While France has hundreds of varieties of cheese, Italy has almost 300 different kinds of pasta. This culinary specialty, dating back to the seventh century, is a mainstay of Italian cuisine, characterized by its simple composition (durum wheat and water) and its diversity, with variations throughout Italy's regions.

Italian designer Paola Navone is celebrating the famous foodstuff with a tableware and kitchenware collection dedicated to this national product. Called "Pasta & Pasta" and produced by Serax, the collection includes deep oval porcelain plates, as well as two gratin dishes, plus metal spoons, forks and ladles, and an enamel-coated colander.

For seasoning, "Pasta & Pasta" has an oil dispenser, a cheese grater and a garlic peeler, while an eight-liter "pasta pot" and pans for cooking vegetables and sauces are on hand for budding pasta chefs. The collection also features stylish old-fashioned weighing scales, table mats and oven mitts.

The designer has chosen a black and white color scheme, leaving cooks free to bring whatever colors they like to individual dishes.

The "Pasta & Pasta" collection will be on show at the Maison & Objet interior design and decoration trade fair, which runs September 8-12, 2017, in the French capital.

Paola Navone is an Italian designer and architect. A former member of the radical design movement Alchimia, she has won several awards for her work, including the Osaka International Design Award and the Elle Deco International Design Award.