Friday, August 21, 2009

The Williamsburg Glass

I am a firm believer of beautiful stemware, I also have special glasses that I love and a very special one I use all the time, you know, like a good pair of jeans. It is the Williamsburg glass. I don't know if it actually originated from Williamsburg, Pa., but the city of brotherly love, Philadelphia (above)made me love it. It is a simple, Colonial styled glass (Oops! did I say Colonial???)I'm a Francophile, for crying out loud.....! What am I saying? The glass I speak of is simple in design, looks like old glass, not overly embellished, & footed. Wine and champagne look great in it and it serves as a beautiful bud vase.



When we opened Beadboard UpCountry I had these glasses in the shop and I thought EVERYONE would just love them!!!! Well, they sat on a shelf next to fancier more embellished glasses and no one "GOT' them or purchased them either, so I pulled them off the floor of the shop and thought "ok, I certainly missed that call, so much for self indulgency...." The next night I stumbled on one of my all time favorite movies "The Philadelphia Story". The movie stars Katherine Hepburn, as Main Line Philadelpha heiress, Tracy Lord, who's getting married for the second time to a rich social moron when she still loves Cary Grant who lives close by. James Stewart is a reporter covering the wedding and is falling for her too.....


At one point the night before the wedding Hepburn and Stewart go swimming and get a little "untidy" on champagne. Here you see Stewart carrying a sloshed Tracy Lord, with hubby to be on the left looking like his cumberbund is too tight.




The next morning, after the party the previous night, everyone, especially Hepburn and Stewart were suffering from colossal hangovers. The cure????? Mimosas of course! Served in the Williamsburg glass!!!! I about fell out of my chair!!!!!!



I couldn't get the bottom in this one but that glass is in the movie. This is why I think this is funny. Are you ready for this???????



Since I couldn't sell them I thought I can SERVE in them so we keep some in the back of the store and if someone comes in around closing time, if we have it, we'll offer wine or an apperitif in those glasses. NOW, everybody says:" Where did you get these glasses? " They love them! I have sold them by the dozens, to the tune of about 140 or more!!!!!!!!



Here it is again as a vase, so simple, so elegant.

But this is how we like them the most, filled up!!!!!!! Preferably with Lillet Blonde...
A Votre Sante!









4 comments:

  1. Maryanne,

    I love your story about your Williamsburg Glasses! So I'm off to Netflix to add the "Philadelphia Story."

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  2. Love the glasses... they are so classy... and I love drinking wine from them at you shop!

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  3. It's all the merchandising!!!! very interesting. save me some of those glasses! haha!!!!!!!!

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  4. You're really blogging, girl! Substitute a picture of YOU for that chair! I'm really enjoying reading from afar -- we're in Delaware til January but will see you then.

    Love and hugs -- Linda and John

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