Field is Family

When my brother, Chris, and I were deciding what to name our company back in 2015, we wanted to honor both our family and the tradition of American cast iron cookware. The two most important American manufacturers of vintage cast iron cookware—Griswold and Wagner—were both family names, and we wanted to follow in their footsteps by putting our name on a piece of cookware that would bless other families for generations to come.

Our maternal grandmother, Betsy Field—whom we called Dindi—was a true matriarch who embodied many of the values we, and our company, hold dear. She bonded our family with a continuous calendar of events to bring us together, enjoy some home-cooked food, and share the love. She had a true zest for life, people, food, and everything in between. She was always curious, always exploring, traveling, and learning. She had a well developed sense of style and wore elaborate, bright clothing she’d bought from all around the world. She was also someone who loved everyone and was always willing to lend an ear, a hand, or a dollar.

Dindi normalized things that may have seemed extreme to others. She enabled Chris and myself to dream and imagine infinite possibilities. She loved all of her grandchildren unconditionally, so we always felt safe being ourselves around her. And she set an example of someone unafraid to go about her life as she saw fit—and for the most part, the world loved her back for it.

In the kitchen, Dindi was eclectic and fearless. Her pantries overflowed with spices and other ingredients that she’d use with utter abandon as she turned her kitchen into a whirl of smells and flavors of all different types of cuisine. Sometimes her cooking was hit or miss, but she had no fear of failure. Not surprisingly, my favorite dish she made was beef stew. In hindsight I see why: It’s the perfect medium for a cook who can’t resist experimentation and has no patience for measuring cups, spoons, or precise timing.

Many of Dindi’s qualities extend to the entire Field side of the family. We Fields love to throw (and never miss) a good party. We even have a family toast: “Here’s to us, more like us, damn few.” Fields are incredibly inclusive and find something interesting and lovable about everyone they meet. At the same time we’re opinionated and embody a Yankee directness that can come off as rude until you notice the twinkle in our eyes and the earnestness in our demeanor. Either way, it helped Chris and I develop a thick skin, a sense of humor, and a playfulness that definitely comes from the Field side.

So when we looked at all the family names to choose from—Muscarella, Thane, Bergen, and Field—not only did one of those sound like a natural fit for a company that would make cookware meant to be used indoors and outside, the Field name really shared all of the qualities we wanted our products, and our company, to embody. And so we proudly stamp the Field name onto all of our pans, both to carry on the tradition of American cast iron cookware, and to honor Dindi and all the gifts she gave her family.