Recently WilliamsburgMarketplace.com, the website for the products program of The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, underwent a slight redesign to accomodate a new category - WILLIAMSBURG Classics. Clicking on this link will take you to a page full of everyone's timeless favorites from Colonial Williamsburg.
For me, a virtual stroll through the products in this section is like taking a step back into my childhood. See, my grandmother worked for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation for almost 30 years. And many of these items were cherished pieces that she purchased after saving a little out of each check until she had enough. She knew it was worth sacrificing for because once she'd made the purchase she would have this chair, mirror, lamp, or plate forever. She would pass the classic pieces on to her son and, ultimately to me, her grand-daughter.
The Colonial Williamsburg products program was started in 1930 when Mr. Rockefeller authorized Josiah Wedgwood & Sons in England to reproduce dinnerware from china fragments unearthed at the Raleigh Tavern site in the historic area. That type of china was unavailable at the time so it was suggested by Mr. Rockefeller that "the purposes of eduction might be furthered by the sale of this ware." With that, the products program was born and in 1937 the first licensee, Friedman Brothers, was signed. Friedman Brothers mirrors continue to be a part of the WILLIAMSBURG Reserve collection and are amongst the products in the WILLIAMSBURG Classics category.
What continues to amaze me is how some of these classic pieces of furniture, mirrors, dinnerware, and accessories that have been interpreted or inspired from an item made over 300 years ago and sold by The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation for over 70 years can still be so fashionable and appropriate for today's home. For example, take that pewter tea set that my mom inherited from my grandmother and I've tried to permanently "borrow" several times (sorry mom!). My grandmother purchased one of the first releases of that tea set. She showcased it in her living room on her chippendale table. It is now the perfect bit of shine in my mother's china cabinet in her dining room. And, you know, that pewter tea set looks really awesome on a sideboard in my contemporary home!
Classic itmes are just that - classic. To quote a good friend of mine, an 18th century enthusiast, "A classic WILLIAMSBURG piece is like that perfect black suit. You can dress it up or down but it will never go out of style."
For me, a virtual stroll through the products in this section is like taking a step back into my childhood. See, my grandmother worked for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation for almost 30 years. And many of these items were cherished pieces that she purchased after saving a little out of each check until she had enough. She knew it was worth sacrificing for because once she'd made the purchase she would have this chair, mirror, lamp, or plate forever. She would pass the classic pieces on to her son and, ultimately to me, her grand-daughter.
The Colonial Williamsburg products program was started in 1930 when Mr. Rockefeller authorized Josiah Wedgwood & Sons in England to reproduce dinnerware from china fragments unearthed at the Raleigh Tavern site in the historic area. That type of china was unavailable at the time so it was suggested by Mr. Rockefeller that "the purposes of eduction might be furthered by the sale of this ware." With that, the products program was born and in 1937 the first licensee, Friedman Brothers, was signed. Friedman Brothers mirrors continue to be a part of the WILLIAMSBURG Reserve collection and are amongst the products in the WILLIAMSBURG Classics category.
What continues to amaze me is how some of these classic pieces of furniture, mirrors, dinnerware, and accessories that have been interpreted or inspired from an item made over 300 years ago and sold by The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation for over 70 years can still be so fashionable and appropriate for today's home. For example, take that pewter tea set that my mom inherited from my grandmother and I've tried to permanently "borrow" several times (sorry mom!). My grandmother purchased one of the first releases of that tea set. She showcased it in her living room on her chippendale table. It is now the perfect bit of shine in my mother's china cabinet in her dining room. And, you know, that pewter tea set looks really awesome on a sideboard in my contemporary home!
Classic itmes are just that - classic. To quote a good friend of mine, an 18th century enthusiast, "A classic WILLIAMSBURG piece is like that perfect black suit. You can dress it up or down but it will never go out of style."
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