I love my good stuff. I love it for many reasons. I love it because it is beautiful and it feels good to use it. I love it because it makes a lovely table setting. I love it because it is not something I use every day, therefore it always feels 'special' when I pull it out. But I mainly love it because each thing I use tells a story. I don't pull this stuff out of a cabinet, a hutch, a drawer or out from under my bed (yes, I have a set of silver under my bed!) without thinking of who gave it to me, when I acquired it, what it means and what it represents.
So, my good stuff is not only truly good stuff, it is a source for entertainment and reminiscing for me.
Madeline had two friends visit week before last. They are really good friends of hers. She went to college with them, danced with them, shared an apartment with them and now they are designated bridesmaids for her wedding to Eric in March, 2014.
These girls did not come to Florida and expect to be entertained or fed. They are all good at fending for themselves. It was a pleasure seeing them together, as being together was what really mattered. The outings and dining and sightseeing were merely bonuses. There is nothing better than seeing three 20-some-year-olds laughing and talking and just living in the moment.....happy to be reunited.
Obviously, I did not need to pull out the good stuff for these girls! Paper plates were fine for them. Or better yet, just eating the chips right out of the bag and the salsa right out of the container seemed to suffice. No need to stand on ceremony!
I did decide to have a cookout one night. That is our Florida tradition whenever we have guests come visit from out of state. Of course, we ended up cooking in because it was so cold and not much of a cookout night. So, instead of paper plates, I set the table with what I consider our 'everyday dishes' and Jim calls our 7 pound plates! He is so funny about what dishes and glasses he uses. We have taken to eating dinner in front of the TV like old married empty-nesters often do, so Jim likes to use the lightweight plastic plates we have just for ourselves. They are far from the good stuff, and they are not even acceptable for guests in any way! Sometimes these lightweight plastic dishes are dirty so I pull out what I call our everyday dishes. These are the ones Jim calls the 7 pound plates. Since he has to sit in his easy chair and balance his plate on his lap while he watches Brian Williams narrate "The World News Tonight", he wants to use the plastic dishes. It is more comfortable for him.
I have blogged briefly about these 7 pound dishes before. (By the way, they are really heavy.....) Dad bought them from Mom while they were traveling in California many moons ago. I always loved them, and when Mom and Dad moved into their house on Lynhurst Lane she gave them to me. They no longer matched her kitchen and she knew she would never use them. They do match my kitchen and I use them all the time.....that is, when we aren't eating from our family room easy chairs!
These dishes are a handpainted pattern called Vineyard. They are made by VernonWare by Metlox. I researched a little to learn more about this pattern. I learned that Vernonware began in 1916 and was located in Vernon, California. It was bought out by Metlox in 1958. The pattern I have is off white with a border of leaves of gold, green, and grayish-blue with turquoise grapes. This pattern was introduced in 1960 and discontinued in 1980.
I can see why Mom loved it and as I said, I still love it today. Next to pink, green is my favorite color and I have had greens in my kitchens in more than one house. Therefore, this set of dishes has worked for me for a long time. I also use them in the dining room (even though they don't 'match') sometimes for Thanksgiving. They leaves on the plates look very 'fall-ish' to me. In fact, there is a similar pattern made by Vernonware called Autumn Leaves. It looks a lot like the Vineyard pattern. So often when I am setting the table with these dishes, I think about my Mom and Dad and I can picture them on Ridgeview Drive. I always think of sitting at our round kitchen table, eating off this Vineyard pattern.....Mom, Dad, Martha and me. We always were a close family and mealtime seems to be a time when not only my family, but most families, spend time together in conversation, eating, laughter and just creating that 'picture' of family. That's what needs to be implanted in my brain so that I can conjure it up whenever I need to take myself back to that happy time in my life.
So, my 'everyday dishes,' are not only used as vessels for our food, but they often serve as vessels for my fond memories.
The other plastic dishes we have are cute. They have palm trees on them and they are tans, browns and greens and they go really well on our lanai. That is why I bought them. I have a set of 8 and I got them so that we could use them outside for our Florida cookouts. I have started using them sometimes for our evening meals because we are almost out of our other plastic plates. Now my palm tree plates are starting to get worn out! I actually bought these plates at the grocery store! Publix had them several years ago for 99 cents each. I wish they would carry them again. I would definitely buy some more.
When Mom moved to Florida she knew she wouldn't need her china and silver. She had a friend from Charlotte who called her asking if she was interested in selling her china because her daughter had the same pattern and would love to buy some more. Mom agreed. Mom had service for 16 but her friend only wanted service for 8. She came to get them and as we were packing them up for her I realized how much I liked them. I needed another set of dishes like I needed a hole in the head, but being the sentimental slob that I am, I decided I may as well keep the other service for 8. I thought that Mom may get to Florida and wish she had her china. So far she hasn't had any desire to have it. So, I am using her china. I use it fairly often. I can make it look good in either my breakfast room or my dining room. I like it because it is heavier and sturdier than my Lenox bone china. It actually can go in the dishwasher! Whenever Mom comes over, I make sure I set the table with her china and silver. That way it can make her feel like she is still using her own 'good stuff!'
This pattern in a Copeland Spode pattern. Again, I decided to do a little bit of research on this china. I found that the Spode company began in 1770 and in 1833 was purchased by William Copeland and Thomas Garrett. The mark then changed to say Copeland Spode. The pattern in Gainsborough. It is really pretty and bold and colorful....full of lots of flowers. The pattern was first introduced in 1933 and is based on the paintings of Harry Hammersly, one of Spode's famous Victorian artists who specialized in painting fruits and flowers. I have recently gotten back into painting, and I can truly appreciate this artwork. I have done a few paintings of flowers. It is hard to capture their true beauty. I really love this china.
