Behind the Egg Cup Revival

Egg cups have been popping up again on tabletops in our social feeds and in design showrooms. But it seems like their popularity never really left Europe in the first place. Egg cups are very easy to find in Paris flea markets, and even a British hotel breakfast buffet is likely to have a basic set next to the coffee cups.

“They bring a sweetness to the table,” designer Brittny Button says. “There’s a posh feeling that they bring and a formality that feels very British. My husband, Jenson Button, is British, and egg cups are a nostalgic reminder for him of his childhood, growing up in Frome, Somerset, in England.”

India Irving is a restaurateur and an operating partner at The Ivy at Home, a company known for its hand-painted heirloom-quality servingware. She’s even currently working on an egg cup release for the brand.

“When it comes to breakfast, you can’t beat a soft-boiled egg,” she says. “The satisfaction of tapping the shell, scooping off the top and then dunking your spoon (or even better, a piece of buttered toast) into the yolk is sublime. If you ask me, this is the single greatest thing about an egg cup: It makes eating a soft-boiled egg, whether alone or in good company, seamless and stylish.”

Egg Cup Styling Tips and Uses

Whether you’re not a fan of eating eggs or you’re simply unsure how to style your existing (or soon-to-be) collection of egg cups, use the tips below to get the most out of them both practically and aesthetically.

Start a Diverse Collection

Egg cups come in all sorts of designs. Button says not to overthink your collection and grab the ones that speak the most to you. Their lovely hourglass shape will give the collection the common thread it needs for each piece to look visually pleasing together.

The designer also offers a great shelf-display tip for a mixed collection. “I like to place them in order of height, tallest in the back, moving to the shortest in the front. I placed them in a central cupboard to show off the collection we’ve acquired over the years.

Style Them on a Table

According to Button, the best place to put an egg cup is centrally above the dinner plate, in the same horizontal line as the drinking glasses. “An egg cup can also act as a place card holder stand if there’s assigned seating,” she adds.

Irving offers a table-setting tip that will draw more attention to the thoughtful detail. “If you’re using them to serve eggs, layer with a vintage cocktail napkin underneath, followed by a colorful saucer, and a larger dish below that,” she says. “This stacked look of mixing and matching colors and patterns is the perfect way to help pull a tablescape together.”

Use Them as Trinket Dishes, Mini Vases, or Votives

You don’t have to use egg cups for their original purpose at all. Button notes that they make great mini vases for flowers and votives for tealights. Her children have also come up with the most whimsical of uses for these tabletop accessories.

“My daughter and son, who are five and seven, use them as a mini catchall to place their magpie finds,” she says. “Every day, they come home with ‘found’ objects from school: a hair barrette, Croc gem, eraser, and stones. An egg cup becomes their substitute treasure chest, and it keeps their daily clutter contained and easily accessible.”

Irving takes a similarly whimsical approach to the table, scattering multiple egg cups and filling them with candy and savory delights like wasabi peas.ি