls or the mantelpiece of a classical chimneypiece.

Our George tulip pyramid is made up of six separate pieces and richly decorated in blue and white. It is the choice for a piece that draws every eye, in an entrance hall for example, or for a collector looking for a large centrepiece.

One or two?

In interiors with a historical air, with a classical mirror, a console table or wood panelling, two matching three-tier tulip vases create balance: two Amélie vases, one on each side of a mirror, is the classic arrangement. In a modern, pared-back space a single George tulip pyramid usually has more impact, a solitary art object that interrupts the lines of the room. For the dining table the classic tulip vase with a neck is the best choice: tall enough to make an impression and low enough for guests to see each other.

Vases for tulips: how to choose the right one

The ideal vase for tulips lets the arrangement breathe and suits its setting. Start with size: on a dining table or a coffee table the aim is height without blocking conversation, so between 25 and 40 cm, on a plain, stable base. On a chimneypiece or in an entrance hall a taller model of 45 to 70 cm works better.

Material decides both look and durability. Chinese porcelain (kaolin, high-fired) is glassy and watertight and rings clearly when tapped gently, a sign of quality. It keeps the spouts firm and stops the stems from bending.

For colour and decoration, blue and white is the most versatile choice: it sits naturally in a classical interior and adds a precise accent to a minimal, contemporary space. Floral motifs painted by hand give the surface depth; a plain or lightly decorated piece looks calmer.

Next, look at the design and the number of openings, since they decide how many stems fit comfortably. The classic model with a central neck and spouts around it is the most versatile tulip vase: light, slender and right for a small bunch. Our Kangxi Revival-style tulip vase is the textbook example. For a focal point on the chimneypiece, the classic three-tier Amélie plays that part. To give presence to a room with a high ceiling, choose the tulip pyramid: its tiers of spouts spread the stems in a rising composition, and George is conceived as exactly that architectural centrepiece.

Chinese porcelain or Delftware tulip vases: differences and buying advice

Anyone buying a tulip vase soon meets two worlds: Chinese porcelain and Delft blue earthenware, of European tradition. Today there are also many contemporary interpretations in glass, ceramic or plastic. In material, these three families are very different.

Chinese porcelain is made from kaolin and feldspar (petuntse); a high firing leaves it fully vitrified and non-porous. Hence the underglaze blue, crisp on a cool white body, and the characteristic resonance when the rim is tapped gently. Delftware, by contrast, is tin-glazed earthenware: soft in tone, but its lower firing and more porous body make it less dense and less glassy.

For everyday use with flowers, Chinese porcelain is the better choice: fully watertight, with firm spouts and a sheen that lasts for years.

Our Kangxi Revival-style tulip vase shows this: hard porcelain of a cool white, with cobalt blue under the glaze and that characteristic clear ring.

For calm and symmetry on the chimneypiece, choose the fixed three-tier Amélie set, painted by hand in shades of cobalt blue.

For something monumental, the George tulip pyramid, with its five tiers of spouts, is made to preside over the room.