linda, this is what is on the pieces i have. my pix were not coming out at all, so being the persistent bugger that i am, i was able to find a great site identifying all types of japanese pottery markings. i would really like to know the name of this pattern, as i would like to acquire more pieces, if they are available. thanks so much for your help, it's appreciated. maryanne and helen, of course the pattern is from japan, i stated that in my post. why attempt to direct me to your personal site for chinese pottery? Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.gotheborg.com/marks/20thcenturyjapan.shtml

Thank u all for your info that is what popped up on the internet but didn't know about the name being different. That's what happens when you by from Walmart! Lol. I thought was cheap and would give it a try. So glad I got a long bloomer!

It looks like a Gentiana. Possibly G. cruciata or G. saponaria. Can your friend get a pic of the entire plant and is it growing in a garden?

I agree with others that this is essentially a non-issue as they are innocuous. Just paint them the same color as the wall so they blend in. Once you get them organized properly they aren't difficult to use because you know what is behind each segment and you put items that aren't accessed frequently in the segment that is most troublesome. I have double sliding doors in my closet which I replaced when I remodeled with new doors. I have seen some gorgeous "statement" versions but any upgrade from your current innocuous doors would be expensive. A higher end MCM home might have had walnut slab doors. I have seen "fancy" doors that have mullions or lamina or the current trend "black" type of mullions. Some of my neighbors with the same layout have the "slatted" style of sliding wood doors. Mine are full mirrors with invisible hardware. It works for me because I have a high rise city view so having the view reflected in the wall of mirrors was a design choice. It is also extremely practical to have large floor to ceiling wall to wall mirrors. It doesn't make me think of a bad disco in the least :-)