Yesterday was the last day of the 2011 Tour de France. Riders began Stage 21, the last stage of the 3 weeks race in the Region of Île-de-France, the wealthiest and most populated of the 26 regions of France. They began in Créteil on a blisteringly hot Sunday morning and ended in a triumphant, yellow jersey earning--Congratulations to Cadel Evans of Australia!--ride through the Champs-Élysées in Paris. It is here that Sabre Paris, a company founded by Francis and Pascale Gelb, began in 1993. Named after the fencing weapon, sabre, known for its light weight and flexible rules of engagement, Sabre Paris designs are guided by the same philosophy, embracing lightness and flexibility.

The high quality, corrosion ressistant 18/10 stainless steel and handle materials appreciate of the hectic modern lifestyle. What really makes Sabre Paris stand out is the enormous range of looks. Sabre, in the spirit of their modern sensibilities, wanted to meet the modern consumer's desire for aesthetic freedom, and to encourage marrying and mixing colors, patterns, and materials. They didn't fool around. Each look (and there are more than Didriks could possibly offer in its entirety) comes in several colors up to over two dozen. Added to that, Sabre offers, not only flatware, but kitchen utensils, including cheese knives, and servers for the table.

My personal favorite is the Sabre Natura line. It's got a handle shape that is flat so that the flatware stays flat on the table. The handle material has a pearlescent finish so that, depending on how the light hits it, it looks like it has several different shades of the chosen color.

The first time I used Sabre Paris flatware was during Dinner Series dinner #8: Jim and Page's. (They just hosted their second Dinner Series event, Dinner #11, in their garden which you can read about here.) Page owns her own set of the Sabre Bamboo flatware which you can see used in the table setting above. They look luxurious and feel wonderful in the hand.

More recently, Dinner Series Dinner #10: Seaside Supper, featured the Sabre Djembe flatware in jungle. Arguably the most stunning table setting to date on the Dinner Series, the flatware ties in the browns and greens and blues of the other table setting items and the seaside surroundings.

And just yesterday, we had our Dinner Series event #12: a Sunday brunch, al fresco. The posts for these will be coming soon, but in the mean time let me give you a glance into the table setting Melissa put together using the Sabre Natura five-piece place setting in moss green. Everyone at the brunch was asking about it. You can see more of the picture already available for perusing on Flickr.

Whichever look and color you choose, you're guaranteed quality and lasting pleasure every time you sit down to eat with Sabre.

This concludes our tour of France’s high quality house ware as we toured with the riders of the Tour de France. Thanks for touring with us!