Shake It Like Like a Salt and Pepper Shaker

Posted on Apr 19, 2012Written by Lindsay Scouras

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I’ve been married for a little over a year now and one thing I’ve learned is that compromise is the key to any successful relationship. Also, cutting up one of your husband’s socks for your sock bun is one of the fastest ways to make him not trust you and possibly lock up your laptop.

So a couple weeks ago ago when Steve prepared spaghetti and meatball dinner that I thought could stand to use a hint more salt, we got into one of our teensy marital spats when he ruthlessly accused me of spilling salt all over the clean baking pans on the counter. Ordinarily, I would be hurt by such an accusation, but it was partially true because only minutes before had I sprinkled an accidental hefty helping from one of those giant Morton salt containers out of the cabinet.

It was only after this that he once again reminded me that we still don’t have an actual set of salt and pepper shakers. I don’t know how this got overlooked in the process of moving in together and registering for gifts, but somehow we just never got around to it.

So what’s the hold up? Well, like anything else in life, I don’t want to be boring. I’d rather die than put out a set of those white cardboard shakers adorned with random vegetables on them. With that, I set out to find the perfect set of salt and pepper shakers that would represent our taste, style and personality as a couple. This is obviously an essential task, and unfortunately I had to put my search for World Peace on hold to tend to such a pressing issue.

In the past, this task may have been daunting. It might have taken me years of magazine clipping to even find one set of fun shakers, and probably would have taken me another year to locate the said clipping among my massive collection (and that’s just in the Decor section). But not anymore. Thanks to my trusty Pinterest, within ten minutes I had not only created an entire board dedicated to this crucial life decision, but had also posted a link on Facebook asking for opinions from my loyal followers who happen not to be sick of my constant barrage of Kardashian-related status updates.

So here’s a brief montage of what I deemed to be the most promising candidates to be Our First Shakers. Yes, it’s that important that the title needs to be capitalized.

Disclaimer: These pictures are clearly all from Pinterest as stated before. So don’t sue me. Trust me, I don’t have anything.

So for some reason, there are certain motifs that seem to be recurring when searching for salt and pepper shakers. Half of the ones I found were elephants:

$12.99 modcloth

$48 jonathan adler

Or birds:

$8 west elm

$9 z gallerie

Actually, animals are apparently HUGE in the shaker world. I don’t even like pugs, yet I still thought this set was totes adorbs:

$7 modcloth

Despite my utter discomfort in any woodsy our outdoor situation, I do sometimes like the look of nature-esque things, but only in small doses when appropriately mixed with modern pieces. Hence why I love this silver pinecone set. Also it reminds me of our wedding:


$18 west elm

These ones are uber nature-y, but yet I like them. Probably wouldn’t go with my Ralph Lauren Silk Ribbon Slate china set though. These are more of a basket-paper-plate-holder style set:

$13 modcloth

This set doesn’t match anything in our apartment, except for our bedroom and my half of the closet. Since we don’t eat dinner in there, this isn’t the most practical option, but I had to include it just because:

$64 takae

As much as I wanted my salt and pepper shakers to be cute and quirky and adorned, I also found something I liked in just a simple spherical design like these:

$32 etsy

$6 west elm

Which is weird, because I don’t even like eggs.

Obviously, if I was a movie star/didn’t live with a boy I would have these. I don’t care how ridiculous they are, I just love them:

$23 z gallerie

I really was searching for a set to appeal to both of us, although I guess you wouldn’t know it by all the jewels and tiny animals. This seemed like a good neutral pair, but there’s just something so manly and industrial about them. Also, they seem like they’re made of lead, and I would like to be able to have children someday:

$19 pottery barn

Somehow in this process I discovered this site called Godinger.com. I’ve never heard of this, and immediately it looked like a bunch of overly fancy stuffy things that I could not afford. But after looking around, it seems like stuff that just looks fancy and is actually kind of inexpensive for what the stuff is. Anyway, their shaker section is ENORMOUS and I loved everything and pinned five of them immediately. They were just the perfect mix of fancy and interesting. Kind of like me. I mean, us.

