According to psychologist Barry Schwartz, the secret to happiness is having less to choose from. In his book The Paradox of Choice (Harper Perennial), Schwartz describes how choice ultimately leads to paralysis. If you've ever spent hours sleuthing for something as seemingly simple as the perfect teakettle, you know this is certainly the case.
So we've taken notes from each other, sifted through all the options, and narrowed down our selection to 13 classic teakettles. Have one to add to the list? Let us know in the Comments section below.
Above: The hand-spun anodized aluminum Traditional Kettle with British oak handle from the Netherton Foundry in the Shropshire countryside is £140 ($214.94) from Another Country.
Above: The Japanese Enamel Kettle is £62 ($95.19) from Labour and Wait.
Above: The Aga Hard Anodized Kettle, made in the UK, is $625 from March in San Francisco.
Above: Kaufmann Mercantile's Handmade Copper Tea Kettle from a metalworking company in Vermont is $399.99.
Above: Venerable Belgium company Demeyere makes a high-gloss finish Stainless Steel Teakettle; $65 for the small size (4.19 quarts) and $84.95 for the large (6.28 quarts) at All Modern.
Above: Alexa and Francesca both swear by the Staub Theiere Teapot, available in black cast iron as well as a range of enameled jewel-like colors (cherry, basil, grenadine, aubergine); $164.99 at Amazon. Photograph from Distinctive Decor.
Above: Sarah's favorite is the Water Kettle by Sori Yanagi, which we singled out in the Remodelista book. A bestseller in Japan, it's $64 for the 2.5-quart size from Amazon. See Muji's lookalike design in our High/Low post. Photograph from Antik Modern.
Above: The BonJour Porcelain Teakettle in black enamel at Amazon holds two quarts; also available at $39.95 at All Modern.
Above: The Opa Nuotiokahvipannu teakettle is made by Opa Oly, the oldest manufacturer of stainless steel household items in Scandinavia; available for €59 ($67.23) from Retkiaitta.
Above: Illinois-based Copco has been making teakettles since 1962; the Cambridge Stainless Steel Teakettle is $34.99 at Amazon.
Above: Julie's next purchase will be the Kaico Kettle, designed by Makoto Koizumi and made of enamel-coated steel with a beechwood handle and maple knob; $150 at Emmo Home. Photograph from Rakuten.
Above: The classic Le Creuset Stainless Steel Tea Kettle is $120 at Williams-Sonoma.
Above: The High-Gloss-Finish Solid Copper Teakettle from traditional old English whistling kettle maker Simplex is $179.95.
Also consider:
For more kitchen accessories, sift through the hundreds of Tabletop posts in our archive. And for an alternative teapot see The Teapot Transformed.
N.B.: This post is an update; the original ran on September 28, 2011, as part of our London Teatime issue.
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