As I said, I have been busy the last couple of weeks and I can think of 2 occasions in which I used this china. I had my family over for Easter/Birthday lunch on Easter Sunday. After church we gathered in my dining room for a meal to celebrate Easter and also to celebrate 3 of the birthdays we had. Mom turned 88 the day after Easter. The day after Mom turned 88, Jimmy turned 30. And the day after Jimmy turned 30, Jim turned 60! We truly had 4 days in a row to celebrate. I knew with everyone's crazy work schedules we would have to make it a joint celebration on that Easter Sunday. We had a birthday cake shaped and decorated like an Easter egg. Although we let Mom blow out the candles, we sang 'Happy Birthday to Mom, Jimmy, Jim....Happy Birthday to you!' It was a mouthful, but the point was made.
The table looked nice set with Mom's china and silver. I also added a potted tulip (pink) to the center of the table for our centerpiece. I stuck it in the Waterford Punch Bowl that was Mom's that I keep on the center of my dining room table. It actually turned out to look pretty cool. Mom oohed and ahhed about it a lot. That's good, because the potted tulip was her birthday gift. She dares me to buy her anything, but I usually know what I can 'get away with.' The tulips were one of those things. Mom's loves tulips. They are definitely her favorite and have been as long as I can remember. Martha and I used to use tulips as centerpieces for birthday luncheons we had for Mom.
I think the combination of being surrounded by all her 'good stuff,' her family and some good food, Mom had a great Easter/Birthday! I am sure in the future when I set my table for Easter lunch with those same dishes, I will probably think back to this Easter 2013.
I used these same dishes later that same week. It was my turn to host my Friday morning bridge group. I love this group. Each woman in it is near and dear to my heart. If ever I have to miss our time together I am so disappointed. I have always heard that laughter is the best medicine and that it is good for your heart and all those wonderful things. Well, should that truly be the case, these women are my life-savers. Our hearts should all be strong and healthy from all the laughing we do. Sometimes we laugh and giggle over the silliest things. Aside from the laughter, we do all really love to play bridge. We enjoy the game very much. We play 20 hands each time we meet. We also eat brunch and we share stories, advice and a host of other things. And amid all that, we laugh. We all agree that if we didn't play bridge we would never know which stores had the best sales, who the best plumber was, or which art gallery was having a good show. I get so many tidbits of good information from this group.
We always try out new recipes on each other. We call this group the guinea pig group. Who else can you try out recipes on but good friends? I served Eggs Benedict Casserole, Grits and Corn Casserole, Strawmellow Delight Salad, fresh strawberry mini-muffins, cinnamon pinwheels and pecan coffee cake......all on Mom's beautiful china. (And with her silver too!) I thought of Mom when I pulled it out and I thought of how she always loves it when I play bridge. It makes her happy knowing I am with my friends and laughing and enjoying myself. She is really sweet like that.
My china is kept in the corner cupboard in my dining room. I picked this china out when I was 19 years old....registering at Gilliat's for my wedding registry! I loved it then and I still love it today. It is simple and elegant and has touches of pink among the beige and gold. My china is delicate bone china from Lenox. The pattern is Castle Garden. (I just love the name of the pattern!) My research led me to discover that Walter Scott Lenox started the company in 1889. He combined his talent for drawing and his fascination with clay as a basis for his products. Lenox is now "among the world's oldest and most respected names in fine tableware." I found that my particular pattern was introduced in 1973 and discontinued in 1993. I got married in 1976, so at that time it was probably a popular pattern.
I don't use it very often because it isn't dishwasher safe and I know it is not often the appropriate dinnerware for the types of gatherings we have around here. I try to hear Erma Bombeck whispering in my ear as I carefully pull out my china. Erma Bombeck was a believer in using what you have and living life to the fullest. You never know what tomorrow will bring.
I do use my china when I host a nice luncheon or on Thanksgiving. I love to set a nice Thanksgiving table and I love to use my china. When I use this china I realize the significance of how I acquired it....as wedding presents! I know that it is not a necessity, but I sure do love to look at it in my corner cupboard. It is almost like an accessory. I don't find it excessive at all. I grew up in the South and it was just part of my heritage and culture to have fine china and silver and to choose a pattern when you were getting married. People all had a set of everyday dishes and then there was their 'good stuff.' It is elegant and fine and I like to dine like that once in a while. It feels good. It takes me back to a time and place. I like what it feels like and what it represents. Young people today don't usually pick out fine china and silver. I can understand that from a practical standpoint, but it is sort of sad that it seems to be something that is a dying tradition. Madeline inherited Jessie's silver and her china. I am glad for her that she will have it. It may not be her style and taste, but I know she will appreciate it. I hope she gets the same 'feel' as I do when I pull my china out of the cupboard and start setting the table. I love the way the table looks when all these beautiful things are upon it. It makes me happy.
I guess one day Madeline will not only have Jessie's china and silver, but she will also have her Grandma's china and silver and her mom's china and silver! My silver was my Aunt Madeline's. I know that my Madeline knows and appreciates the significance of family heirlooms and the importance of maintaining them and the heritage and traditions they represent.
A meal shared with family and friends is a wonderful experience. It is so much more than just the breaking of bread. It is a celebration of a holiday or a life. It is simply together time. It is a time to socialize and veer from the everyday routine. It is a time to talk and to laugh. It is a time to overeat and it is a time to experiment with new recipes and try new foods. This can be a meal served on paper plates, plastic plates, everyday plates or even the good stuff.
And memories are made of this.
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