$25 godinger

$20 godinger

$30 godinger

$30 godiner

$20 godinger

After doing all this research, I basically discovered that Jonathan Adler salt and pepper shakers are the BMW of condiment holders. Meaning that they are way overpriced and Steve is probably starting to break out in hives, because deep down something inside him knows that I looked at a pair of $48 shakers even for a second.

But seriously. I know these are ludicrous, and clearly I am not going to purchase them… but how GORGEOUS are these?!

$48 jonathan adler

So what do you think? Other than that I have clearly gone of the deep end if I have devoted this much time to finding the perfect set of salt and pepper shakers instead of seeking professional help for my bargain jewelry addiction. Does anyone else have fun shakers or am I the only person that deemed this to be a determining factor for the success all dinners to be had as a couple forevermore?

Also I haven’t shown any of these to Steve yet. If I’m lucky, I’ll be able to figure out a way to record his reaction to each of my very well researched suggestions. And if you don’t hear anything… well then I guess it means we got divorced over $48 elephant shakers.

~L

Published under: ... at Being (Slightly) Domestic

11 comments on “Shake It Like Like a Salt and Pepper Shaker”

  1. From my experience, there are very few salt and pepper shakers that work well and are sturdy enough to last a long time. My advice is don’t spend a fortune. And if this started over an argument, pick together!

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    • To be honest, I hadn’t totally thought about the quality aspect of it, so thank you for the insight. I was planning on actually choosing a set with my husband, I was just using Pinterest to indulge in my most ridiculous home decorating fantasies where money is no object (because let’s face it- people that can actually afford all these amazing homes and crap to put in it probably aren’t perusing the internet looking for pretty pictures of it!). It’s all in good fun, and I’m sure in the end we’ll choose something semi-practical. I wasn’t planning on investing in an heirloom to pass down to our children or anything lol.

      ~L

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  2. I’m loving these! The elephant ones are amazing! But, if you want to stay away from the elephant theme – my favorites are the Godinger Apple and Pear and the Godinger S and P. If you do want the elephants, definitely go with the intertwined ones! Also, elephants symbolism patience and wisdom – so maybe getting elephants would teach Steve to be more patient with your love of salt? Haha – can’t wait to see which ones you pick! xo, Sara

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    • HAHA I did not know that about the elephants. I was just shocked that by typing in “salt and pepper shakers” into the search bar on Pinterest, almost half of the results that come up are elephants! I do think some of them are really cute… I guess I just didn’t realize that I was behind the trend already.

      ~L

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    • oh.my.god.

      I can’t believe you found these. They would definitely be a front runner, although like I said, as of right now only our bedroom is nautical. Although I do have the sperm whale platter that Steve always makes fun of…

      Also I don’t see a price on here, which makes me nervous lol

      ~L

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  4. Hi L,
    K Ross here. We share very similar styles, and I agree with you that the right salt and pepper shaker will tell people a lot about you.. Since you are fabulous you need a fabulous salt and pepper shaker. The Jonathan Adler elephants are my favorite, second favorite being the Godinger apple & pear. Whatever you choose I’m sure it will be a great statement piece. 🙂

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    • I’m glad you understand the need for fabulousness in every aspect of life, even something as small as shakers. I have been a fan of J Ad ever since Top Design, but his overly priced ceramic items annoy yet intrigue me frequently. If I can get Steve to agree to even one of these bad boys it’ll be win.

      -L

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  5. OK, let’s point out here that Steve is the one of you who represents the kitchen… because of this AND because I think that a guest in your house should be able to scan the table and understand where they might be able to acquire said spices…

    I like the manly ones that say salt and pepper.

    My grandparents always had animal salt and pepper shakers that were so small I could never find them AND could never distinguish the salt from the pepper and found it to be endlessly frustrating.

    As opposed to your taste in accessories, I have found your taste in dishware to be (wonderfully) minimalist and you always like things to match. I say go with simple ones.

    I state my case.

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    • Wow. Thank you for that very thorough and well thought out response. I never thought about the importance of then being FUNCTIONAL! Also thank you for representing the “guest” vote. And sadly Steve does tend to trump me in the kitchen however this seems to fall under the dining category which as far as decorating goes, is my domain. So who knows. I wrote this post weeks ago and still haven’t purchased a pair.

      -L

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  6. ps. I think the S and P letter ones also qualify

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