Gleena Ceramics is created in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. A small shop is part of the studio space located at 2114 S. Taylor Rd, open to the public. All gleena tableware pieces are porcelain and are hand poured and crafted in small batches by Asya Palatova. 

Asya began working with clay while studying graphic design as an undergraduate at University of Cincinnati. The love affair with clay compelled Asya to build ceramic sculptures on her kitchen table while working as a graphic designer in New York City. The kitchen-built sculptures got Asya into the graduate program at Rhode Island School of Design. After earning an MFA with a ceramic concentration, Asya created Gleena, a functional tableware line. 

Asya mixes her own porcelain slip and glazes using food-safe clays and minerals, all recipes that she developed at RISD. Click here for "behind the scenes" peek at mixing slip.

"Gleena" means "clay" in Russian. Gleena’s organic shapes, soft sugary colors, and imagery are inspired by Asya’s childhood summers spent at grandma’s country house outside of St. Petersburg, Russia. Surrounded by carefully tended gardens and apple trees, the country house was a gathering place for family and friends. Evocative of those leisurely days, the gleena line is 
meant to be used on a daily basis.

Gleena porcelain is dishwasher safe, but not recommended for the microwave. That said, nothing will happen to it right away besides getting really hot. However, frequent microwave use will shorten the life of your piece, and hairline cracks will develop.